Leading travel agents gather in London to discuss and promote Chinese tropical resort Sanya

The coastal city leads the development of tropical tourism in China

LONDON, Nov. 13, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- On November 5, Sanya tourism-themed seminar "Discover the Tropics of China", supervised by Department of Tourism, Culture, Radio, Television and Sports of Hainan Province, and co-hosted by Sanya Tourism Development Commission and CNBC, the internationally renowned business and financial news platform, was held at World Travel Market's Asia area in ExCel London. Leading tourism agents and professionals from around the world, including executives from Thomas Cook, TUI China and Ctrip, gathered together to focus on what Sanya has to offer as a travel destination, discuss the advantages of developing tourism in China's tropical areas, and identify trends concerning the development of China's tropical tourism at a series of thematic seminars.

The event's topics included "What the differences between Sanya and other Southeast Asian cities are", "Whether Sanya has grown into a luxury tourism destination" and "What international tourism opportunities the 30-day visa-free entry into Sanya for travelers from 59 countries can offer".

Wang Ke, International Marketing Division Director from Department of Tourism, Culture, Radio, Television and Sports of Hainan Province, said during an interview that, under the leadership of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, the province is advocating the development of the whole of Hainan island into a pilot free trade zone, while gradually exploring and steadily promoting the establishment of a free trade port. Sanya leads other Chinese cities in terms of the amount of money spent locally by international visitors. The city has 33 direct flights to cities outside of China, including a Sanya-London service. In addition to over 50 global hotel brands that have already expanded into Sanya, including Atlantis, Marriott and InterContinental. Thomas Cook Sanya Branch, a joint-venture travel agency launched by Thomas Cook and the Chinese conglomerate Fosun International, was officially set up in Sanya on October 15th, 2018. Sanya's purpose in organizing the meetings and panel discussions was to share with the whole world the benefits from the economic growth of Hainan province, led by the city's fast growing sector - tourism. 

TUI China CEO Dr. Guido Brettschneider, Director of Inbound & MICE at Thomas Cook China Kris Van Goethem, the Centre for International Business Development (CIBD) co-founder and CEO Maggie Ma, Ctrip Customised Travel CEO Kane Xu and Shangri-La's Sanya Resort and Spa General Manager Rudolf Gimmi, among other industry professionals, delivered keynote speeches at the event. In addition, Dr. Brettschneider, Mr. Van Goethem and Ms. Xu, on behalf of major Chinese and international travel service providers, shared data on the popularity of most searched tour options offered by Sanya and other cities in Hainan province on their platforms. 

Chinese and international travel service providers as well as other guests at the event showed their strong interest in China's tropical tourism model through discussions at the "Discover the Tropics of China"-themed event. Sanya, the sole tropical coastal destination in China, has become a popular destination among European visitors. The invitees to the event generally expressed their confidence in the future of Sanya's tourism industry, with many announcing plans to promote Sanya through multiple marketing channels and organize tours to the city. In addition, Sanya plans to launch campaigns targeting international visitors on major media platforms, including CNBC, with the aim of positioning the city as the resort destination of choice.