□ 文 /本刊记者 林芊芊
广西桂林,一座旅游资源丰富的历史文化名城、生态山水名城,一直居于广西旅游产业发展的龙头地位,也是中国旅游发展的缩影和“风向标”。于2015年起永久落户于桂林的中国—东盟博览会旅游展,是东博会首个专题展,也是东博会在主办地广西南宁之外举办的第一个专题展,开创了东博会异地举办专题展的新格局。
东博会旅游展迄今已成功举办四届,其规格高、嘉宾多,国际性、开放性、专业性强,得到各界和业内的高度肯定。它不仅致力于打造东博会升级版,推动中国与东盟旅游合作向更大规模、更深层次、更高水平迈进,同时作为一个机制性平台,还进一步推动了桂林与东盟各国在旅游、经贸等领域的合作迈向新高度。
“桂林好的地方那么多,我们在安排东博会旅游展嘉宾考察线路时,真希望能够多放点景点、景区,可即便如此,还是无法满足嘉宾们的需要。”2018年东博会旅游展备展之际,桂林市旅发委工作人员刘晗发出这样的感叹。
刘晗这一“喜悦的烦恼”,源于4年来桂林承办东博会旅游展不断提涨的底气。如今,桂林以建设国际旅游胜地为契机,陆续引进的一大批消费层次丰富、产品体系完整的高端旅游项目,其举办东博会旅游展的实力与日俱增。随着广西首个通用航空机场在阳朔投入使用,“空中游漓江”航线开通,新加坡著名酒店品牌——悦榕庄阳朔度假酒店落成,桂林千古情景区和大型歌舞《桂林千古情》亮相,游客观光桂林的选择也越来越多。
在桂林市委书记赵乐秦眼中,东博会旅游展,这个于2015年起永久落户桂林的国际性展会,是桂林旅游转型升级加快发展的一个重大机遇。
这是东博会在主办地广西南宁之外举办的第一个专题展,开创了东博会异地举办专题展的新格局。广西是中国—东盟合作的前沿,旅游是双边最便捷、最有效也最能产生效益的产业合作,依靠丰富的旅游资源及特有的区位优势,广西与东盟国家之间的旅游交流合作步入快速发展的时代。而桂林是广西旅游的龙头,做好东盟旅游这篇文章,搭建起中国与东盟旅游合作全新平台,进而密切中国与东盟各国的经贸关系,这恰是国家和广西政府把旅游展永久落户桂林的初衷。
“把旅游展打造成中国与东盟旅游合作交流的国际性知名展会,建成具有区域特色、面向全球开放的旅游合作平台,是桂林今后必须坚定的努力方向。”赵乐秦说。
自从桂林对51个国家正式实施72小时过境免签政策,对东盟10国旅游团实施6天入境免签政策以来,其每年接待旅游总人数近4000万,其中入境游客超过200万,旅游影响力和美誉度不断攀升。另一方面,在承办东博会旅游展之前,桂林已打造了一批颇具影响力的本土会展品牌,如中国桂林国际旅游博览会、博鳌亚洲旅游论坛、世界旅游趋势与展望国际论坛等多个国内外大型知名旅游展会和论坛,锻炼出一支专业会展人才队伍,积累了丰富的办展办会经验。
01 / 桂林夜景
02 /《印象·刘三姐》演出亮相2018东博会旅游展
因此,东博会旅游展的落户不仅进一步提升了桂林承办国际国内大型展会活动的综合能力和水平,也为桂林发挥优势联动东盟创造了良好的机制平台。桂林与东盟国家一批境外知名旅游集团和机构合作开展了“本土化营销”,深化了区域旅游合作。利用“联盟代理”的新思路,在马来西亚和印尼成立的“桂林旅游大联盟”,不断吸收穆斯林旅行商加盟,专门设计桂林线路,向桂林输送穆斯林游客。此外,桂林旅游部门还坚持每年参加马来西亚、印尼、新加坡等国家的旅游展会,使桂林旅游在东盟市场的竞争力和影响力日渐提升,一批又一批东盟游客纷至沓来。在旅游展的机制平台下,中国旅游研究院副院长李仲广建议,可以桂林和香港为轴心,构建中国和东盟的国际旅游线路,将线路扩展到新加坡、泰国等地。
而桂林亦在建设国际旅游胜地、国家可持续发展议程、创新示范区和国家健康旅游示范基地的征程中,全面借助东博会旅游展等多个国际平台,主动适应国内外旅游发展新趋势,推进旅游综合改革和旅游业态创新,为广西乃至中国的旅游产业发展创造了许多可复制、可推广的“桂林经验”。
海南三亚市旅游委副主任王菲菲犹记得,2015年三亚组成促销团参加首届东博会旅游展时,以“针对东南亚客源巩固已有的成熟市场、开辟冷市场”为策略进行的该市旅游目的地营销。那一届旅游展上,由于东盟10国全部参展,三亚加大了在新加坡的宣传促销力度,并针对泰国游客市场推介展销海南侨乡、黎苗等具有文化特色的旅游产品。东博会旅游展的国际性和专业性,让三亚参展商收获颇丰。
彼时,设置在展会现场的952平方米的独立贸易配对洽谈区,被近400家企业充分利用,实现的贸易洽谈次数超过3600场。专业洽谈取得了实实在在的效果,也让很多参展商和专业买家对参展成果很满意,纷纷表示“明年还来!”
