HO CHI MINH CITY, Vietnam, Sept. 5, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Thursday – The International Travel Expo, Ho Chi Minh City (ITE HCMC) -- the largest and most established travel event in Vietnam and the Mekong sub-region -- opens its landmark 15th edition show today.
ITE HCMC is the only specialised event in Vietnam that focuses on both the domestic and foreign tourism markets, and also the only event that is endorsed by the Ministry of Tourism of five countries: Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam.
Its beginnings were, however, humble. When the show was first launched in 2005, it was only a platform to support domestic tourism companies to meet the needs of international visitors.
Then and Now in Numbers
Back then, the show attracted six international exhibitors, the national tourism agencies from Cambodia and Thailand, 86 booths with most of the exhibitors local businesses, and 43 international buyers.
In this year's edition, themed Travel Gateway to Asia, there are more than 350 participating companies and brands, come from 62 countries and regions, 300 international and local buyers, and 40 international media from 40 countries.
The organisers are expecting some 9,000 meetings to be held between buyers and sellers. Both parties had used ITE HCMC's complimentary Online Matching System before the event to find the best business matches and to schedule B2B meetings in advance.
About 35,000 trade and public visitors are also expected to walk through its doors.
To celebrate this year's special 15th edition, the show programme will include a few new elements, a bevy of new exhibitors, hundreds of high quality repeat exhibitors, and a strong line-up of seminars.
*New: Exhibitors
Exhibiting for the first time are several new National Tourism Organisations (NTO) and Tourism Promotion Organisations (TPO): Gangwon Province; Shanghai Municipal Administration of Culture and Tourism; and Seoul Tourism Organisation.
Also new to the show are Angsana Laguna Phuket, Bamboo Airways, BIC Camera & Ito Yokado, Changi Travel Services Pte Ltd, Explore Tibet International Travel Co. Ltd, Grand Howard Hotel, Hoshino Resorts Tomamu, Hotel Shilla Co. Ltd, Ifree Group Telecommunication SDN BHD, Luxetenten B.V., MyProGuide INC., National Palace Museum, PPP Hotel & Resort, RedDoorz Vietnam, Russian Tour LLC, Seven Luck / GKL Grand Korea Leisure, and Travel Destination Online.
Said Changi Travel Services Pte Ltd: "Our Changi Recommends platform has a wide range of travel products, such as attractions tickets, Japan rail passes, transport services, SIM cards, pocket Wi-Fi, and hotels, from over 1,000 destinations. At ITE HCMC, we hope to expand our corporate distribution and work with new partners to list their inventory on our platform."
Luxetenten B.V. also shared: "We develop and produce safari tents and lodges for glamping, which means glamorous camping. The tents contain its own bathroom, queen/king-size beds, a kitchen, veranda, and even air conditioning. We want to provide the glamping experience in the booming Vietnamese tourism sector, and we think it will be amazing to have glamping along the Vietnamese coastline, in the mountain areas or around the rice paddy fields."
New exhibitors from South Korea
Mr Don Byun, Executive Director of Tourism & MICE Division, Seoul Tourism Organization, said: "Our booth will feature a Beauty Showroom, where visitors can try on beauty products made in Seoul, learn the latest make-up trends, and create their own Seoul travel itinerary book. We hope there are many BTS fans in Ho Chi Minh City, because the global artists are Seoul's honorary tourism ambassadors and we will be launching Seoul's new poster with BTS and standees at the show."
Hotel Shilla Co. Ltd added: "We are launching a new hotel brand Shilla Monogram in beautiful Danang early next year. The resort Shilla Monogram Quangnam Danang will incorporate the distinctive local lifestyle that we have carefully re-interpreted, and we are excited to share more information about our company and the new resort with partners."
*New: Expanded Exhibition Space & Hours
This year's show will be held in a larger space over two exhibition halls. The operating hours will also be extended from 9am to 7pm on all three days of the event (September 5 - 7).
In addition, public visitors can also visit and search for great travel deals from 4pm on the first and second day, and the entire day on the third.
*New: Tourism Start-Up Pavilion
A new exhibition area, the Tourism Start-Up Pavilion, will offer a variety of new tourism products and tourism technology to support travel start-up companies. These include better security for travellers and their transactions, better payment models for businesses and consumers, automation in hotels and resorts, as well as personalisation of the travel and hospitality experience.
*New: ITE HCMC Mobile App
The organisers are proud to introduce the show's official mobile application available on the App Store and Google Play. The platform will allow visitors to quickly and easily access the floor plan, exhibitor profiles and the latest information about the show.
Visitors can also share interesting photos taken at the exhibition, and participate in a series of games to win prizes.
*New: ITE HCMC Goes Paperless
The show goes environmentally friendly this year, using a no-paper model for all conferences, seminars, and forums.
Participants and guests can register and confirm their seminar attendance on the website https://tourismevents.vn/home, where they will also receive and view all relevant documents, as well as type their questions to the speakers.
The Exhibitors
More than 350 sellers are exhibiting this year, including those who have been with the show since its very first edition, such as BenThanh Tourist, Cambodia Ministry of Tourism, Hanoi Department of Tourism, Saigon Tourist, Tourism Authority of Thailand, Vietnam Airlines, Vietravel, and Vung Tau Department of Tourism.
