2017 ASTA China Summit Opening up Guiyang’s Tourism Market in North America
- Focusing on Chinese Inbound Tourism, Promoting Chinese Outbound Tourism
American Society of Travel Agents (ASTA) joined with Guiyang Municipal People's Government and Guizhou Provincial Tourism Development Committee when entering China for the first time. Aiming at the status quo of Chinese tourism market, they jointly established a platform for tourism professionals from home and abroad. Featuring treasuredtourism route recommendations, tourism innovation, tourism negotiation and transactions and discussions about tourism industry development. Through "focusing on Chinese inbound tourism and promoting Chinese outbound tourism", they are dedicated to helping the realization of a seamless connection between tourism destinations and tourism enterprises, realizing exchanges and product transactions between travel agents from home and abroad and tourism industries to the maximum extent, and further promoting the branding of Chinese tourism destinations and the deepening of structural reform of the supply side.
Held successfully in Guiyang from Nov 5-16, 2017, ASTA China Summit 2017 was jointly hosted by Guiyang Municipal People's Government, Guizhou Provincial Tourism Development Committee and ASTA, while being organized by Guiyang Tourism Development Committee. It was comprised of three sections, namely, familiarization trips, industry conferences and the travel trade show. Among them, the familiarization trips inside Guizhou province were scheduled from Nov 5th to 8th and from Nov 12th to 15th; Nov 10th and 11th were for the familiarization trips in Guiyang and its surrounding places; from Nov 8th to 9th, there were 6 activities held in Guiyang International Ecology Conference Center, including tourism industry conferences, the trade show, special tourism promotional events and so on. Over 130 travel agents from North America and 200 Chinese representatives from tourism destinations and enterprises carried out pragmatic business talks and negotiations, through which they reached a series of consensus and achievements, thereby initiating a new cooperation stage for the market exploitation of China inbound tourism.
Guiyang was the hosting city for ASTA China Summit 2017. Developing Guiyang's international tourism market and turning Guiyang into a world-famous ecology-friendly tourism city have positive effects and profound significance. The summit will further promote and introduce the tourism products of Guizhou and Guiyang from multi angles and full dimensions, further improve their reputation and influence while increasing their market shares and boosting the inbound tourism market. On one hand, it can help more foreign premium travel agents understand Guizhou, introduce Guizhou's tourism products of in-depth tours to the attending foreign travel agents, guide them to set up partnership more conveniently with Chinese premium travel agencies, especially those regional ones, realize the entrance of Guizhou's tourism products into America, promote the sales of Guizhou's tourism routes by American travel agents, expand the market shares of Guizhou's tourism in American market, boost the quality of Guizhou's tourism products, and finally attract more American tourists to Guizhou and improve their travel experience in Guizhou. On the other hand, this summit can drive Chinese travel agents with relatively strong ability of business exploration to increase Guizhou's tourism products while creating opportunities for Guizhou's local travel agents to directly cooperate with famous travel organizations in the tourist source market.
Walking into China, exploring Guizhou's secret areas and initiating a tourism feast
During the familiarization trips before, in the middle of, and after the conferences to Zhenyuan, Kaili, Pingtang, Huangguoshu, Tianlong Tunpu and Ancient Qingyan Town in Guizhou, representatives from many American travel agents carried out discussions with personnel from the tourism industry of Guizhou. They will jointly design and develop Guizhou's tourism routes and products for American tourists, thereby attracting foreign tourists to come. The familiarization trips were aimed at further expediting the establishment of a world-famous tourism destination, improving the reputation and influence of Guizhou's tourism brand in abroad, making foreign travel agents more deeply and comprehensively understand Guizhou's tourism scenic areas and spots so that they can jointly discuss, design and excavate its highlights, further develop the tourism products suitable for American tourists, thereby attracting foreign tourists to come to Guizhou for travelling.