往后的几届东博会旅游展,买家数量、质量明显提升,旅游展的专业性也进一步凸显。不仅在开馆仪式、展览内容设置、展会主题活动等方面突出当届主题,同时遵循主宾国机制,邀请东盟10国轮流出任旅游展主宾国。而根据展区规划和展览内容的划分,最初的国际旅游专业展、国内旅游专业展、广西旅游形象展、国际旅游商品展和旅游消费展亦不断拓展,逐年增添新元素,展出旅游形象、旅游消费、旅游科技以及旅游商品等内容,并同期举办旅游专业论坛。2016年,东博会旅游展被印尼旅游部列为当年计划参加的亚太地区五大旅游展会之一,被柬埔寨旅游部列为重点参加的中国六大旅游展会之一。
时间来到2018年,第4届东博会旅游展如期而至。人们惊喜地看到:桂林以主题形象馆的方式惊艳亮相;新增的广西魅力友城展区里,来自异国友城的参展商用流利的汉语向人们推介自己国家的景点和文旅周边产品;“技术与创新促进可持续旅游发展”的主题,在论坛上被国际旅游业界热议……
越来越多的实践丰富着东博会旅游展的“桂林经验”,也给桂林这座城市增添了一张亮丽的名片。带着促进中国—东盟旅游合作的使命,带着各界对桂林旅游业发展的期盼,桂林将继续依托东博会旅游展平台,在中国—东盟合作的大舞台中绽放自己的光彩。
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Professional CAEXPO Tourism Exhibition Bearing Great Business Opportunities
Written by Lin Qianqian / Translated by Mo Tingting
The show at the CAEXPO Tourism Exhibition
Guilin, a famous historical and cultural city in Guangxi, with rich tourism resources and charming landscapes, has played a leading role in Guangxi’s tourism industry, and also been the epitome of China’s tourism development. The CAEXPO Tourism Exhibition (CAEXPOTE), which has been permanently settled in Guilin since 2015, is the fi rst special exhibition of CAEXPO and the first one held outside Nanning, the permanent home of CAEXPO,creating a new pattern of CAEXPO.
The CAEXPOTE, which has been successfully held for four times and highly recognized by all walks of life and the industry, is not only committed to building an upgraded version of CAEXPO and promoting China-ASEAN tourism cooperation with a larger scale, as well as a deeper and higher level, but also serving as a platform to further promote Guilin’s cooperation with ASEAN countries in such fi elds as tourism, economy and trade.
The special exhibition of CAEXPO held outside Nanning
“There are so many beautiful places in Guilin that we really hope to arrange more scenic spots in the tour route for guests of CAEXPOTE,but even so, we still can’t meet the needs of all guests,” said Liu Han, a staff of Guilin Tourism Development Committee.
At present, Guilin, taking the opportunity of building an international tourist resort, has introduced a large number of high-end tourism projects with rich consumption levels and complete product systems,
which is continuously enhancing its foundation for hosting the CAEXPOTE. With the opening of Guangxi’s first general aviation airport in Yangshuo, the opening of “Air Tour of Lijiang River”, the completion of Banyan Tree Yangshuo (a famous hotel brand in Singapore),the appearance of Guilin Romance Park and the large singing and dancing performanceThe Romance Show of Guilin, tourists have more and more choices when they visit Guilin.
In the eyes of Zhao Leqin, Secretary of Guilin Municipal Committee of the CPC,CAEXPOTE, the first thematic exhibition of CAEXPO held outside Nanning and permanently settled in Guilin since 2015, is a major opportunity for Guilin to accelerate its tourism transformation and upgrading.