Exhibitors from over 45 Vietnamese cities and provinces, such as An Giang, Ben Tre, Ca Mau, Can Tho, Dong Thap, Hai Phong, Hanoi, Lam Dong, Ninh Binh, and Tien Giang, will be present as well.
Hosted Buyers Programme
As part of ITE HCMC's longstanding Hosted Buyers Programme, 250 international buyers who are outbound travel agents from international markets such as America, Australia, the Middle East, Southeast Asia, New Zealand, Northeast Asia, and Western Europe, have been invited to the show. There will also be 50 outbound Vietnamese buyers.
The buyers come from companies in the leisure, corporate, MICE, luxury, and special interest travel sectors, and have been carefully chosen and approved by an Advisory Committee comprising of travel industry professionals from independent parties in the region.
The buyers will book appointments with sellers, conduct buyer-seller meetings, and attend social networking functions.
Hosted Media Programme
On top of that, the organisers will also host 40 international media (eminent online, trade, and travel media and bloggers) from countries/regions including Mainland China, Dubai, France, Germany, Hong Kong, India, Italy, Korea, Malaysia, the Philippines, Russia, Tunisia, Turkey, and the United Kingdom.
The hosted media will attend exclusive tours and networking events to experience Ho Chi Minh City's dining, cultural, and indigenous experiences.
ITE HCMC 2019 Award
This award segment was introduced in 2017 to replace the Mekong Travel Alliance Award (MTAA), and there will be three categories this year:
Empowering Seminars
A series of insightful seminars helmed by experienced industry insiders have been planned for the duration of the show.
One is the new Corporate Travel Trend Forum, organised by Corporate Travel Community. Bespoke speakers in the regional corporate travel community will cover topics like the Relationship Between Corporate Travel and MICE; An Introduction of Strategic Meetings Management Programme; and The Myths of Corporate Travel Management.
Other seminars will cover topics on Medical Tourism, The Rise of the Solo Traveler, Smart Tourism Development in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam - Russia Tourism Cooperation, Vietnam - Middle East Tourism Cooperation, and Vietnam - Korea Tourism Cooperation.
The following forums will also be especially helpful:
National Bartender Competition in 2019
Hundreds of contestants from cities and provinces across Vietnam have signed up for the National Bartender Competition which will be staged at this year's ITE HCMC, aimed at promoting culinary arts, honouring outstanding professionals, and providing a platform for them to exchange experiences and expertise.
ITE HCMC 2019 Pre-show Opening Ceremony Gala Dinner
One of the most anticipated segments of the show is the Gala Dinner, which was held last night (September 4) at Vinpearl Luxury Landmark 81, the tallest building in Vietnam and the 14th tallest building in the world.
The dinner was themed Soulful Vietnam, and guests were treated to exquisite Vietnamese culture, cuisine, and traditional arts that conveyed a message of peace and environmental awareness to build a nation of the future for the next generation.
Robust Growth In Vietnam Tourism Industry
Recent news on the Vietnamese tourism industry has been very positive, signaling robust growth for the upcoming years.
Apart from large international hotel brands opening up new properties in the country, the introduction of new Vietnamese airlines such as Bamboo Airways and Vinpearl Air, as well as the setting up of VinAviation School and Vinpearl Air Training Centre, will bring about a surge in tourist figures and the development of a skilled aviation workforce.
Strongly Supported By Regional Ministries
ITE HCMC is organised by Vietnam National Administration of Tourism, Ho Chi Minh City Department of Tourism, Vietnam Trade Fair & Advertising Joint Stock (VINEXAD), and Informa Markets.
It is also supported by the Ministry of Tourism, Cambodia; the Ministry of Information, Culture and Tourism, Lao PDR; the Ministry of Hotels & Tourism, Myanmar; and the Ministry of Tourism and Sports, Kingdom of Thailand, the Ministry of Culture, Sports & Tourism, Vietnam, and the People's Committee of Ho Chi Minh City.
Event Details
Dates and Hours:
Venue: Saigon Exhibition & Convention Center (SECC)
799 Nguyen Van Linh Street, District 7, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
About ITE HCMC
The event, established in 2005, is the key international tourism event in Vietnam, and the largest event of its kind in the Mekong sub-region for both inbound and outbound markets, attracting hundreds of international exhibitors and hosted buyers. Recognised as Vietnam's one and only National Tourism Event by the Ministry of Culture, Sports & Tourism, it is also the only travel event endorsed by the Tourism Alliance of all five countries in the Mekong Region.
Trade and public visitors totaled over 30,000 in the last edition held in 2018. ITE HCMC 2018 is organised by the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism; Ho Chi Minh City Department of Tourism; VINEXAD Trade Fair & Advertising JSC; and Informa Markets. Please visit http://www.itehcmc.com for more information.
Photo - https://photos.prnasia.com/prnh/20190905/2570870-1-a?lang=0
Photo - https://photos.prnasia.com/prnh/20190905/2570870-1-b?lang=0
