Exhibitors from both the Chinese mainland and overseas gathered on Thursday at Hong Kong’s flagship travel exhibition to showcase their diversified and thematic travel offerings, including the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region’s powdery snow, and exploration of the Nile in Africa.
One of the city's largest travel exhibitions, International Travel Expo Hong Kong celebrates its 40th anniversary this year, with more than 400 exhibitors from around 55 countries and regions assembled under its banner at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre.
The four-day event runs through Sunday. Thursday and Friday were set aside for professional visitors; other residents can check out the tourism booths during the weekend.
During the opening ceremony, Undersecretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism Raistlin Lau Chun said the presence of exhibitors is a strong vote of confidence in Hong Kong as a premier destination for business and leisure.
In a bid to explore new tourism markets, this year’s expo sees the debut of official delegations from countries and regions such as Mongolia and Uganda.
The Mongolia booth is promoting its year-round tourism offerings, including nomadic culture, vast grasslands and seasonal travel experiences.
Sarangerel Nergui, a representative from Mongolia, said the delegation hopes to expand its presence in the Hong Kong and Chinese mainland markets and strengthen partnerships with local travel agencies.
Uganda's tourism representatives said their primary goal is to encourage more people to "discover, visit and explore Uganda". The East African country bolsters world-class attractions such as Lake Victoria and the source of the Nile, with white-water rafting, volcanic landscapes and adventure tourism among its key outdoor offerings.
To mark the expo’s 40th anniversary, the event debuted a pavilion themed “Ice and Snow Travel”, featuring destinations across northern Canada and in Iceland, as well as China destinations that include Heilongjiang province; Beijing; Chongli, Hebei province; and Xinjiang.
Representatives from Xinjiang’s regional cultural and tourism department introduced visitors to the top-notch skiing environment of the Altay mountains, alongside its powder-snow resources and winter-tourism products.
Xinjiang tourism ambassador Zhai Wei said this year's focus includes wellness tourism routes centered on the UNESCO-listed Tianchi Lake, and Xinjiang's four-season offerings to Hong Kong and overseas markets.
Karen Finnerty, a Hong Kong-based professional visitor attending the exhibition for networking, said the scale and diversity of the event exceeded her expectations. While she was impressed by the pavilion of Almaty, the largest city in Central Asia’s Kazakhstan, a display featuring Aba prefecture in Sichuan province also caught his attention.
"I've lived in Hong Kong for nine years and rarely come across information about mainland destinations. This exhibition has really opened my eyes," she said.
Zeng Ziwen also contributed to the story.
