Images of Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping at the Cliffs of Moher are being broadcast into the living-rooms of millions of wealthy Chinese on their plasma TVs. Many of them will be planning foreign holidays for this summer.

The outbound tourist market in China is the most exciting in the world today. Travel restrictions have been lifted, it is easier than ever to get a passport – and a Visa — and, perhaps most importantly, China’s burgeoning middle classes have the means and the drive to go out and see the world as they keep up with the Zhaos next door.

The World Tourism Organisation put the number of outbound Chinese tourists at 100 million a year by the end of the decade. If we make a better attempt to bring more Chinese to the Emerald Isle, and capture even a tiny slice of that market, the economic benefits will extend far beyond the balance sheets of our battered B&Bs.

But like any other business, the key to success lies in the industry’s knowledge of their customers and willingness to give them what they want.

Despite the efforts of Tourism Ireland and other organisations, this country still falls seriously short in its ability to cater to Chinese tourists and their unique demands and expectations. This has to change. Word of mouth is a strong guiding tool for behaviour in any culture, but it is particularly so among the Chinese.

If we manage to send back even a few thousand happy Chinese visitors, that trickle could become a flood as those WTO forecasts are realised.

Trip

We have a great chance to do that this summer. The Government has waived the Visa requirement for Chinese travelling to the UK for the London Olympics, so there’s scope for these travellers to tack on an Ireland trip, and Tourism Ireland is working to make sure they do.

We have a fascinating culture that’s almost as old as their own, and a clean, mild and quiet country that provides the perfect break from the chaotic conurbations where the Chinese earn their wealth. Our legendary craic is well-suited to the affable Chinese, and they learn of our literature at school.

A few small actions, marketed in the right way, would make the country far more appealing to the thousands of Chinese travel agencies who put together overseas trips.

Richard Mullins lived and worked as a journalist in China for six years and runs redgate.ie, a Sino-Irish website

THE future president of China, Xi Jinping, recalled seeing the Cliffs of Moher in a ‘Harry Potter’ film as he visited the world-famous beauty spot on a glorious day — and promised to send more tourists to the west coast.

Even the wind died down for Mr Xi as he stood on the main viewing area near O’Brien’s Tower and looked across the Atlantic Ocean towards the Aran Islands.

Katherine Webster, the Cliffs of Moher Visitor Experience director, said the weather made it the “best day so far this year”.

She explained the geology of the cliffs to Mr Xi.

“He said he remembered seeing the Cliffs of Moher in ‘Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince’. He asked about the cave which featured in the film,” Ms Webster said. “He was very impressed by the natural landscape and the unspoilt nature of it.”

And he promised to send more Chinese tourists our way. “He said they would advertise us in China — he said that. I think it would be part of his visit,” Ms Webster said.

“I talked a bit about our growth in Chinese visitor numbers. I told him we have seen substantial growth in the last year-and-a-half — particularly since the Visa requirement changed, as Chinese visitors can now obtain a combined Visa for Ireland and the UK,” she added.

Meanwhile, the body of a man was found hanging from a gate at the Cliffs of Moher less than an hour before the Chinese Vice President arrived. The man, believed to be a Polish in his 30′s, was found dead at O’Brien’s Tower. Foul play is not suspected.

Qantas Airways played down a steering issue that forced an Airbus A380 to twice abandon departure before taking off from London’s Heathrow airport on Saturday, saying it was unrelated to wing cracks that have led Europe’s air safety officials to order global checks on the superjumbo.

Qantas said the plane, due to fly from London to Singapore, was travelling at a very slow speed when the decision was made to return to bay.

“It was due to the steering issue. It has no relation to the cracks in the wing ribs at all,” Qantas spokeswoman Courtney Treak said. “Our engineers were able to fix the issue, so we don’t have any further concerns.”

A spokesman for manufacturer Airbus declined to comment, saying that only the airline could comment on operational matters.

The incident comes several weeks after the discovery of hairline cracks on part of the frame inside A380 wings. European safety authorities last week extended inspections for similar cracks to the whole fleet according to a detailed timetable.

Airbus and operators say there is no risk to safety, but German magazine Der Spiegel said the problem could cost Airbus €100 million.

