International Travel Expo 2010 was biggest ever

International Travel Expo 2010, the largest tourism event in Vietnam, opened its doors on September 30 at the Saigon Exhibition and Convention Center.

International Travel Expo 2010, the largest tourism event in Vietnam, opened its doors on September 30 at the Saigon Exhibition and Convention Center. The Exhibition was organized by the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism; HCMC Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism; VINEXAD; and IIR Exhibitions Pte Ltd. This yearโ€™s ITE HCMC was spread across 4,500 square meters at the Saigon Exhibition and Convention Center in Ho Chi Min City. A total of more than 180 exhibiting companies from 14 countries and regions participated at this yearโ€™s show.

Said Mr. La Quoc Khanh, vice director at the HCMC Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, โ€œI am very pleased with the performance of this yearโ€™s exhibition, which has grown 5 percent from last year despite the challenging environment.โ€

This year marked the 6th edition of ITE HCMC. The exhibition is respected as the platform for the Greater Mekong subregion to showcase its newest tourism and travel products and services, as well as to network with fellow peers. Thailand was the guest country for this yearโ€™s ITE HCMC. However, the groundbreaking news of at the exhibition was the inception of Myanmar, which joins Cambodia, Lao, and Vietnam to form the new “4 Countries One Destination Bloc.” The agreement between all four countries was inked at the ITE HCMC ministerial press conference, which was held just after the opening ceremony. The tourism bloc is aimed at promoting the countries of Cambodia, Lao, Myanmar, and Vietnam as a singular tourist destination.

In total, ITE HCMC 2010 had 5 country pavilions and 11 provincial pavilions. The country pavilions included Cambodia, Lao, China-Macau, Malaysia, and Thailand, while provincial pavilions included An Giang, Baria-Vungtau, Binh Phuoc, Binh Thuan, Can Tho, Dong Nai, Khanh Hoa, Lam Dong, Quang Nam, Quang Ninh, and Tien Giang. Major exhibitors for ITE HCMC 2010 included Vietnam Airlines, Saigon Tourist, VNAT, Ministry of Tourism Cambodia, Nagaworld, Tourism Authority of Thailand, Tourism Malaysia, Turkish Airlines, Macau Government Tourist Office and the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Binh Thuan, Baria-Vungtau, and Dong Nai among others.

Among the other notable features of the exhibition were the hosted buyers program consisting of a select group of more than 120 internationally-renowned tour operators, and the hosted media program, whereby the different trade publications around the world were invited to publicize Vietnamโ€™s largest tourism event through their respective media channels. These special visitors of ITE HCMC had the opportunity to go to their respective pre- and post-show tours, whereby they were able to see the special sights, sounds, and unique cultural influences of Vietnam.

ITE HCMC 2010 concluded on October 2 in Ho Chi Minh City at the Saigon Exhibition and Convention Center.

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Linda Hohnholz

Editor in chief for eTurboNews based in the eTN HQ.

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