Should We Prefer One Type of Tourists Over Another?
This is a long-standing debate: some say we should only get the cream of the crop while others are perfectly comfortable with all kinds of tourists visiting Mauritius.
A personal experience may hint at what we must avert: In June this year, my French brother-in-law inherits from his Mauritian father an almost 'pieds-dans-l'eau' campement and wants to convert the private thing into a self-sustaining rental business. So, he sends out invitations in his social circle and ends up with (what he thinks at the moment) a deal: 800 Euro for 3 weeks. When he asks his local cousins about the 'deal', he is disappointed to learn that the local market price for close-to-the-sea bungalows (you know, the kind which reads 'à 5 min de la plage', which you actually end up with a 5 min drive at high speed from the main road) normally fetches not less than 50 Euro per night. He sets aside his business sense and agrees to his clients' proposal, as in the meantime they have already landed here in Dodoland. Pretexting that they did not know that taxis would be that expensive, can now only afford 500 Euro paid upfront, instead of the initially agreed 800 Euro, and that just for 2 weeks. Just to finish this 'deal', the brother-in-law of mine accepts and sets a meeting time and place for us to hand over the keys, showing around and get paid and issue a receipt. But the clients never turned up.
Moral of the story is: when your key selling point is a premium product/service, you have to set aside personal feelings and focus on the high-end spectrum of the market, only those who can afford to pay for a hard-earned holiday in the tropics. And set up and maintain the infrastructure to receive these very select people.
This is why Seychelles focusses only on the high end of the high end (remember, Prince William spent his honeymoon there), and if you happen to have the opportunity to visit it, you'll see Aeroflot, China Airlines, Saudi Airlines, Qatar Airways, small private jets and other strange airlines that park their planes there. Not at all the usual ones we see commonly in Mauritius. Yes, premium clientèle, 'crème de la crème' as they say. The ones who never haggle over prices in souvenir shops, the ones who take one coco-fesse per head to bring back to their country, the ones who don't mind that motorised water-sports are illegal (there are only 'professionalised' sailing yachts allowed), the ones who compensate by other activities while wondering at the incredible cleanliness of all walkways, roadsides, beaches and every nook-and-crany of Seychelles...
Ah yes, we have a long way to go to rid ourselves from taxi-drivers who take 'short-cuts' through all 'licensed' duty-free shops before reaching the tourist's preferred destination. And the beach hawkers that keep pestering them tourists. And our restaurants who keep cutting costs on hygiene and basic care for customers. So many simple parameters that our laws cover but not enforced by our competent authorities...
In the meantime, we still struggle with an airport that can barely accomodate the traffic, and a national carrier that's bent on taking lowest-cost docking positions that result in your return trip getting late because of any technical mishap that will send your return trip no less than 6-8 hours late, a decrepit raod network fitted with highway that's so beautifully designed that it makes it a point to greet all north-bound tourists with a free taste of our chronic peak-hour traffic jams through the traffic lights in urbanised areas and poor signage that gets those trying to get away from pre-packaged tours losing their way all the time.
While our politicians are aiming at 2 million of them tourists, we the ordinary folk are still trying our luck for a shady spot on our own beaches between the marsan coco, the aggressive (almost feral) stray dogs, the concrete walls of 'pieds-dans-l'eau' hotels, the 'private' no-parking plots, the already-in-place beach-longchairs and motorised pleasure crafts of the Beach-Authority authorised operators and the rock-filled gabions that are hopelessly trying to cling to whatever remains of the sand that has been extracted without control over the previous decades...
I am for letting everybody who shows proof of minimum available funds and a return ticket in.
Besides a person who comes in as a young backpacker may one day return to organise his wedding, or a big event or share his experience on tripadvisor and elsewhere. Who knows? He may even open up a business here. Or he may simply wish to come for another nice holiday as an old backpacker.
Well, I have nothing against backpackers, for sure: so many low-budget guest houses are widely available now . And if they can show that they will return to their country as the time comes, no problemo. As long as their own country reciprocates our hospitality and accept us as backpackers. Because I really cannot stomach the way their embassies treat our people who happen to need their visas. Beggars are not choosers, but we are not beggars!
" okenn pei kot pa kav al fer backpacking" Wai, nek ena pou guett bann program kouma 'Lonely Planet', 'Globe Cooker' (avec le sympatoche), 'J'irai dormir chez vous', etc... Occidental mars-marse partou kott zott envi, me nou, zott prend nou tou pou bann nwar-touni tank ki nou pa montrer "patte blanche", comme ils le disent si bien...