The incident continues a run of embarrassing glitches and bad luck for Airbus and Qantas after an A380 with an engine problem diverted to Dubai in November carrying British actor Stephen Fry, who tweeted the event to millions of followers.

On this occasion, the delayed Qantas flight was carrying delegates and aerospace executives to the Singapore Air Show.

Dr Faye Smith, business development director at the Royal Aeronautical Society, said the A380 aircraft was on the runway when it twice abandoned take-off.

“Technical issues with the nose gear meant the pilot had to abort take off and have us towed off the runway for repairs twice,” Dr Smith said.

“On both failed occasions we were on the runway, started to build up speed for take-off and then suddenly felt deceleration and we stopped on the runway.”

The five-hour delay for repairs meant Heathrow had to lift a curfew banning night flights at the airport, which has tough noise restrictions.

While a “rejected take-off” gets logged in the industry, aircraft are designed to abandon take-off easily and safely at any time before reaching a certain decision speed.

Financial analysts watching Airbus parent EADS have mostly played down the significance of the cracked brackets inside the A380 wings, focusing on improvements in production times.

Global airlines yesterday called for a UN-brokered deal to prevent a row over aviation emissions between China and the EU spilling into a trade war.

The call by the head of the International Air Transport Association comes amid signs the EU may soften a unilateral stance that also risks souring efforts to resolve Europe’s sovereign debt crisis with Chinese support.

Director general Tony Tyler said airlines had become wedged between conflicting domestic laws after China ordered its airlines not to join the EU’s compulsory market-based system for regulating airline emissions.

“The Chinese move to prevent its airlines from taking part in the emissions trading scheme is a very bold move and it pushes the Chinese carriers very much into the front line of this particular dispute,” he said.

“This is an intolerable situation which clearly has to be resolved; it cannot go on like this. I very much hope, of course, that we are not seeing the beginning of a trade war on this issue and eventually wiser counsels will prevail.”

China was an early opponent of the EU’s cap-and-trade scheme, which has also drawn protests from the US and India, and the escalating row threatens to hamper efforts to work out an international solution to Europe’s sovereign debt crisis.

By banning its airlines from co-operating last week, China hardened its stance ahead of tomorrow’s Beijing summit at which the EU will seek Chinese help to ease its debt crisis.

The EU says its scheme to charge airlines for emissions on flights into or out of Europe, which took effect on Jan 1, is needed as part of the fight against climate change.

It maintains it was driven to act after more than a decade of inaction at the UN’s aviation standards agency, the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO), which has yet to find a solution to tackling airline emissions.

Tyler said the ICAO’s chambers were the only forum for resolving the row, and he and airline industry officials noted the EU had indicated willingness to avoid further isolation.

“The European Commission is now much more open to an ICAO solution,” he said. “I very much hope that the EU and all its member states will work hard with ICAO to come up with a global solution. It is not going to be easy.”

Last week, the senior EU civil servant responsible for climate action said Brussels preferred multilateral discussion.

“We have been clear that we are willing to review our legislation in the light of agreement on market-based measures being agreed in ICAO,” Jos Delbeke said.

A relative backwater of the UN responsible for industry standards, Montreal-based ICAO is a potential bulwark against the first serious carbon trade war.

It is widely seen as a challenging task for an agency created to oversee neatly bordered airspace, but which must now try to find an urgently needed formula for tackling aircraft fumes that cross international frontiers.

DUBLIN Port notched up a 7.5pc increase in cruise ship passengers last year as the capital becomes an increasingly popular destination for cruises.

Some 87 cruise ships brought more than 135,000 passengers and crew to Dublin last year, Dublin Port Company said yesterday as it unveiled figures for the year.

The number of ferry passengers fell 5.6pc to 1.7 million last year — although the figures were distorted by bumper figures for 2010 which saw numbers surge as the volcano in Iceland grounded flights across northern Europe. Last year’s ferry passenger numbers were 11.1pc higher than in 2009.

Dublin Port Company, which accounts for about half of all Ireland’s trade and is soon due to launch a masterplan for the next three decades, reported that exports continued to rise last year while imports fell.

