Mauritius as a Tourist Destination

Mauritius as a Tourist Destination This part of the theoretical discussion gives an overview of Mauritius as a tourist destination. A general introduction to the cultural and geographical background with a description of tourism characteristics, attractions, as well as seasonal aspects is presented. 2.7.1 Mauritius Mauritius is independent since 1968 and has been a republic since 1992.The population of Mauritius is 1.3 million, shared out in 1860 km2. While the official language is English mainly and French, Creole, a French derived dialect, is spoken by the majority of the population and is considered as the national language. Mauritius multicultural ethnicity made that other ancestral language such as Hindi, Tamil, Chinese, Urdu or Bhojpuri are also spoken. The capital, Port Louis, has population of 150000 citizens. Other important cities are Quatre Bornes (82 000 citizens), Rose Hill (91 500 citizens) and Curepipe (84 000 citizens). The country has a diversified economy. Historically a sugar cane producer, Mauritius has taken the opportunity to develop itself in three sectors that are, sugar cane, textile and tourism. Tourism is a major industry representing 72% of the total GNP. Mauritius has made himself a luxurious destination for tourist. Mauritius is a tropical island located in the Indian Ocean and is part of the Mascarene Island. Considered to be the twin sister of Reunion Island, it is situated at the east of Madagascar. Mauritius is encircled by a broken ring of mountain ranges, varying in height from 300 meters to 800 meters above sea level. The land rises from coastal plains to a central plateau where it reaches a height of 670 meters, the highest peak is in the southwest, Piton de la Petite Rivià ¨re Noire at 828 meters (2,717 ft).(Gov, 2012) The climate has two clear seasons of 6 month each; winter and summer. In summer time the temperature can rise occasionally to almost 30-35 degrees. On the other hand, it is not rare to have over 10-15 degrees during the winter time. Irregular rains caused by rapid changes in the weather characterize the Mauritius climate. 2.7.2 Tourism in Mauritius In the past years Mauritius has been the fastest developing country in the African region measured by economic growth, inflation and increase in employment. Among the other industries: financial, agriculture and textile, tourism is a pillar in the Mauritian economy. In 2011 tourism gross receipt was 42 845 million in a year constituting 7% of the Gross Domestic Product of the island (ICCA). Mauritius has earned a reputation for excellent service in the tourism industry. In the past ten years Mauritius has become one of the most luxurious destinations in the world and has been award several times for its beautiful beaches, blue lagoons and its five stars resorts. The tourism sector employs directly over 27 000 persons while total employment (direct, indirect and induced) stands at around 100 000 or 20% of total employment. Over 98 % of the direct employment is held by Mauritians whereas posts in selected scarcity areas are filled by expatriates. The sector also contributes to nearly 10 % in the GDP of the sector and is a significant contributor of FDI in the country. (AHRIM) Mauritian governmental strategy in the sector is clear: The National Tourism Policy emphasizes low impact, high spending tourism. Selective, up-market, quality tourism is favored, and although such tourism is not the only type, it constitutes the major segment of our tourists who stay in high class hotels. (MTLEC, 2011) In parallel with the operation of these luxury hotels, a whole array of services has gradually evolved so as to offer the visitors a tourism product which is in line with the high expectations attributed to the Mauritius brand; Marinas, Spas, Golf courses, adventure and nature activities, shopping malls and restaurants have been set up. Tour-operators in presently in activity (Tourism Authority, 2010), offering a whole range of excursions and activities. A constantly evolving list of water-sports activities, ranging from traditional motorized sports, big-game fishing and deep-sea diving, to more elaborated products such as under-sea walk and sub-marine tours are also available to visitors. The state of Mauritius has a yearly budget which is allocated to the Ministry of Tourism, Leisure and External Communication, the financial resources allocated to tourism related programs and promotions are increasing each year. Government investment in the tourism industry was 448 millions in 2010 and it is predicted to by around 490 millions in 2012. These investments concern policy making, regulations, controls, branding and sustainable tourism. The biggest proportion goes to the promotion of the Island. Government of Mauritius alongside with MTPA would invest in 2012 a total of 400 million rupees in the promotion of the island and its activities. (http://tourism.gov.mu) Mauritius has performed well in developing a distinctive form of relatively high-end tourism. Growth in tourist arrivals has outpaced that of many of our competitors. Currently, the aim is to continue that growth with a visitors target of two million tourists a year by 2015. To achieve the set target, the number of hotels and room capacity has evolved considerably over the years to cater for the ever-increasing tourist arrivals. 