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Once again Ho Chi Minh City hosted the ITE HCMC welcoming exhibitors, buyers, and trade and public visitors from around the world. This year’s venue was the Saigon Exhibition and Convention Centre with the exhibition covering an area of 5,000 square metres – held over a period of three days from September 12 to 14. This year marked the ninth edition which saw 300 exhibiting organisations from over 50 destinations with about 18,000 international, regional and local trade and public visitors.

Vietnam’s national travel event of international standing endorsed and supported by the country’s Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Mekong Tourism Alliance of Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam.

Networking at the Ocean Beach Club.

Dining on Thai cusine at the Blue Elephant Restaurant in Phuket with a cooking session with the chef.

Round table discussion between representatives of the media and management of Hilton Phuket Arcadia Resort & Spa, Thailand Convention and Exhibition Bureau, Thailand Incentive and Convention Association and Tourism Authority of Thailand.

The trend now is for bleasure combining pleasure and business, with resort settings become more and more attractive who can provide meeting room facilities, the comfort of a luxury accommodation, dining experience, relaxation of spa treatment, water sports and swimming – all under one roof. Located on a sprawling 75 acre estate, is the Hilton Phuket Arcadia Resort & Spa, one of Thailand’s more popular resorts, is offering the opportunity to have your meeting and leisure within the property. For a start, the resort has a large ground, and has the advantage of offering outdoor events by putting up marquees which can fit 400 people at one time. The available meeting rooms there, can take in from five to 1,200 delegates with a ballroom suitable for large weddings. At hand is the resort’s MICE team for support and solutions to your event requirement that also include planning off-site activities of discovering the sights, sounds and flavour of Phuket.

Media representatives from Asia, were invited by the resort to experience the bleasure stay at the property.

The most acclaimed travel awards in the region are back. The MTAA is aimed at instilling a greater sense of pride and achievement among professionals and organisations in the tourism and hospitality industry of the five countries, and recognition for their quality of excellence.

Organised by the Tourism Ministries of the five countries, the MTAA has received admiration internationally. It is one of the highlights of the largest travel event in the Mekong, the ITE HCMC.

All entries will be reviewed by an independent panel of international judges nominated by the five country Tourism Ministries. The awards night will be held in conjunction with ITE HCMC Grand Opening Ceremony and Gala Dinner, to be held on September 11 at the White Palace Convention Centre in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.

Companies registered in the five countries, who are keen in the awards, can submit their entries online. Submission of entry is free of charge, and more than one category can be applied. Details for the criteria of judging are available online, and all registrations, are reviewed by a panel of international judges. Awards’ winners will be announced and awarded by the Tourism Ministers.

For more information, please visit www.itehcmc.com

With just a month away till registration close on August 23, buyer applications to IT&CMA and CTW Asia-Pacific 2013 remain in full swing with over 700 MICE, corporate travel, luxury travel, association and corporate buyers have registered to be at this event in Bangkok.

Bangkok even surpassed London, Paris and New York with total number of international visitor arrivals reaching close to 16 million, and is the only city among the top five to demonstrate the highest growth at about 10 percent for the year.

Come October 1 to 3 this year, a total of some 600 buyers are expected to source at the IT&CMA and CTW that boasts the largest showcase of Asia-Pacific MICE and Corporate Travel suppliers with an added luxury travel dimension.

The world’s only double bill event in MICE and corporate travel will be celebrating its 10th year where delegate numbers are expected to cross the 2,800 mark. This year’s event will also be featuring 35 percent new exhibiting organisations.

Participating for the first time at the event are India Tourism, Fukuoka Convention Bureau, Sapporo Convention Bureau and Tourism New Zealand, and from the corporations include Federal Hotels International, Fujita Kanko, Globewerks Confex, Melia Hotels International, Panorama Convex, Safaris Adventures Travel and Cargo, Sentosa Leisure Management, Solar Empire and Winsor Suites Hotel Bangkok.

In a survey conducted last year of the event, over USD45 million of sales were confirmed, with an aggregate procurement value estimated at USD120 million. Close to 70 percent of 2012 buyers confirmed purchases with exhibitions.

Sightseeing Kuala Lumpur on a bus is the fastest and easiest way to discover the city’s iconic and historical buildings, as well points of interest.  Kuala Lumpur’s hop-on-hop-off city tour bus runs a continuous circle of the city daily from 9.00 am to 8.00 pm at intervals of 30 minutes. The bus covers the shopping area of Bukit Bintang, China Town at Petaling Street, Central Market Craft Centre, Little India, KL Sentral station, national museum, the national palace, Tun Abdul Razak Botanical Garden, national mosque and Dataran Merdeka.

Two new models of buses have just been introduced to upgrade its services, and a ticketing counter is now opened at the centre of the city’s commercial district, the Dataran Merdeka.