Dublin Port chief executive Eamonn O’Reilly said that, given the large increase in throughput recorded in 2010, last year’s steady levels were a “robust performance”.

He added that despite the current economic environment, Dublin Port’s overall trade levels are just 9pc behind their 2007 peak.

Famous for its canals, clogs, tulips and windmills, the Netherlands is just over an hour’s flight from Ireland. So here are 10 reasons to visit one of our nearest European neighbours:

Rotterdam
Stepping out of the shadow of neighbouring Amsterdam, the port city of Rotterdam is no longer overlooked as a city break option. Most of the city’s main attractions are based around the impressive harbour, with the Euromast offering amazing panoramic views of the city and out to sea. The Spido Harbour Tour and the Shipyard De Delft are two more of the city’s attractions, while the 800-metre long Erasmus Bridge has become the icon of the city, especially when lit up at night. The city has also become a cultural capital with amazing architecture and interesting museums, including Boijmans van Beuningen and Kunsthal Rotterdam, where you’ll find anything from old masters to daring contemporary work. Many old warehouses have been transformed into galleries and restaurants, while the shopping in the city centre is also first class.

Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam
A short stroll out of the madness of the city’s old town takes you out to the museum quarter. The Van Gogh museum is primarily dedicated to the work and life of the country’s most famous son, telling the story of Vincent’s life through his work and influences. It’s a sad tale of a troubled man who left the world before his genius was discovered and appreciated. The museum is home to some of Van Gogh’s most famous works, including The Sunflowers, and several self-portraits.

Vlissingen
Summer excursions to the Netherlands allow you to escape the city and enjoy one of the seaside resorts scattered along the North Sea coast. Vlissingen is a lively seaside and tourist resort and its main attractions are the boulevard and pretty beaches. Het Arsenaal is a family friendly theme park, while Vlissingen also offers all sorts of watersport activities and vibrant nightlife.

The Hague
Be a giant for a day by visiting Madurodam, a miniature version of the Netherlands enclosed in a park with buildings, markets, canals, windmills, Schiphol Airport, the Port of Rotterdam and Dam Square replicated to the smallest detail. The Hague is the political and royal centre of the Netherlands as it is home to Dutch parliament and the residence of the Queen. The city is a hub of culture, with excellent exhibits of medieval, renaissance and baroque architecture throughout. The city is also home to the Royal Picture Gallery Mauritshuis and the Gemeentemuseum, which both boast stunning art collections. The Hague is a great walking city, with six historic squares all located within a 10-minute walk through the town centre.

Delft
The pretty town of Delft is home to the renowned painter of the Girl with a Pearl Earring, Johannes Vermeer. The Vermeer Centre Exhibition recounts the life of Vermeer, his mentors, his city and the hidden love messages in his work. You can also learn how the 17th century painter became the master of the so-called ‘Dutch light’. The city is also is famous for Royal Delft, the last remaining factory that makes the famous blue earthenware. The factory offers a workshop that allows you to paint your own tiles or plates. The Old Church of Delft is the Netherlands’ answer to the Leaning Tower of Pisa, dating back to 1050. History lovers will certainly be interested to learn of the William of Orange connection in Delft – the original William, an ancestor of King Billy, was a champion of freedom of religion and tolerance and was assassinated at the city’s museum of Het Prinsenhof (The Prince’s Court).

Maastricht
Located in the south of the Netherlands, within walking distance of Belgium, Maastricht is probably best known for a European Union treaty. Not the sort of thing that tourist boards can do much with, but the Meuse valley city would make an ideal city break destination as it claims to be the oldest city in the Netherlands and is full of interesting buildings and excellent museums. The White Village of Thorn, the Caves and Fort of St Peter and the Casemates of Maastricht, a network of underground passageways or mine galleries, are the main attractions to visit. Maastricht is also filled with breathtaking churches, including the Basilica of St Servatius, located on the famous Vrijthof Square, which is a Romanesque basilica with crypts and treasures. Pilgrims have travelled to Maastricht to visit the tomb of Saint Servatius for centuries.

