Capitalizing on the opportunities brought by the 12th Macao International Travel (Industry) Expo (referred to as the “Expo” or “MITE”) in celebration of the 25th anniversary of the establishment of the Macao SAR, Macao Government Tourism Office (MGTO) planned and arranged for hundreds of travel industry professionals from across the world to engage in familiarization tours along different routes in Macao and Hengqin for an experience of their tourism resources and synergy of both destinations’ appeal.
The industry participants included MITE’s hosted buyers from near and far as well as overseas travel agency associations’ delegates who took part in the Trade Gathering Mini-Mart days ago. 190 and 40 hosted buyers joined the familiarization tours in Macao’s communities and Hengqin respectively, while 100 representatives of overseas travel agency associations joined the familiarization tour in Macao, with 80 of them paying an inspection visit to Hengqin as well.
Diverse familiarization itineraries manifest both destinations’ appeal
MITE’s hosted buyers and representatives of overseas travel agency associations embarked upon different familiarization tour routes in Macao and Hengqin. The itineraries in Macao included visits to the Historic Centre of Macao, Golden Lotus Square, Macao Grand Prix Museum, Macau Tower, northern district, Arraial na Ervanários, Hotel Central, Former Iec Long Firecracker Factory, Coloane Village, new tourism facilities. They also enjoyed a ride on open-top bus, light rapid transit and ferry, as well as a taste of local signature delights and Macao’s “tourism +” offerings. On the other hand, the tours in the Guangdong-Macao In-Depth Cooperation Zone in Hengqin covered China Red Sandalwood Museum Hengqin Branch, Zhuhai Chimelong Resort, Serensia Woods, Sumlodol Camping Town, Mangzhou Wetland Park and other attractions. Under MGTO’s arrangement, industry participants also participated in the “Macao – Hengqin Outdoor Camping Industry Salon” in Hengqin for an outlook of the camping industry.
The 12th MITE brought together members of the tourism industry from worldwide. Through the familiarization tours, MGTO let the international travel trade experience Macao’s vibrant scene as a travel destination and learn about the synergy and development potential of both destinations, so as to promote multi-destination tourism development and expand the visitor markets.