Guangxi is at the forefront of the China-ASEAN cooperation, while tourism is the most effective and convenient way to make bilateral cooperation. Relying on the abundant tourism resources and unique geographical advantages,tourism exchanges and cooperation between Guangxi and ASEAN countries have entered the era of rapid development. Moreover,Guilin, the bellwether of Guangxi’s tourism,should play a leading role in building a brand new platform for China-ASEAN tourism cooperation, and enhancing economic and trade relations between China and ASEAN countries,which is the original intention of China to locate tourism exhibition in Guilin.
“To build the tourism exhibition into an international well-known exhibition of China-ASEAN tourism cooperation and exchange,and a tourism cooperation platform opening to the world with regional characteristics is the development direction Guilin must firmly adhere to in the future,” said Zhao Leqin.
Guilin’s tourism oriented towards ASEAN
Since Guilin officially implemented the 72-hour transit visa-free policy for 51 countries and the 6-day entry visafree policy for tourist groups of 10 ASEAN countries,it has received nearly 40 million tourists every year,including more than 2 million inbound tourists, with constantly rising in fl uence and reputation. Furthermore,to take the initiative to undertake the CAEXPOTE, Guilin has built a batch of in fl uential exhibition brands, such as China Guilin International Tourism Fair and Boao Asia Tourism Forum, and built a professional exhibition team with rich experience in organizing exhibitions.
Therefore, the settlement of CAEXPOTE has not only further improved Guilin’s comprehensive ability to host large international and domestic exhibition activities,but also created a good mechanism platform for Guilin to give full play to its advantages oriented towards ASEAN. Now, Guilin has cooperated with a number of well-known overseas tourism groups and institutions of ASEAN countries to carry out “localized marketing”and deepen regional tourism cooperation. With the new idea of “Alliance Agent”, and the “Guilin Tourism Grand Alliance” established in Malaysia and Indonesia,Guilin has been constantly attracting Muslim tour operators, and specially designed routes to transport Muslim tourists to Guilin. In addition, the tourism department of Guilin also insists on participating in tourism exhibitions of Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore and other countries every year, which makes Guilin’s competitiveness and influence in ASEAN market increase day by day. Under the mechanism platform of the CAEXPOTE, Li Zhongguang, Vice President of China Tourism Research Institute, suggested that Guilin and Hong Kong can be used as the axis to build international tourism routes between China and ASEAN and then expand the routes to other places.
At present, Guilin has been on the agenda of the construction of international tourism resort, the innovation demonstration area and national health tourism demonstration base. By virtue of the CAEXPOTE and other international platforms, Guilin has taken the initiative to adapt to the new trend of development of tourism at home and abroad, promoted tourism comprehensive reform and innovation of tourism forms,and created many replicable “Guilin Experience” for Guangxi and even the whole country.
Business opportunities of CAEXPOTE
Wang Feifei, Deputy Director of Sanya Tourism Commission, remembered that at the first CAEXPOTE in 2015, Sanya has increased its publicity and promotion efforts towards Singapore, and displayed the charm of Hainan, the hometown of overseas Chinese, Li and Miao ethnic group and other tourism products with cultural characteristics for the Thai tourist market, which has bene fi ted Sanya’s exhibitors a lot.
In addition, the 952-square-meter independent trade matching negotiation area set at the exhibition area has been fully utilized by nearly 400 enterprises. Professional negotiations have achieved real results, and many exhibitors and professional buyers are very satis fi ed with the results of the CAEXPOTE.
In the following years, the number and quality of buyers have been significantly increased, and the speciality of CAEXPOTE has been further highlighted. CAEXPOTE has not only highlighted the theme of the opening ceremony, exhibition content setting, exhibition theme activities and other aspects, but also followed the principle to invite 10 ASEAN countries to take turns as the guest of honor of the tourism exhibition. And according to the division of exhibition planning and content, CAEXPOTE has innovated the initial international tourism exhibition,domestic tourism exhibition, Guangxi tourism exhibition,international tourism commodities fair and tourism consumption exhibition. In 2016, the CAEXPOTE was listed by the Ministry of Tourism of Indonesia as one of the fi ve major tourism exhibitions in the Asia-Paci fi c region, and by the Ministry of Tourism of Cambodia as one of the six major tourism exhibitions in China.
In 2018, you can see fi nd at the fourth CAEXPOTE: The amazing appearance of Guilin’s thematic image pavilion,the newly added charming sister cities exhibition areas of Guangxi, and the hot theme of “technology and innovation promoting sustainable tourism development”.More and more practices have enriched the “Guilin Experience” of the CAEXPOTE, and created a bright card for Guilin. With the mission of promoting China-ASEAN tourism cooperation and the expectation of all walks of life for the development of Guilin’s tourism industry, Guilin will continue to rely on the platform of CAEXPOTE and bear a rosy future in China-ASEAN cooperation.