by Reinhard Hohler, Chiang Mai
The largest and most established travel event in Vietnam and the Mekong is coming back! The International Travel Expo Ho Chi Minh City (ITE HCMC) 2015 is celebrating its 11th anniversary from 10 – 12 September 2015 at the Saigon Exhibitions & Convention Center (SECC). ITE HCMC exhibition is the best single platform catering to this multi-billion dollar tourism market. The exhibition serves as the leading powerhouse in presenting travel and tourism products, packages and services in the Mekong region and the world.( our picture shows a cruise at the Halong Bay)
Being one of the fastest-growing economies in the world, Vietnam offers strong potential for investments in the travel and tourism industry. The host’s country tourism industry has been growing unprecedentedly over the past few years with rising domestic as well as international tourists. According to a research by the World Travel and Tourism Council, the total spending abroad on international travel by the Vietnamese in 2011 is at US$ 3.3 billion, and rose to US$ 3.5 billion in 2012. Outbound travel spending is expected to grow by 6.4% per annum until 2022.
Tourism industry has been on a significant trend for Vietnam in the last 20 years. According to Vietnam National Administration of Tourism (VNAT), there were only about 250,000 inbound arrivals in 1990, but in 2011, more than 6 million arrivals were recorded. In 2011, tourism industry has contributed approximately 7 billion USD (5% GDP) along with more than 1.3 million jobs created. It has been forecasted that by 2020, there will be about 11 million inbound arrivals with a total revenue of 18-91 billion USD contributing about 6.5% – 7% of GDP of Vietnam and more than 3 million jobs.
The upcoming event will be organized by Vietnam National Administration of Tourism (VNAT), HCMC Department of Tourism, and Vietnam Trade Fair & Advertising Joint Stock Informa Exhibitions Pte Ltd (VINEXAD). It will be supported by Ministry of Tourism, Kingdom of Cambodia, Ministry of Information, Culture and Tourism, Lao PDR, Ministry of Hotels & Tourism, Myanmar, and Ministry of Tourism and Sports, Kingdom of Thailand.
For further information, please go to: www.itehcmc.com