Anne Frank House, Amsterdam
Many of the city’s tourist brochures claim that the must-see attractions in Amsterdam are the Heineken Experience, the Ice Bar and Madame Tussauds. That list would nearly make you change your mind about visiting one of the most vibrant and interesting cities in Europe. Anne Frank House tells the very moving story of the young girl and her family who were hiding out in Nazi-occupied Amsterdam. The queues are long but they are well worth the wait to get a real sense of history amidst the hustle and bustle of the modern city. Enjoy the calmness and tranquillity in the area as you stroll the canals and appreciate the rows of pretty, narrow houses – it’s hard to believe that the museum is only a stone’s throw from the hectic old town centre.

Utrecht
The university city of Utrecht is one of the oldest in the Netherlands, dating back to Roman times in 47AD, and is also one of the liveliest with a very youthful population residing there. The Dom Tower dominates the city, while the canals offer a great way to discover the town centre as the many almshouses, squares and parks add to its character. The magnificent Kasteel de Haar is located just outside the city centre and is the largest castle in the Netherlands. The Rhijnauwen Fort and the city’s Light Art Route (Trajectum Lumen) are two of other main attractions.

Nijmegen
The oldest town in Holland enjoys a great blend of historic and contemporary features as the futuristic quayside blends harmoniously with the ancient buildings, which maintain the city’s old world charm. The Museum Het Valkhof exhibits an impressive collection of Roman archaeological artefacts, while the National Liberation Museum 1944-1945 details the country’s occupation and liberation. Nijmegen also acts as a gateway to nature, with walking and cycling activities available at Ooijpolder and Duffelt.

Drive Holland
Discover the Netherlands at your leisure by enjoying a driving holiday throughout the low country, where you can explore the Dutch coast or get up close and personal with some of the iconic Dutch symbols including colourful bulb fields, windmills, cheese, paintings or the several World Heritage sites. Unique towns and villages are dotted throughout the provinces and are best visited by car. There are many family activities available, with zoos, amusement parks and theme parks located around the country. Alternatively, boat rentals are also proving very popular as you explore the Netherlands’ many inland waterways.

CHARGED if you do and charged if you don’t. Ryanair yesterday launched a new prepaid cash card and, not surprisingly, it comes with a litany of fees involved in its use.

The Ryanair Cash Passport prepaid card will be the only way passengers in Ireland can avoid the airline’s €6 administration fee on each flight booked from March 1 on.

Customers use the card by transferring money on to it in advance of making a purchase.

However, there are a host of costs associated with buying and using — or not using — the new card.

For starters, it costs €10 to buy — although Ryanair said it would issue each cardholder a €10 travel voucher equivalent to this fee.

Consumers will then be hit with a €3 charge every time they load money on to the card online, while there is also annual government stamp duty of up to €5 on it.

Keeping the card for a once-yearly flight purchase is not a cheap option either — because there’s a €3 per month ‘inactivity fee’ debited from the card if you haven’t used it for six months. And if you go into the red on the card, there’s a negative balance fee of €15.

After you paying the initial €10 charge to buy the card and €3 charge to put money on to it, the card will be ‘free’ to use to make purchases from businesses which accept Mastercard.

Fees

However, withdrawing your money with it from an ATM will cost €2 a time in the eurozone and €5 a time outside — and that is on top of any withdrawal fees charged by the ATM operator.

Purchases and withdrawals in currencies other than the euro will also be charged at the exchange rate of the day — with an extra 5.75pc charged on top.

The Consumers’ Association of Ireland (CAI) said it was outrageous to charge people fees for not using a payment card, and they would write to the Government urgently calling on them to ban this practice in their forthcoming crackdown on excessive charges.

“It’s a bit rich that they will be charging people fees for not spending their own money. Ryanair should be known as the low-cost, high-charge airline,” said CAI chief executive Dermott Jewell.

He urged customers to make sure they were aware of all the charges associated with using this card before they bought one — and to check if it made sense to cancel the card after use to avoid ongoing charges.

Irish customers who have been using Mastercard prepaid cards to avoid Ryanair administration fees will no longer be able to do so for bookings made from March 1 — even though the new card is managed by Access Prepaid Worldwide, which is owned by Mastercard.

That means that, unless they now purchase the Ryanair card, they will also be hit with the €6 charge per person for each one-way flight already levied on bookings made with all other debit and credit cards.