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A personal experience may hint at what we must avert:
In June this year, my French brother-in-law inherits from his Mauritian father an almost 'pieds-dans-l'eau' campement and wants to convert the private thing into a self-sustaining rental business. So, he sends out invitations in his social circle and ends up with (what he thinks at the moment) a deal: 800 Euro for 3 weeks. When he asks his local cousins about the 'deal', he is disappointed to learn that the local market price for close-to-the-sea bungalows (you know, the kind which reads 'à 5 min de la plage', which you actually end up with a 5 min drive at high speed from the main road) normally fetches not less than 50 Euro per night.
He sets aside his business sense and agrees to his clients' proposal, as in the meantime they have already landed here in Dodoland. Pretexting that they did not know that taxis would be that expensive, can now only afford 500 Euro paid upfront, instead of the initially agreed 800 Euro, and that just for 2 weeks. Just to finish this 'deal', the brother-in-law of mine accepts and sets a meeting time and place for us to hand over the keys, showing around and get paid and issue a receipt. But the clients never turned up.
Moral of the story is: when your key selling point is a premium product/service, you have to set aside personal feelings and focus on the high-end spectrum of the market, only those who can afford to pay for a hard-earned holiday in the tropics. And set up and maintain the infrastructure to receive these very select people.
This is why Seychelles focusses only on the high end of the high end (remember, Prince William spent his honeymoon there), and if you happen to have the opportunity to visit it, you'll see Aeroflot, China Airlines, Saudi Airlines, Qatar Airways, small private jets and other strange airlines that park their planes there.
Not at all the usual ones we see commonly in Mauritius. Yes, premium clientèle, 'crème de la crème' as they say.
The ones who never haggle over prices in souvenir shops, the ones who take one coco-fesse per head to bring back to their country, the ones who don't mind that motorised water-sports are illegal (there are only 'professionalised' sailing yachts allowed), the ones who compensate by other activities while wondering at the incredible cleanliness of all walkways, roadsides, beaches and every nook-and-crany of Seychelles...
Ah yes, we have a long way to go to rid ourselves from taxi-drivers who take 'short-cuts' through all 'licensed' duty-free shops before reaching the tourist's preferred destination. And the beach hawkers that keep pestering them tourists. And our restaurants who keep cutting costs on hygiene and basic care for customers. So many simple parameters that our laws cover but not enforced by our competent authorities...
In the meantime, we still struggle with an airport that can barely accomodate the traffic, and a national carrier that's bent on taking lowest-cost docking positions that result in your return trip getting late because of any technical mishap that will send your return trip no less than 6-8 hours late, a decrepit raod network fitted with highway that's so beautifully designed that it makes it a point to greet all north-bound tourists with a free taste of our chronic peak-hour traffic jams through the traffic lights in urbanised areas and poor signage that gets those trying to get away from pre-packaged tours losing their way all the time.
While our politicians are aiming at 2 million of them tourists, we the ordinary folk are still trying our luck for a shady spot on our own beaches between the marsan coco, the aggressive (almost feral) stray dogs, the concrete walls of 'pieds-dans-l'eau' hotels, the 'private' no-parking plots, the already-in-place beach-longchairs and motorised pleasure crafts of the Beach-Authority authorised operators and the rock-filled gabions that are hopelessly trying to cling to whatever remains of the sand that has been extracted without control over the previous decades...
Ah, the Mauritian beaches...
Well you could have asked for a downpayment...
I am for letting everybody who shows proof of minimum available funds and a return ticket in.
Besides a person who comes in as a young backpacker may one day return to organise his wedding, or a big event or share his experience on tripadvisor and elsewhere. Who knows? He may even open up a business here. Or he may simply wish to come for another nice holiday as an old backpacker.
Well, I have nothing against backpackers, for sure: so many low-budget guest houses are widely available now .
And if they can show that they will return to their country as the time comes, no problemo.
As long as their own country reciprocates our hospitality and accept us as backpackers. Because I really cannot stomach the way their embassies treat our people who happen to need their visas. Beggars are not choosers, but we are not beggars!
En fet mo pa kon okenn pei kot pa kav al fer backpacking. Wai, ena lembasad pena bel repitasyon lor fason zot tret dimunn.
Sinon, kisana ki dir nu ki enn backpacker penvi al fer enn ti spa ek res 2-3 zur dan enn 5 zetwal?
" okenn pei kot pa kav al fer backpacking"
Wai, nek ena pou guett bann program kouma 'Lonely Planet', 'Globe Cooker' (avec le sympatoche), 'J'irai dormir chez vous', etc... Occidental mars-marse partou kott zott envi, me nou, zott prend nou tou pou bann nwar-touni tank ki nou pa montrer "patte blanche", comme ils le disent si bien...
Ena enn ta video vakans diumunn tu kalite kuler(inkli backpacker) lor youtube. Sa donn nu diferan perspektiv.
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