Initiative for Inbound Tourism Collaboration of Cultural Belts of WTCF and PATA

Dear partners:

In 2023, the tourism industry has fully recovered and flourished. According to the Report on World Tourism Economy Trends (2023) and the Asia Pacific Tourism Development Forecasts (2023-2025 ), it is estimated that the total number of global tourist trips will reach 10.78 billion in 2023 with a total tourism revenue of USD 5.5 trillion, recovering to 82.7 percent and 94.8 percent respectively of their pre-pandemic levels in 2019. The Asia-Pacific region plays a vital role in global tourism, with an expected year-on-year growth of 28.5 percent in total tourist trips and 25.5 percent in total tourism revenue in 2023. China is a major country in the Asia-Pacific region. Its tourism market has established extensive connections with many countries, regions and cities around the world for cooperation, providing international tourists with diversified travel experiences.

To boost the thriving development of China's inbound tourism, and further implement the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) signed by the World Tourism Cities Federation (WTCF) and Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA), which is included in the List of Practical Cooperation Deliverables of the Third Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation, WTCF joins hands with PATA to launch an initiative on inbound tourism collaboration which aims to facilitate cooperation and exchanges between tourism cities and to promote the thriving development of China's inbound tourism.

1. Strengthen information sharing and policy coordination

Relying on the platform of international organizations and taking the construction of inbound tourism infrastructure as the core task, we will deepen cooperation with well-known overseas international tourism organizations, international travel agencies, airlines and international financial payment institutions to jointly promote the development of China's inbound tourism.

We aim to gradually build an inbound tourism collaboration system that entails interaction between destinations and industries in different regions. By drawing lessons from advanced international management experience and service standards, we can render China's inbound tourism increasingly competitive and internationalized.

We will also establish a regular information exchange mechanism to share information on China's inbound tourism policies, market-related news of various destinations, and industrial trends, among others. Hence, we can strengthen policy coordination, explore strategies to jointly respond to market changes and challenges, and provide tourists with better travel experiences.

2. Deepen marketing cooperation

To tell China's stories well and promote China's tourism resources and historical and cultural heritage through multiple channels, we will make good use of Internet resources including overseas social media platforms, and online influencers, among others to launch targeted marketing campaigns and products in overseas peer markets. By doing so, we can expand the visibility of China's inbound tourism market and improve the international competitiveness of China's inbound tourism.

Focusing on the construction of national cultural parks, we will develop the collaborative concept of "brands for cultural belt-relevant inbound tourism", explore the relevance of culture to the present times, and improve the appeal of China's inbound tourism for the international community.

Centered on "brands for cultural belt-relevant inbound tourism" and relying on the inbound tourism linkage system, we will work together with all concerned parties on inbound tourism marketing and promotion activities to jointly formulate marketing strategies to improve the international reputation of tourist destinations.

3. Promote product innovation and diversified development

We aim to optimize the design of inbound tourism products and routes, focus on the in-depth integration of culture and tourism, and build a product R&D system under the collaboration concept of " brands for cultural belt-relevant inbound tourism". We will launch more cultural tourism products that reflect the cultural essence of the new era, introduce more premium travel routes that cater to the needs of international tourists, and innovate and upgrade the high-quality travel products.

Based on the actual situation of inbound tourism development, we will launch the following collaborative projects for China's inbound tourism: i) Yangtze River Cultural Tourism Belt Inbound Tourism Collaborative Project; ii) Yellow River Cultural Tourism Belt Inbound Tourism Collaborative Project; and iii) Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei Cultural Tourism Belt Inbound Tourism Collaborative Project .

4. Improve service quality and tourist experience

We will strengthen the construction of tourism infrastructure. In terms of urban landscape, priority will be given to building green spaces and public facilities to create a pleasant urban environment for tourists. In addition, the urban tourist navigation system will cover all major scenic spots and tourist areas to provide tourists with accurate and fast navigation services.

We will improve foreign language services in the hotels, catering businesses and commercial reception venues in tourist destinations. Relevant staff will receive foreign language training to improve their foreign language proficiency so that they can provide tourists with better services based on smooth communication.

We will promote service standardization by optimizing service standards and establishing a complete tourism service quality evaluation system which can help promptly identify and address issues related to service quality. This move can enhance tourism service quality and tourist satisfaction.

5.Intensify talent training, cooperation and exchanges

We will train professional human resources of international standards. We will introduce the international advanced management experiences and service standards and, based on China's actual conditions, reform and transform them. 

We will strengthen talent training and capacity building to improve the professionalism and services of tourism employees. We will also support tourism cities in continuously improving reception capacity and tourism-related infrastructure construction.

6. Strengthen emergency management and risk prevention and control

We will establish and improve emergency management mechanisms, formulate emergency plans, form emergency response units, and develop complete emergency response procedures to improve the ability to respond to emergencies associated with inbound tourism.

To ensure the personal and property safety of tourists, we will intensify destination safety risk assessment, prevention and control, conduct comprehensive safety risk assessment of tourist destinations, promptly discover potential safety hazards, and take corresponding prevention and control measures. 

We firmly believe that with our joint efforts and close cooperation, we will create an inbound tourism market in China, which is more thriving, orderly and attractive, and provide tourists with better travel experiences. At the same time, we also look forward to more cities and organizations joining our initiative and contributing to the development of China's inbound tourism industry. Let us work together to shape the future!

 

Initiators of the Initiative

World Tourism Cities Federation (WTCF)

Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA)

 

Signatories of the Initiative

Beijing Municipal Bureau of Culture and Tourism

Nanjing Municipal Bureau of Culture and Tourism

Capital Airports Holding Co., Ltd

BTG Tourism Development Co., Ltd. 

Trip.com

UTour Group

Tongcheng Travel

Shanxi Pacific International Travel Company Limited

Chongqing Guojizhichuang Cultural Tourism Co., Ltd. 

Netherlands Board of Tourism & Conventions

Los Angeles Tourism & Convention Board

Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau

Qingdao Municipal Bureau of Culture and Tourism

Qingdao International Cruise Port Service Administration

Qingdao Qinggang International Travel Service Co., Ltd.

North China Cruise Tourism Development Research Institute 

Shandong Port Cruise Culture and Tourism Group Co., Ltd.

Xiamen C&D International Travel Service Group Co., Ltd.

Blue Wisdom

Zhongsheng Zhixing Cultural Tourism Development (Beijing) Co., Ltd. 

Shaanxi China Travel Service

Beijing Yangguangzhilv International Travel Service Co., Ltd. 

Uni Core Communication Co., Ltd. (UCC)

Qinghai Guoxin International Travel Service Co., Ltd.

Inner Mongolia Zhongxin International Travel Service

Shanhaibian (Beijing) International Travel Service Co., Ltd. 

China International Travel Service (Wuhan) Co., Ltd.

Shanghai C&D Wanda International Travel Agency Co., Ltd.

Jiujiang China International Travel Service

Hunan Xinkanghui International Travel Agency 

Tujia Travel Agency (Chengdu) Co., Ltd. 

Sootoo

China Xinhai International Travel Service

Guangxi Lingjuli International Travel Agency Co., Ltd. (Guangxi North Branch) 

BTG International Travel & Tours

Beijing Private Equity Association

Being Capital

Poly Culture Investment Co., Ltd.

Nanjing Broadcasting System Cultural Industry Development Co., Ltd. 

Nanjing International Travel Agency

Nanjing Yingtu International Travel Co., Ltd.