The American hospitality industry is stepping up efforts to make Chinese visitors feel more welcome as they are projected to soon surpass travelers from the UK and Japan as the single largest overseas demographic.
据预计,中国游客很快将超过英国和日本的游客,成为美国最大的海外游客群体。因此,美国旅游接待业正加大努力,以使中国游客更加宾至如归。
And it's not just the typical tourist hubs of New York and Los Angeles, where such efforts have long been commonplace.
在纽约、洛杉矶等传统旅游城市,这早已不是什么新鲜事。
Smaller cities like Boston, Las Vegas, Seattle and Washington, D.C., are increasingly trying to attract that demographic, industry officials say.
行业官员表示,除了这些城市,波士顿、拉斯维加斯、西雅图、华盛顿哥伦比亚特区等相对较小的城市也越来越努力地吸引中国游客。
"Americans traditionally lag behind what other international designations do for different cultures," said Elliott Ferguson, CEO of Destination DC, the city's convention and tourism organization, which last year launched "Welcome China," a certification program.
华盛顿会展与旅游组织“特区目的地”去年启动了名为“欢迎中国”的认证项目,该团体的的首席执行官埃利奥特·弗格森表示:“就为不同文化背景的游客提供服务而言,美国传统上落后于其他热门的旅游目的地国家。”
"We just kind of assume that one size fits all. Quite frankly1, that's just not welcoming."
“我们想当然地以为可以一种模式通吃。坦白地说,这不是迎客之道。”
Local tourism associations in those and other cities have recently launched campaigns aimed at getting their member hotels, restaurants and tourism companies to better incorporate Chinese language and customs into their offerings.
上述城市及其他城市的地方旅游协会最近发起活动,旨在要求会员酒店、餐馆和旅行社把中文和中国习俗更好地融入到服务中。
They're also embarking2 on tourism-focused sales missions to China and opening satellite offices in Chinese cities to strengthen ties and sell their city to trendsetters.
这些协会还组织旅游推销代表团赴中国,在中国城市开设卫星办公室,以加强联系、向潮流引领者宣传其所在城市。