Meanwhile, in order to help more American tourists know Guizhou and walk into Guiyang, based on the market development strategy of "walking out and inviting in", this summit especially tailor made and released various interline tourism products for China's inbound tourists which are centered on Guizhou and radiates Guangzhou, Yunnan, Shanghai, Beijing and Guangxi. This special product series covers 5 themes, "Brave Guizhou"-mountain adventure, "Sing in Guizhou"- ethnic customs, "Mountains and waters in Guizhou"-natural landscapes, "Guizhou under the moon"-festival experiences, "Gorgeous Guizhou"-themed photograpy.
Ms. Hou Ying (Isabella Hou), President of China Chapter of ASTA, said that, a survey about "American travelling patterns" indicates that American tourists expect most the unique culture, natural landscape and delicious food in their leisure travelling, which make Guizhou and Guizyang stand out from so many tourism destinations in China. When Mr. Robert Duglin, Vice President of ASTA visited Guizhou for the first time, he noticed the stretching mountains, magnificent land and colorful ethnic customs stating: "This is the real China, American tourists are certain to like it here." Mr. Zane Kerby, President of ASTA, held up his thumb to the reporter and said: "The ancient Zhenyuan town is so beautiful! This trip is so worthwhile! So great!" In their hearts, Guizhou not only provides the best tourism products for America, but also provides them with unforgettable cultural feast in their lives. While, Guiyang targets at forging a world-famous tourism city featured with ecology and advance the development of the tourism industry with a open mindset, which also leaves a deep impression for the American travel agents who attended the familiarization trips.
Travel agents from home and abroad taking one-on-one talks and negotiations
To make the conference more productive, during the ASTA China Summit 2017, the buyers and sellers were organized to carry out an one-on-one round table negotiation, in which over 200 travel agents from home and abroad took part in, including ASTA, Sun Knights Travel, American Airlines, Ctrip and China International Travel Service. The participants carried out in-depth talks and negotiations about "the customization and sales of regional interline products centered on Guizhou+", "overseas business development and marketing cooperation", "the display and marketing of treasured routes of Chinese tourism destinations", and "information sharing about Chinese inbound tourism". According to relevant information, this one-on-one communication will not only expand their business cooperation, but also realize the seamless connection between travel agents from home and abroad and the tourism industry, and provide effective basis and directions for the design, development and international marketing of Chinese inbound tourism products and routes.
The colorful Guizhou being awarded as 2018 ASTA Key Strategic Destination Partner in China while the cool Guiyang awarded as The Most Promising Tourism City of China in 2018 by ASTA
Guizhou was recommended by New York Times as "52 Places to Go in 2016". The promo video of Guizhou broadcast by CNN stoked up a "wind of colorful Guizhou" and Guizhou was called "the mysterious oriental strength", which drew attention from international media including the French State TV Station. Guizhou is becoming a place where tourists from all over the world can enjoy mountains and waters indulgently, recollect nostalgia and relax their souls. The series of achievements helped Guizhou to become a burgeoning tourism destination in the world. As the provincial capital of Guizhou, Guiyang is the center of politics, economy and culture of the province as well as the provincial tourist center. In recent years, Guiyang's tourism made great strides and its brand of "the Summer Resort of China" became well-known around the world. Guiyang has well-rounded development and maintains positive growth, while its tourism industry keeps "spurting" and is continuously upgrading and changing. Guiyang is marching toward all-for-one tourism with firm and big strides, while aiming at forging a world-famous tourism city featured with ecology and sharing "green" dividends with the whole world.
During this ASTA China Summit, Guizhou province was awarded by ASTA with the title of "2018 Chinese Key Strategic Partnership Destination", while Guiyang won the title of "2018 Chinese Tourism City with the Biggest Potential".
"The Biggest Potential" was vividly embodied by the U.S. Outbound Tourism Market Research jointly released by Beyond Summits Ltd and ASTA in the conference, which pointed out that in 2016, there was an expediting growth of online inbound tourism in Guiyang, the number of inbound tourists increased by 17% and the US became the biggest source country of online inbound tourists for Guiyang.