2.7.3 Regulatory Bodies The Mauritian Tourism sector is under the supervision of the Ministry of Tourism and Leisure. Promotion of the island as a destination is under the responsibility of Mauritius Tourism Promotion Authority (MTPA). MTPA conduct advertisement, participate in fairs, and organize fairs, activities inland and outside the island. The Tourism Authority (TA) is responsible for licensing, regulating and supervising the activities of tourist enterprises, pleasure crafts, skippers and canvassers. The Association des Hà ´teliers ET Restaurateurs de là ®le Maurice (AHRIM) is a non-profitable organization set up in 1973 to represent and promote the interests of hotels and restaurants in Mauritius.(http://www.mauritiustourism.org/) 2.7.4 Attractions of Mauritius Mauritius since its early stage in the industry have attracted tourist with it perfect blue lagoons, the sandy beaches, and eternal sun. The three S are the island main pull factors. Almost all the tour operators deliver almost the same services and products according to the MTPA lists, the customers travel to Mauritius are for the attractions or other purposes: (MTPA, 2011) The core product of Mauritius is the 3 s being Seas Sun and Sand For the wedding and honeymoon. For the tours to the small islands surrounding Mauritius which can be an adventure or a beautiful memory of their holidays. For the water sports and other activities. For the cultural tourism: historical monuments (Apravasi Ghat, Le Morne, Citadelle-Fort Adelaide, Port Louis Market and so on) and museums which contain the historical part of Mauritius when it was first found For the spa and the relaxation moments. For the events of different festivals in Mauritius: Thaipoosum Cavadee Marche sur le Feu done by the Tamil communities; Festival of Printemps by the Chinese communities; Maha Shivratree Holi Divali by Hindu communities and so on. For the multiracial food as the cultures are transferred to the food. Offer also the IRS Villas which can be rented or bought by the customers who do not wish to live in the hotels which are all almost enclave, thus these villas will give them more liberty and get contact with local people of Mauritius. For the natural and manmade scenery: Vanille Crocodile Park, Casela Bird ParkSSR Botanical Garden are manmade attractions; Sept Cascades, Black River Gorges, or Chamarel are natural sightseeing 2.7.5 Marketing of Mauritius as a destination 2.7.5.1 Mauritius Tourism Promotion Authorities Mauritius being recognized around the world to be a tourism destination which offers a wonderful range of services including the quality made the acquaintance of the island. It is being promoted mainly by a group of tour operators which are registered at the Mauritius Tourism Promotion Authority (MTPA); the official Promotion and Marketing Organization which is being managed by a Board of Directors (Private sector) and acts under the assistance of the Ministry of Tourism and Leisure (Public sector). It has branches in nine countries across the world. European country (France, England, Italy, Spain and Switzerland) were the island main target during the last two decades. After the euro crisis MTPA aims the Asian market to sustain the industry. It is present in Russia, India and China. The Asian market is the upcoming leader of outbound tourism (UNWTO, (2012)). MTPA main marketing tools are Internet, Brochures, Road Shows, Tourist Guides, Conference and presentations. According to the Mauritius Tourism Promotion Authority official website, it has some objectives that it must take into consideration: (Source:http://www.tourism-mauritius.mu/mtpa/) To promote Mauritius as a tourism destination abroad through: Conducting advertisement campaigns and participating in tourism fairs. Organizing, in collaboration with the local tourism industry, promotional campaigns and activities in Mauritius and abroad. To provide information to tourists on facilities, infrastructures and services available to them in Mauritius. To initiate such actions as may be necessary to promote cooperation with other tourism agencies. To conduct research into market trends and market opportunities and disseminate such information and other relevant statistical data on Mauritius. 