China International Travel Mart (CITM) 2011 Now One Month Earlier in October

The China International Travel Mart (CITM) is the largest professional travel mart in Asia. It has drawn the attention of people in the tourism industry worldwide. As an annual event, it is held in Shanghai and Kunming alternately.

                

Kunming International Convention & Exhibition Center

CITM 2011 will be held in Kunming, China from Oct 27 - 30, 2011 at the Kunming International Convention & Exhibition Center, Kunming, China. The first 2 day (October 27 – 28) will be for trade personnel only, and the last 2 days will be for the general public.

The date for this year’s CITM in Kunming has been brought forward to October 27 and, apart from the better weather, host province Yunnan is embarking on a range of venue and tourism product improvement to give delegates a warm welcome.

Yunnan Provincial Tourism Administration’s deputy director, He Chikang, explained that the weather tended to be very cold in November, the month that CITM had been held in the past, and had caused much discomfort to delegates.

Yunan

Further, renovation work has started on the Kunming International Convention & Exhibition Center, where CITM  2011 will be held. Eight function halls and public dining areas will be given a fresh look; a ballroom that can accommodate 700 guests will be built; and security features of the venue will be enhanced. Works will complete in time for CITM2011.

The tourism board is also developing a range of new tourism products to capture niches such as health tourism, golf, conventions and exhibitions, self-drive and culture, among others.

Yunan Train Station

Specific products will be developed for different markets. For instance, a mystical Shangri-La theme will be employed to attract Europeans, Americans, South-east Asians and domestic markets, while health tourism will be promoted to travellers from Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan.

Mr He Chikang said that Asian markets, especially Singapore and Malaysia, would remain Yunnan’s top source markets. “We would love to have more European and American arrivals, but air access limitation remains a challenge. There are no direct flights from Europe and America to Yunnan, so it costs more and takes a longer time for these travellers to reach us.”

The tourism board has deployed some 500 representatives from 150 tourism companies in 16 cities in Yunnan to this year’s CITM. “These tourism companies will be able to learn from industry peers at the trade event, and use the knowledge to improve their business. We have also arranged for them to meet with top travel agencies in Shanghai to learn best practices,” he said.

CITM 2011 will be the largest professional travel show in Asia as it brings together people from tourism circles. The features of CITM 2011are:-
● Participants in CITM come from all sectors of the travel industry including international and domestic tourist organizations, travel agencies, hotels, airlines and related travel companies.
● The CITM Organizing Committee is sparing no effort to invite, through various channels, buyers with strong competitiveness from China (including Hong Kong SAR, Macau SAR, and Taiwan Region) and other countries and regions in the world, to participate in the mart.

● Professional trade days will be arranged exclusively for registered delegates In the days open to the public, exhibitors can promote tourist products and show advantages of tourism resources to the general public directly.
● The CITM Organizing Committee will also invite a large number of correspondents of domestic and overseas media to cover the mart in an extensive and intensive way. Exhibitors may take the chance to increase their exposure and promote the reputation of their products.

● Exhibitors will have many opportunities to meet people from tourism circles and establish extensive business contacts with them.
● Participants may attend specialized symposiums and lectures to trace the latest development trend of international tourism.
● Press conferences or cultural performances will be held at the mart to fully display the exhibitors’ new tourism products.
● The mart will be open to tourism-related personnel and the public. It is predicted that tens of thousands of people will visit it.
● Participants may hold various promotional activities; introduce the tourism resources of their own countries so as to tap the most opportunities.

Kunming

CITM 2011 is jointly organized by China National Tourism Administration, Yunnan Provincial People’s Government and Civil Aviation Administration of China,

CITM Secretariat, as a standing body of CITM Organizing Committee, is responsible for the related work of China International Travel Mart. The office of CITM Secretariat is in Beijing. The Contact Persons are Sun Keqiang, Fu Wenjun, Zong Yuan  Tel: 0086-10-59604830/35; Fax: 0086-10-59604810

E-mail: citm1998@yahoo.cn, Website: http://www.citm.com.cn/english

The address of the Kunming International Convention and Exhibition Center

is 289 Chuncheng Rd., Kunming, Yunnan, China. Tel: 0086-871-3513442, Fax: 0086-871-3513440

For further information about CITM 2011 see the web site: http://www.citm.com.cn