A Ryanair spokesman said all charges for the card were fully transparent and were comparable with other prepaid cards. Ryanair introduced the Cash Passport card in the UK and Italy in September. These cards are available to purchase online via the Ryanair website.

WE can put away the winter gloves for the time being as the bright cold snap is set to be replaced with slightly wetter and milder weather over the weekend.

Although Eastern Europe is still in the grips of a big freeze, moist conditions from the Atlantic are pushing their way over Ireland, knocking the mercury up.

But Met Eireann said the levels of rain would remain relatively low, with the west and the north getting the most of it.

Forecaster Joan Blackburn said: “The very cold dry weather is being replaced by less cold moist air from the Atlantic.”

Met Eireann said today would be generally cloudy, but persistent rain would push into the west and move eastwards by evening.

Frost will return in the early hours of tomorrow morning as the rain clears away, but it won’t quite be as bad as the –6C experienced in parts of the country this week.

There might still be a bit of a chill in the east as temperatures hover around 6C, but the west and north will be warmer at about 10C.

It will be a similar picture tomorrow, while Monday will be milder again with highest temperatures of about 10 to 12C.

The cold snap has threatened the racing at Fairyhouse today with hopes pinned on the track passing an inspection this morning.

Met Eireann also warned that the cold snap may return.

“The cold air is still over Britain and it’s lurking there to the east all of the time, and it might poke its nose closer to us again as we go through the week, but for the time being it looks as if the Atlantic has won through” said Ms Blackburn.

HUNDREDS of airline passengers travelling to and from Ireland were left marooned yesterday after 70 flights were cancelled due to unprecedented snowfall across Europe.

London Heathrow, Newcastle Airport, Paris Beauvais and Rome’s Ciampino Airport were hardest hit by the deep winter chill — with over six inches of snow reported in many parts of Britain.

Heathrow airport cancelled half its scheduled 1,300 flights yesterday.

An estimated 400 transatlantic passengers bound for London were also forced into unscheduled pit stops at Irish airports yesterday.

Eight transatlantic flights travelling from the US to Heathrow were redirected to Shannon Airport because of freezing temperatures.

Some were in UK airspace, or on approach to London, when the order came to redirect their flights to Ireland.

“Three British Airways flights have been diverted to Dublin and a further eight flights were diverted to Shannon,” a spokesperson from Dublin Airport said yesterday.

Hotels

Almost 500 passengers from flights bound for Miami and Atlanta were sent to local hotels in the Shannon and Limerick region last night. They are expected to recommence their journey later today.

The unscheduled arrivals provided welcome mid-winter business for the midwest with ground handling agents, bus operators, fuel companies and hotels all benefiting.

Aer Lingus cancelled 16 flights from Ireland to London’s Heathrow and Gatwick airports, while Ryanair cancelled 54 flights over the weekend — the majority from Paris Beauvais which was inaccessible due to heavy snow.

On Saturday, Ryanair cancelled more than 30 flights as a result of snow in Britain and on the continent, particularly in Italy, where Rome has had its heaviest snowfall in over 25 years.

The cold snap has claimed the lives of more than 260 people across Europe.

Meanwhile, Met Eireann says temperatures will drop sharply this week across Ireland — however snow remains unlikely.

“I don’t see any prospect of snow over the coming days. We’re very much at the edge of things in Ireland; the snow in England is more towards the east and south-east of the country,” said Gerald Fleming of Met Eireann last night.

“It will get colder towards the end of the week, but it will be more dry and frosty,” he predicted.

Elsewhere, the freezing weather conditions in Britain over the weekend could cost Fermanagh GAA in the region of €10,000. The Ernesiders are in London to take part in a National Football League match. But the division four clash was called off yesterday after an inspection by officials deemed the pitch unplayable.

Counties travelling to London get a grant from Croke Park of €10,000 to cover transport and costs but the team are unlikely to receive funding for the rescheduled fixture which is expected to take place in March.

“At the moment it’s not clear when the game will be played, or what the situation is regarding getting a grant. We’ll have to wait until the Competitions Control Committee makes a decision,” said Fermanagh county secretary Tom Boyle.