2.7.5.2 MTPA Strategies Mauritius has developed a tourism industry of worldwide recognition. The image of high class delivery of tourism services and products is stick to the island since the last two decades. (Source:http://www.gov.mu/portal/goc/menv/files/nar2010/Chapter%208_Tourism%20Resources.pdf) It is targeting two million tourists by 2015 and it is interesting to know how it is going to be done. Below are the following strategies proposed by MTPA: (Tourism Resource, (2010)) Positioning Mauritius as a cruising destination and during the first quarter of 2009, cruise passenger arrivals grew by 83%. Marketing the country as Maurice sans passport to attract French tourists to Mauritius up till 30 June 2010. The Tourism Sector Strategy Plan (2009-2015) has been prepared recommending ways and means of achieving an environmentally sound, socially acceptable and economically viable tourism development. The Mauritius Brand Strategy has been launched in October 2009 to strengthen and enhance the image of the Mauritius destination and to ensure greater visibility of the Mauritian brand worldwide. The objective of this branding exercise is to attract investors for the business opportunities in Mauritius, visitors for its hospitality industry and buyers for its export goods. Professional assistance has been given to Small and Medium Enterprises under the Empowerment Program to improve the quality of their products so that they can act as reliable suppliers for the tourism industry. Measure will be taken to protect the environment (pollution control, sound environmental management, protection of natural resources, landscaping, etc.) Promotion of Sustainable Tourism Promoters of new hotel projects are encouraged to use renewable energy and adopt eco-friendly practices and use, as far as practicable, energy saving devices. Eco-friendly outboard engines for crafts at sea are now being used to protect the marine environment. Low-rise and low density hotel development is encouraged to avoid the disfigurement of the coastal landscapes. Hotel projects are monitored to ensure that they conform to the applicable Planning Policy Guidance (PPG) and the activities of tourist enterprises are regulated and monitored to promote sustainable tourism development. Permanent mooring buoys have been installed at dive sites to protect the coral from damage caused by anchors. Measures have been taken to ensure a safer and more secure environment for tourists. All guest houses, tourist residences and hotels must be equipped with burglar alarm systems, and CCTV surveillance cameras. A Tourism Safety Panel has been set up to register security companies which meet the Ministrys established criteria. A Tourism Fund has been set up, which finances the provision of social amenities to locals in areas where tourism projects are being implemented; protection and rehabilitation of scenic landscapes, lagoons, rivers and islets; and control and eradication of pests and other nuisances. Measures are taken to protect our local culture: The Festival International Kreol is organized on a yearly basis with emphasis on the value and beauty of the Creole culture, language, cuisine, art, music and dance. Organization of Regatta competitions have also been undertaken in traditional fishing villages 2.7.5.3 Mauritius Actual inbound Tourism Market According to the government statistics, Tourist arrival in 2011 reached 964 642 bringing a gross receipt of 42 845 million rupees. www.gov.mu-portal-goc-cso-ei948-tourism.pdf.png Graph 2: Comparison of Tourist Arrival by Month in 2010 and 2011 (Source: Mauritius Government, 2011) Graph 2 compares the number of tourists arrival in Mauritius in the period of 2010 and 2011. Mauritius receives it maximum number of tourists during the month of December (around 110000 Tourists) and it minimum during the month of June (approximately 52000 Tourists). In January, February, April, June July, August, October and November, the island had succeeded in increasing it number of tourists arrivals. In 2011 during the peak seasons (December mainly), tourists arrivals had decrease compare to 2010. Graph 2 illustrates the seasonality faced by Mauritius Tourism Industry (peak season and low season). Mauritius receives the highest number of tourists in December, January and July. During low season in 2011, such as in February, April, June and August, it is obvious on the graph 2 that Mauritius has managed to increase its number of arrival. The motive being this is the successful marketing strategies adopted by the MTPA to attract the Asian market in substitution of the European mar ket. Compare to 2010, Tourists arrivals had increase of three percent. It is very slow progress but positive one. www.gov.mu-portal-goc-cso-ei948-tourism.pdf 2.png Graph 3: Tourist arrivals by country of residence, 2010 and 2011(Source: Mauritius Government, (2011)) Graph 3 compares the number of tourists arrivals by country of residence in 2010 and 2011. Since two decades, European countries such as France, United Kingdom, Germany, Italy and Switzerland, are Mauritius main tourism customers. Since the euro crisis, MTPA started targeting the Asian tourism market such as India, Republic of China and Russia to sustain its tourism economy. The marketing of Mauritius as a destination for tourist in this zone is still at it early stages, resulting in the disparity shown in graph 3 between European arrival and Asian arrival. France, with more than 300 000 in both year 2010 and 2011, take the biggest proportion in the number of tourist visiting Mauritius. Despite having the highest growth rate (more than 100 pour cent) Republic of China recorded the lowest number of arrival in the island. South African and Reunion tourism markets are the island main targets in the African zone. If this graph is compared to the MTPAs presence around the world, the relat ionship between visibility in the target country and tourist arrival is clear. MTPA promote Mauritius in France, United Kingdom, Germany, Italy and Switzerland, thus resulting in a high number of tourists arrivals. Recently based in Asian zone MTPA marketing to attract Chinese, Indian and Russian tourists is as said above at it very early stage. 