ITE HCMC 2017 to showcase tourism as Vietnam’s key economic sector

The International Travel Expo, Ho Chi Minh City (ITE HCMC) 2017, returns for the 13th time as the largest and most established annual international travel trade event in the Mekong sub-region.

ITE HCMC 2017 continues to grow from strength to strength on the scale of the expo and the quality of participants, delivering the hospitality of Vietnam’s destinations and Ho Chi Minh City.

Endorsed by the Ministry of Culture, Sports & Tourism, Vietnam, and the Ho Chi Minh City People’s Committee, the 13th ITE HCMC will be held from September 7 to 9 at the Saigon Exhibition & Convention Centre (SECC), Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. Organised by the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism (VNAT); Ho Chi Minh City Department of Tourism; Informa Exhibitions Pte Ltd; and the Vietnam Trade Fair & Advertising Joint Stock (VINEXAD), ITE HCMC 2017, themed ‘Your Gateway to Tourism in Asia’, provides a platform for the international and local travel businesses to keep up with the travel trends, get updated on tourism products and services, establish connections with new business partners, further boosting the tourism potential of the country and the ASEAN region.

Mr Bui Ta Hoang Vu, Director of the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Tourism, and Chairman of the Organising Committee, says: “ITE HCMC 2017, themed ‘Your Gateway to Tourism in Asia’, is celebrated with the 50th Anniversary of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). ASEAN is a highly integrated and dynamic political – economic organisation, enhancing connectivity and cooperation among the country members in all sectors, and tourism is one of the most important areas of cooperation.”

“According to the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC), the tourism in the ASEAN region has achieved positive and overall encouraging results, with the travel & Tourism sector contributing to the region’s economy higher than other regions in the world (including Europe and the Americas). As a member of ASEAN, Vietnam, and Ho Chi Minh City in particular has reaffirmed its commitment to being a valued member, contributing to establishing and maintaining a sociocultural ASEAN Community with different agreements aiming to increase economic cooperation, diversification of tourism products, strengthening ties to promote the inbound and outbound tourism, and striving to promote ASEAN as a unified travel destination,” Mr Vu continues.

Delivering products that enhance the tourism competitiveness of Vietnam and Ho Chi Minh City is at the heart of ITE HCMC this year. With that in mind, the ITE HCMC Organising Committee has dedicated to improving the quality and content of event, bringing new and exciting activities for the participants, some of which including exclusive buyer-seller online pre-appointment system, a destination visitor survey programme, specialised international seminars, Travel Fun Fair Day, special travel discounts and promotions, and other cultural musical performances, catering not only for the international and regional buyers, sellers, travel trade experts and media partners but also the public.

These wide range of activities are customised to keep the event attendees updated with the current news and trends of the Travel & Tourism industry; and all are part of the plan to boost the tourism to spearhead the economy of the country based on the Resolution No. 08-NQ / TW.

INCREASED ACTIVE PARTICIPATION FROM INTERNATIONAL AND LOCAL MARKETS – AN EFFECTIVE INTERNATIONAL MARKETING CHANNEL

With a plan to create more opportunities for international and local businesses to promote their tourism products and bring the businesses together, the ITE HCMC 2017 Organising Committee has invested to expand the total area of exhibitions of scale, with an increase of 15 per cent as compared to 2016, for the 300 exhibition booths. The expo attracts a wide range of international and local travel companies from 25 countries.

This year sees the strong continued participation of international promotion agencies such as the Indian Tourism; Japan National Tourism Organization (JNTO); Korea Tourism Organization (KTO); Kyushu Tourism Promotion Organization (KTPO); Ministry of Information, Culture and Tourism, Lao PDR; Ministry of Tourism of Cambodia; Penang Global Tourism (PGT); Taiwan Tourism; Tokyo Convention & Visitors Bureau (TCVB); Tourism Authority of Thailand; Tourism Promotion Organization for Asia Pacific Cities (TPO); Turkish Embassy Tourism and Information Office; the Union of Myanmar Travel Association
(UMTA); and the Wuhan Tourism Development & Investment Group Swan International Travel Service (China).

ITE HCMC this year also attracts a number of international tourism enterprises seeking business and cooperation opportunities in the Vietnamese market such as the Tour Diamond Company – Myanmar, Prince Hotel – Japan, Traveltek Travel Company – Australia, Plumeria Resort – Maldives, Kansai Airports – Japan, Aeroflot Russia Airlines – Russia, Resorts World Sentosa Singapore, Daegu – Korea, and Japan Excellent Health Organization – Japan. Not only the international tourism promotion agencies and businesses will participate in this year’s event, ITE HCMC 2017 also attracts hundreds of travel companies, large resort hotels, as well as small and medium enterprises from Ho Chi Minh City and other 30 provinces and cities in the country.

“ITE HCMC continues to be the premier travel exhibition event, with each event seeing more attendees than ever before, and ITE HCMC 2017 is no exception,” said Mr Jack Wei, General Manager of Informa Exhibitions (Asia) and Co-Organiser of ITE HCMC. “The 13th event marks not only a new milestone in the exhibition’s reach and impact on promoting the tourism of Ho Chi Minh City and Vietnam, but is also a testament to the work we as a global community
are doing together.”

HIGH PRIORITY ON THE ANNUAL HOSTED BUYERS & MEDIA PROGRAMME

Across the region, ITE HCMC also serves as an international travel hub where professionals network and conduct businesses. The annual Hosted Buyers and Hosted Media Programmes are the two areas of the most importance at ITE HCMC, again highlighting and reaffirming ITE HCMC as the prime international trade travel event for regional and international businesses.