"In the past, Guiyang's inbound tourism was focused on Asia-Pacific countries, such as, Japan, Korea and Singapore. Tapping the distant North American market is still a brand-new subject," said Yuan Yunlong, Director of Guiyang Tourism Development Committee. Taking advantage of the ASTA China Summit, the travel agents from North America can visit and understand Guizhou and Guiyang in person. "The nation is the world, we should see our own advantages, reversely utilize high-end market standards to push various jobs about tourism development, take reference from the successful experience of European-American countries in tourism development and continuously introduce international talents," said Yuan Yunlong.
Through the cooperation among American travel agents, domestic and local Guizhou travel agents and tourism destination cities, this summit will effectively improve Guizhou's reputation and popularity while further upgrading of its inbound tourism market. The Travel Agency Branch of Guiyang Tourism Association and ASTA signed the cooperation memorandum about tourists exchange and they will carry out comprehensive cooperation in fields including tourism publicity, tourism product research and development. As a result, the tourism exchange and cooperation between the two sides will thereby enter a new stage of institutionalized development. The travel agents from home and abroad also signed cooperation memorandums so as to expand their new space in tourism cooperation.
In the part of keynote speech, Ms. Hou Ying (Isabella Hou), President of China Chapter of ASTA, Cheng Yong, member of the party committee of China Southern Airlines (Group) Co., Ltd., Xiong Xing, Vice President of Ctrip, Zhang Guangrui, Honorary Director of Tourism Research Center of Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, Zane Kerby, President of ASTA and other authoritative experts in the tourism industry attended the conference and made brilliant speeches themed on "the Opportunities and Performance Brought by Chinese Inbound Tourism", in which they carried out in-depth analysis and interpretation about the advantages of the development of Chinese inbound tourism, the measures taken by aviation enterprises to promote inbound tourism, how tourism enterprises realize facilitation and quality improvement, and the significance of the ASTA China Summit 2017, and put forward a series of prospective opinions and suggestions about deepening cooperation.
Mr. Zane Kerby said in his keynote speech that: "As per the historical data from ASTA, after the marketing events held by ASTA, relevant tourism products of the destination will enjoy a remarkable increase in sales volume, 77% of the event participants expect to bring more customers to the destination in the future. Therefore, in the future it can be expected that the Southwest of China centered on Guiyang will become a new highlight and growth point of China's inbound tourism of the North American market. To attract more American tourists to China, the supporting and incentive policies made by Chinese and American governments is very pivotal. It is recommended that China should provide diversified and suitable products and improve service quality so as to improve the satisfaction of American tourists on their travels in China and leave them with excellent travel experience."
Mr. Zhang Guangrui, Honorary Director of Tourism Research Center of Chinese Academy of Social Sciences said that, Americans generally have little understanding about China, so it is necessary for China to target the American market to carry out corresponding marketing strategies whose emphasis should shift from "country to country" to "region to region". What's more, there are two generations of old and new immigrants in America, so friends and relatives visiting take an important role in Chinese inbound tourism market, which is driven by family bond and has tremendous growth space.
The interline products customized for inbound tourists to China centered on Guizhou and Guiyang while radiating Guangzhou, Yunnan, Shanghai, Beijing and Guangxi being promoted to the North American market
It is worthy to mention that in order to attract more American tourists to know and visit Guizhou and Guiyang, this summit especially customized and launched for the inbound tourists to China various interline tourism products centered on Guizhou and Guiyang while radiating Guangzhou, Yunnan, Shanghai, Beijing, Guangxi. Meanwhile, preferential policies in aspects of aviation, scenic spots and hotels will be released to encourage the customization of more themed tourism routes and products suitable for different targeted customers to be sold in the American market. A long-term platform and communication mechanism is expected to be established as a result.
Beyond Summits Ltd is the exclusive representative of ASTA in China and supported successfully Guiyang of Guizhou Province becoming the host city of ASTA China Summit 2017. China Southern Airlines is the Exclusive Strategic Airline Partner of ASTA China Summit 2017, providing quality air service for all the American travel agents attending the summit.
Please download the report of U.S. Outbound Tourism Market Research from the link below:
https://en.acs.wowtrips.com/information-center/download-center
