Whale Watching Worldwide
Whale Watching Worldwide
Whale Watching Worldwide
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China<br />
China (Mainland)<br />
Year Number of<br />
whale<br />
watchers<br />
AAGR Number of<br />
operators<br />
Direct<br />
expenditure<br />
Indirect<br />
expenditure<br />
Total<br />
expenditure<br />
1991 None N/A None None None None<br />
1994 None N/A None None None None<br />
1998 None N/A None None None None<br />
2008 307,000 ~103.7% 9 $4,028,000 $9,222,120 $13,250,120<br />
Capital City: Beijing<br />
<strong>Whale</strong> Watch Locations:<br />
01: Sanniang Bay in Guangxi Autonomous Region<br />
Cetacean watching in mainland China began in about 2003<br />
and is centred on Sanniang Bay in Guangxi Autonomous<br />
Region. The local village‐based company and several<br />
independent boat operators have tapped into China’s<br />
booming domestic tourism market to make it possibly the<br />
most popular cetacean watching location in Asia.<br />
Trips to see the Indo‐Pacific humpback dolphin (locally<br />
referred to as the Chinese white dolphin) operate year round, although May to October is the busy period.<br />
Dolphin watchers are taken out in one of 28 nine‐passenger speedboats, or 11 15‐passenger wooden boats,<br />
for about two hours. Tickets cost approximately $13, including the entry fee to the tourist area. The<br />
operators estimate around half of all guests come independently, while the other half are in tour groups, a<br />
large part of China’s domestic tourism market. Very few international visitors go to Sanniang Bay, but locals<br />
hope this will develop in future.<br />
Dolphin watching is extremely important to the local economy, with researchers suggesting that 80% of the<br />
villagers benefit in some way from the new industry. Tourism has been a big boost for the economy of a<br />
small, rural area.<br />
No formal studies of dolphin watching at Sanniang Bay have been completed yet and reliable statistics on<br />
the industry are difficult to obtain. We hope that more research will be done on this exciting new dolphin<br />
watching area.<br />
Main species:<br />
Tourists:<br />
Small cetaceans:<br />
Indo‐Pacific humpback dolphin (known locally<br />
as the Chinese white dolphin)<br />
International 0%<br />
Domestic 100%<br />
Types of tours: Short boat‐based cruises<br />
Average adult ticket price: $13<br />
Estimated employment<br />
numbers:<br />
31<br />
Main whale watch season: May to October<br />
126
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