Located on the west coast of southern Thailand, the town is fast growing as an adventure destination. Krabi has several top notch venue created for yachting, scuba diving, snorkeling, rock climbing, kayaking and canoeing. It helps that the town, faces the Andaman sea that provides the backdrop for a number of the adverture activites. Thailand Convention Bureau (TCEB) organised a familiarisation tour of Krabi for a group media from Asia, Europe, Russia and America to experience, and showcase the town. There are endless MICE possibilities in Krabi for team building activities, theme dinner events, pre and post prgorammes for delegates.

Tourism is an important industry in Krabi with an international airport that has direct flights from Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur and Singapore. It also has the feel of a true countryside, with several national parks, and more than 80 smaller islands ideal for adventurers to pursue their passion.

The expo this year recorded, 6.6 percent bigger in scale, and occupied 16,000 square meters with a record number of: 680 exhibitors from 46 countries and regions; 5.8 percent more visitors; 6,055 travel agents and tour operators. All in all, the two trade days drew 11,872 buyers and trade visitors, with 72 percent coming from Hong Kong, 20 percent from China and 8 percent from around the world, while the last two public days drew 73,200 visitors which were up 3.9 percent.

ITE & MICE 2013 has again maintained its international profile of exhibitors with 86.5 percent from outside Hong Kong. Out of 46 exhibiting destinations, nine are considered new, with 41 percent from Asia, 28 percent Europe, 11 percent the Americas & Oceania and 20 percent Africa and the Middle East. Expansion of some repeating pavilions contributed to the growth in the overall scale of the expo.

This year, the show continued highlighting travel themes of cruise, honeymooning and overseas weddings, sport tourism (which is new) study tours, travel photography and wellness. The second trade day on June 14 is designated to MICE corporate day with a series of related seminars.

Organised by TKS Exhibition Services Ltd., ITE & MICE is supported by China National Tourism Administration, Hong Kong Tourism Board, Travel Industry Council of Hong Kong and Macau Government Tourist Office, trade associations of travel agents and event industries from Hong Kong and in the region.

The next ITE & MICE will be held from June 12 to 15, 2014 at Halls 1A to 1E at the Hong Kong Convention & Exhibition Centre.

www.itehk.com

The 9th edition of ITE HCMC 2013 is set to cover 5,000 square metres at the Saigon Exhibition and Convention Centre in Ho Chi Minh City, and will be held from September 12 and 14. The first two days of the exhibition are open only to trade visitors, with public visitors welcome to join the event on September 14.

It will showcase over 300 exhibitors from over 50 destinations with more than 18,000 international, regional and local trade and public visitors. The event provides a platform to launch inbound and outbound travel businesses in Vietnam and the Mekong region. This year, the exhibition returns bigger and busier with more regional and international exhibitors, housing more seller companies and attracting a wider range of travel products and services.

Country and city pavilions participating include: Visit Berlin – Germany; Korea Be Inspired; Wonderful Indonesia; Taiwan the Heart of Asia; Amazing Thailand; It’s More Fun in the Philippines; Sabah Best of Borneo – Malaysia; Cambodia Kingdom of Wonder; Laos Simply Beautiful; Mystical Myanmar; and Vietnam Timeless Charm.

“ITE HCMC has also become a recognised platform for destinations and organisations from the Asia Pacific region and beyond to promote tourism and business exchange for their respective countries,” said Vice Minister H.E Ho Anh Tuan of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, Socialist Republic of Vietnam.

This only national travel event with international standing in Vietnam, is also proud to announce that Thailand, will be joining the Mekong Tourism Alliance together with Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnnam – this endorses ITE HCMC 2013’s theme of: Five Countries a Single Destination.

Organising committee of the event comprises of the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism (VNAT), Ho Chi Minh City Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, VINEXAD and Informa Exhibitions.

Millions around the world from 152 countries spanning 7,000 cities from Sydney, Kuala Lumpur, Bali, Manila, Hong Kong, Shanghai, New Delhi to Paris, Vienna and Kiev join in, to turn off lights for Earth Hour 2013 – sending a powerful message about environmental awareness and action.

‘I Will If You Will’ – uniting the people to protect the planet at precisely 8.30 pm everywhere on March 23. The skyline of Kuala Lumpur darkened with all lights out including the city’s iconic Petronas Twin Tower Buiilding. Kuala Lumpur city celebrates with a live concert in support of this movement. Malaysians from all walks of life gathered at the base of the Twin Tower for the countdown to mark the hour with the Mayor of Kuala Lumpur “switching off the light”. Taking up the challenge of ‘I Will if you Will’ the mayor, cycled to work (Kuala Lumpur City Hall office) from his home.

The city of Kuala Lumpur without lights to mark Earth Hour at 8.30 pm on March 23.