The highly anticipated ITB China 2024 kicked off in Shanghai on Monday, with more than 600 exhibitors from more than 80 countries and regions gathering at one of the world's leading travel exhibitions.
This year's event is themed “Thriving in Transformation, Reaching New Heights.” Together” and focuses on adaptability and innovation, aiming to maximize China’s booming tourism market.
The annual three-day trade fair is complemented by a conference program and networking events. The event includes 50 conferences with 100 renowned speakers, covering a wide range of topics including travel technology, China's inbound and outbound tourism, and China-Europe dialogue.
Highlights of this year's exhibition include thirteen new destinations at the show, such as Georgia, Hawaii, Morocco, Peru and Romania.
“It's the beginning, we don't have many at the moment. But we are looking for bigger and bigger groups because we have the infrastructure, we have the hotels. And on top of that, we have the activities done there for you guys. come and visit us, so in the coming years we hope the market will become bigger and bigger”, said Dan Cernaianu, representative of Holiday to Romania DMC.
One of the key developments is Georgia and China's introduction of a mutual visa waiver policy on Tuesday, an important step for both countries' tourism industries.
“The hospitality of the Georgian people is well known. And (in) the gastronomic culture and tradition we have achieved, that is why we invite all international travelers to Georgia. We are participating (for) the first time in ITB China and we hope to interact and attract more people to visit Georgia,” said Tinatin Zoidze, Head of the Tourism Department of Batumi, Georgia.
For the first time, ITB China will present a section on China's inbound tourism, inviting experts to explore opportunities for inbound travel growth in line with domestic and outbound trends. As one of the world's most important tourism markets, China is regaining momentum after the COVID-19 pandemic.
ITB China 2024 highlights booming market with new travel destinations
China completed its first deep-diving manned scientific research mission in the Atlantic as the country's Deep Sea No. 1 research vessel returned to the national deep-sea base in Qingdao city, Chinese province of Shandong (east).
Carrying the deep-sea manned submersible Jiaolong, the ship carried out 46 manned deep diving operations in the Indian Ocean as well as the South and North Atlantic and traveled 57,000 kilometers at sea during the expedition.
The research vessel embarked in Qingdao on December 17, 2023.
China completes first deep-diving scientific research mission in Atlantic
