Mekong Tourism Forum set for resort city of Da Nang in Vietnam
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To promote tourism in the Greater Mekong Subregion, government leaders and top executives will reconvene and brainstorm on developing the region's cross-border potential at the Mekong Tourism Forum in Vietnam's beach-resort city of Da Nang from June 16-
With the goal of “unlocking the potential of the Mekong Region via innovative partnerships”, the event hosted by Vietnam’s Tourism Ministry on the beautiful central coast will showcase emerging tourist destinations and trends in the GMS.
The six GMS countries have banded together to promote tourism product development, market the region as a single travel destination and stage the annual forum, which is the event of the year for travel industry professionals dedicated to putting the GMS on the global travel map.
Tourism leaders from the public and private sectors and regional development partners attend the forum as the ideal place for travel industry stakeholders who are serious about developing the region’s cross-border potential.
Business and government leaders will assess the latest tourism developments and investment opportunities along the road networks linking Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam and China’s provinces of Yunnan and Guangxi.
The forum is supported by the United Nations World Tourism Organisation, the Pacific Asia Travel Association and the Asian Development Bank.
The forum will feature keynote speakers and interactive panel debates. To increase relevance, various side-line activities will be staged, including the Mekong Tourism Investment Summit and the E-Tourism Asia Boot Camp.
Annual one-day event
Chris Pucher, director of HVS’ Bangkok office, said yesterday that his hospitality-services company was excited about producing the summit, which is slated to become an annual one-day event as part of the forum.
“Now more than ever, the region is in a pivotal growth phase. With markets such as Myanmar opening, industry leaders need to come together to ensure more responsible and sustainable tourism development,” he said.
For the fourth time, the boot camp will focus on four areas, including social media and mobile marketing to key target markets including Europe, North America and Asia.
The others are how to work with bloggers and key digital influencers, understanding online distribution and working with online travel agencies, and marketing to affluent Chinese consumers via digital and social media.
The Mekong Tourism Advisory Group will meet to discuss the new Mekong Tourism Marketing Strategy and Action Plan 2015-20 and how the public and private sectors can partner and collaborate in promoting the GMS as a single destination.
“Today villages and towns in the GMS are benefiting from the arrival of tourists where there were none before,” said Jens Thraenhart, new executive director of the Bangkok-based Mekong Tourism Coordinating Office.
“At the Mekong Tourism Forum, we will discuss investment prospects and hear from tourism operators who are already taking advantage of opportunities along the new overland corridors,” he said.