2.8 Conclusion In this chapter the theoretical discussion is presented to create the framework for this study. The first section concentrated on definitions of the tourism product and how it is linked to customers perceived value and this is followed by a discussion of the concept of destination. These definitions were selected in order to explain the compound nature of the tourism product and destination and how these underpin one another. The second part focused on consumer behaviour in tourism and presented the decision-making model of Schmoll. This part showed that tourism behaviour is a very complex issue with many internal and external factors influencing it. Due to these reasons some limitations were put in place to bring focus to this part of the theoretical discussion. Travel motivation and tourists expectations were discussed more thoroughly. The third part of the theoretical discussion provided a comprehensive description of the development of Chinese outbound travel. This was done to provide the reader with a general picture of the Chinese outbound market and the special features it has today; mainly that traveling abroad is still strictly government controlled. The purpose of the last part was to give wide-ranging information about Mauritius, focusing on tourism and the attractions of the island. The chapter was concluded by introducing the marketing of Mauritius as a destination. CHAPTER 4 FINDINGS 4.1 Introduction This chapter presents the main findings of the interviews. The findings and factors underpinning them are discussed in relation to theories and information presented in chapter 2. The main findings have been categorized into six groups to build structure for this part of the study. The chapter begins by providing some background information regarding the typical Chinese trip to Mauritius and the basic profile of a Chinese tourist. That is followed by an analysis of the findings regarding Chinese travelers in Mauritius. 4.2 Background Information First, this chapter presents some information regarding a typical trip to Mauritius and a profile of a Chinese tourist coming to Mauritius to create context for the findings. The following information is based on the researchers interviews with tour operators. The duration of the typical trip to Mauritius is normally seven days and focuses on the costal areas. Most of the travelers use tour operators. The tours are all- inclusive including transportation, accommodation, meals and activities. According to the tour operators, Chinese tourists visiting Mauritius can be categorized into two groups. The first group comprises business people of whom the major part is men and women can be seen sometimes working as e.g. interpreters. These people are traveling on business purposes with their colleagues and they are invited to Mauritius by a local company or government that is also paying for the costs. The second group is made up of tourists traveling on leisure purposes, as part of a larger Chinese tourist group and paying for the trip themselves. These are mainly honeymooners, retired people and small family groups that have sufficient time and money for traveling. Travel Company is normally spouse, friends or other relatives. In this research n o distinction was made between business and leisure travelers. 4.3 Main Findings and Discussion This section presents the main findings of the interviews with the six operators. The interviews were made up of a total of 14 questions. Main findings are now presented according to the objectives set for the study. 4.3.1 Travel Motivation the Pull Factors The first objective of the study concerned travel motivation. This study was limited Mauritians pull factors. What attracts Chinese travelers to Mauritius? The following pull factors were identified from the interviewee. Firstly, all mentioned that Chinese tourists do not come to Mauritius for the purpose of only traveling to Mauritius. Look at the world Chinese conference this week, there will be around 500 people travelling from china and Asian zone. Why will they come, certainly not for Mauritius itself but for a special purpose (Interviewee 2). Same precision were noticed by another tour: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ And on the other hand, Mauritius is creating an image while hosting Chinese Weddings TV Show in Tamassa Resort. (Interviewee 4) According to the operators, the base for traveling to Mauritius is accessibility, namely the connections with Air Mauritius to Hong Kong. Air Mauritius ensures an eight hour flight to Hong Kong two times a week. The other part of china is also connected to Mauritius via transit from Hong Kong ,Singapore or even Madagascar, but not much traveler actually use that option (Interviewee 1). This finding can be reflected back to the theoretical discussion where different theories emphasize the importance of good accessibility for success of any destination. In addition another pull factor is our clean nature, sea and sand, our beautiful hotels, and Mauritian paradise image, were mentioned to be reasons for visiting the island. They come mainly on half board, at 8 oclock they are out of the resort. Most of them use tours facilities to visit Mauritius (Interviewee 6). They seek for adventure; they came here to escape from their day to day routine in a stressful and urban environment. They seek for something different and now they have disposable income to get it. Mauritius is seen as a natural paradise and this is a great opportunity for the tourism industry. 