Southern Nevada must better prepare for Chinese influx

SQUAW VALLEY, Calif. — The recurring theme at last week’s International Aviation Forecast Summit involved China, China and more China.

And why not?

All the evidence suggests that Chinese tourists will be arriving in the United States by the hundreds of thousands in the years ahead.

Speakers at the Boyd Group International conference said there are 50 airports under construction throughout China that will give middle-class Chinese tourists the ability to access international flights that would carry them to the United States.

There are 51 airlines and a vast network of high-speed trains operating there that will enable travelers to access the key gateway cities — Guangzhou, Shanghai and Beijing, the latter of which will have nonstop service to Las Vegas beginning in December.

Among the 51 airlines operating in China is Hainan, which will be flying to and from Las Vegas three times a week on Boeing 787 Dreamliner jets.

It won’t take much to entice travelers to jump onto one of those flights. Hainan is expecting 90 percent of its customers to come from China and the airline is fine-tuning its schedule to assure that its network can feed passengers into Beijing to connect to Las Vegas.

Joel Chusid, executive director of Hainan’s operations in the United States, said an enticing fare will introduce the route so that those with families who may have traveled to the United States and entered through Los Angeles or San Francisco in the past can give Las Vegas a look.

The round-trip fare from Las Vegas starts at an astonishing $600. Even if there are $200 in taxes and fees it’s a great deal.

When Hainan begins marketing the Las Vegas flight, it will shy away from promoting the city’s gaming. Instead, it will focus on the city’s proximity to national parks, including the Grand Canyon, entertainment, fine dining and shopping. Any traveler researching Las Vegas eventually will figure out that there are casinos.

With all the pieces falling into place, is Southern Nevada ready for the arrival of the Chinese?

Not by a long shot.

There are a few areas in which it’s made some strides.

Christine Crews, a McCarran International Airport spokeswoman, said the airport is gearing up to provide wayfinding and other signs, along with recorded announcements in Mandarin and Cantonese.

The plan will also involve creating a WeChat presence for McCarran that capitalizes on synergies with the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority’s WeChat efforts and an Ambassador program centered on certain international flights.

The Ambassador program will include the hiring of multilingual representatives that will assist tourists when they arrive.

WeChat is a smartphone application accessible by quick response code that will provide important information in a traveler’s primary language, things like mass transit schedules, hotel information, tourist attractions and — most important — information on how to handle an emergency.

Southern Nevada’s air tour industry has been way ahead of the curve in accommodating foreign visitors. Tourists who fly over nearby national parks are issued headsets that provide tour information in a number of languages, including Mandarin. Those companies recognized long ago that flying over the Grand Canyon would be a “bucket list” event for people who have come from so far away, so they prepared to provide the best experience possible.

Many of the city’s major resorts have employees on their staffs who are fluent in a variety of languages. Expect the need for more of them to grow.

Although some strides have been made to be China-ready, there are still a number of features Southern Nevada is lacking.

Signs are a big one. It’s great that McCarran is looking to boost its Chinese-language signs, but that’s something that needs to occur along all our major streets and roads. The Nevada Department of Transportation, Clark County and the cities of Las Vegas, North Las Vegas, Henderson and Boulder City need to strategize on how they can provide information to foreigners on the streets.

Sure, it isn’t possible to post signs in every language that exists. But for Las Vegas, English, Spanish and Mandarin would be a good start. It’s also possible to post electronic signs that rotate phrases through a series of languages to deliver critically important messaging.

Any operation that has a touch point with the public should consider hiring people who are fluent in Chinese languages. Tourism destinations and attractions are a no-brainer. Some of the city’s exclusive restaurants should make that consideration.

It also would be wise for the Metropolitan Police Department and other first-responder units to have people who will be able to communicate with visitors.

As one with firsthand experience of recently traveling abroad to a destination where Mandarin is the dominant language, I can say that offering signs and representatives who speak English was a welcome that will make me want to return again.

And that’s the bottom line.

Once they’ve come the first time, we want them to come back and bring their friends.

Contact Richard N. Velotta at rvelotta@reviewjournal.com or 702-477-3893. Follow @RickVelotta on Twitter.