4.3.2 Expectations The second objective of this research is to understand Chinese tourists expectations of Mauritius as a travel destination. The Tours operators revealed that when arriving in Mauritius Chinese tourists do not have any or they have very few expectations regarding the destination. Some of the tours put it in words: I think they do not have that many expectations but they expect that there is so much to see like in Maldives or Singapore (Interviewee 1). Chinese do not know about Mauritius when they come. They do not know what Mauritius is exactly (Interviewee 2) This can be due to two reasons; first that there might not have been sufficient information available before taking the trip, the promotion of Mauritius is only at it very beginning stage in China. The second possible reason is that travelers might not have had an interest to search for information in advance. It was also mentioned by the tours that many Chinese visiting Mauritius are having their first trip abroad. Also this result underlies the importance of tour operators as source of information, and in creating image and expectations for customers buying the trip. On the other hand, it has been perceived by the tour operators that Chinese tourists know Mauritius is a paradise island. Chinese tourists have also heard about tropical aspects, our 3 S that are sea, sun and sand. These are the things that create for Chinese people their image of the island. As the other tour operator continues: When they come to Mauritius they have excursions, discoveries, and shopping in their mind. So, if they come to Mauritius and they do not get thoseà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦they feel disappointed (Interviewee 4). One of the tours linked the expectations with shopping. Buying gifts is very important for Chinese people and gifts are always given to relatives, friends and colleagues when returning home from a long journey. They would like to buy something typical from Mauritius to their friends, (Interviewee 3). According to tour operators Mauritius should concentrate on knowing its new customers then provide the service. Meeting the customer expectation is the very basic definition of service and we should stick to that first (Interviewee 1) Image and brand are important for Chinese and they are willing to purchase even very expensive gifts when the product has image strong enough, not even the quality is importance then. 4.3.3 Services in Mauritius Destination has been defined as the focus of facilities and services designed to meet the needs of the tourist (Cooper et al., 1998). A range of services is offered for tourists in a destination. The third objective of the study was to discover how services offered in Mauritius meet Chinese tourists needs. Questions were limited to accommodation, transportation, catering and activities. 4.3.3.1 Accommodation When asked about the accommodation for Chinese tourists, the tours revealed the following aspects. Even if the price was the considered to be quite high compared to prices in China, it was said that Chinese tourists love Mauritian luxurious 5 Stars. Especially the cleanliness of hotel rooms pleased Chinese travelers. A couples of reasons for dissatisfaction were also mentioned which arose from the differences of service standards in China and in Mauritius. Five out of six tours mentioned that the lack of a kettle in hotel rooms is source of dissatisfaction for Chinese tourists because Chinese regularly drink hot water or tea. Only a few hotels in Mauritius have this service available. Also toothbrush is a standard in hotel rooms in China. These two issues were mentioned to be a source of dissatisfaction by Chinese travelers, though both of these could be solved with little cost and effort. Chinese are very satisfied with hotel services but dissatisfaction with these services was ment ioned when guides or interpreter are not available as it is hard to communicate with hotel staff. Almost all hotel employees can manage French and English, some even speak German or Italian, but mandarin is not even on the training list. (Interviewee 6) It would be important to meet or exceed customers expectations because it usually creates a positive attitude towards a hotels service quality. Room quality standards should be maintained based on customers expectations. (Interviewee 2) 4.3.3.2 Transportation Tours answers about transportation services indicate that coach services meet Chinese travelers needs. Chinese tourists consider the drivers to be trustworthy and professional, and special mention was given to the time concept tours excursions drivers are very punctual. Most of them book tours buses, and few of them would rent cars. Chinese Tourists speak very few English and no French at all, we are the only one who provide them a mandarin speaking guide (Interviewee 2). Chinese travelers do not yet use public transport very often. The island public buses are so far from the standards of China and the whole system itself is a mess. It is almost impossible for a Chinese traveler to enjoy an excursion journey with the local transport. Also, people had complained about the air transport. It is difficult for a Chinese tourist to come to Mauritius, as the only direct flight is from Hong Kong. We receive tourist from Shanghai, Guangzhou or Beijing. Guides had perceived them to be a very nice experience for Chinese travelers due to the beautiful environment Mauritius provides. No major complaints were notice about the tour buses itself and the activities provided. 4.3.3.3 Catering Chinese travelers prefer Chinese food wherever they travel. Lunch is always in a Chinese restaurant. Tours explained that reasons for this are that western food is too different for Chinese tourists; this does not suit Chinese people. They are not even eager to try. It is simple you want to get Chinese customers, you need to give them Chinese food, they dont want to try something else. (Interviewee 6) Whatever the price is the want to eat only food they are use to. They are pleased by Mauritian Resorts efforts, trying to give them Chinese breakfast and dinner. With typical Chinese trip in Mauritius breakfast and dinner are usually in the hotel, but lunch is always in a Chinese restaurant. If the trip is longer, for example 10 days (which is very rare) Chinese tourists might want to taste western food only once. The opinions about European and Mauritian food are divided. However, it was surprisingly mentioned that Chinese tourists do like the western type breakfasts at hotels even if western food was not preferred otherwise. However some negative comments came up with groups are not that pleased with the Chinese restaurants, because Chinese food in Mauritius does not have its typical taste. (Interviewee 3) The quality of the restorations is said to be very good in Mauritian resorts. 4.3.3.4 Activities According to tours, sightseeing around the island (normally 2-3 hours) and shopping are always included in the programs. Sometimes groups visit Black river gorges or Chamarel Colour Park or Grand basin spiritual temple and SSR Botanical Garden. It was expressed by one of the tours: Sightseeing is too short and visiting gorges and SSR Botanical Garden is quite boring as it is reasonable small compared to other country (Interviewee 1). There are no interesting or famous architecture (e.g. compared to Singapore or Thailand) in Mauritius. There is not much to see complain a Chinese Tourist to one tour. Chinese tourists would like to see nature or try as much as activity as they can. A European would go on average on three excursions for ten days of stay, whereas a Chinese would go to seven through the same period. (Interviewee 3) Shopping is always included in the tours, and groups prefer to do that with a guide as well. Even if Chinese love shopping, this seems to be a disappointment for them in Mauritius. They are eager to buy luxurious product like Hugo Boss, Chanel, Rolex, and so on (Interviewee 5), the problem is that 75 percents of the product they would buy in Mauritius come from china, so why would they buy it here (Interviewee 1). They would rather by traditional souvenir of the island and model boats. Price is not an issue for them; they are here to spend money. Chinese do buy a lot, e.g. perfumes, fashion, watches from Switzerland and without caring for the high prices. What they want is quality and brands; they are not here to buy made in China (Interviewee 5) Tours mention that Chinese tourists do not enjoy free time on their own. Reasons for this were mentioned that there are no communication possibilities as only few travelers know English and due to their cultural background. Chinese tourists also enjoy casinos and live shows. Lack of interesting nightlife in Mauritius was also found to be negative. Two of the tours mentioned that travelers are very happy if they are kept busy during their all length of stay. A Chinese traveler, even if he has his plane at two in the afternoon, at 7 am he is going out on excursion. A Chinese tourist, even if he landed at 7a.m and arrives to his hotel at 9 am, at 10 am he is out for an excursion. This is Chinese Tourists. (Interviewee 1) They are usually happy of the Mauritius experience. 4.3.4 Significance of Traditional Mauritian Attractions This part will discuss significance of traditional Mauritian attractions for Chinese tourists. That is Sea; Sand and Sun. These attractions are normally promoted by MTPA and attached to the image of Mauritius. What is the significance of these attractions to Chinese travelers according to the interviewee? The Chinese Tourists are not again the three S, Mauritius is promoted the same way as in European Country, in China. However once in the island, the three S are definitely not their main interest