China, Pacific Island countries to strengthen tourism cooperation

NADI, Fiji, May 9 (Xinhua) -- The two-day China-Pacific Island Countries Tourism Exchange Session opened in Nadi, the third largest city in Fiji on Friday, highlighting cross-border tourism cooperation and in-depth cultural experiences.

The event brought together government officials and tourism professionals from China and 10 Pacific Island countries and regions including Fiji, Tonga and Vanuatu.

During Friday's meeting, representatives from China's tourism industry introduced to the participants the development trends of China's outbound tourism market and China's experience in building tourist destinations, providing strategic suggestions for attracting Chinese tourists to visit the island nations.

Representatives from Kiribati, the Cook Islands, Niue, the Solomon Islands and Fiji also respectively introduced their own tourism facilitation policies and resources.

Xu Yue, an official of China's Ministry of Culture and Tourism who attended the meeting, said that there is huge potential for tourism cooperation between China and the Pacific Island countries.

The Chairperson of the Pacific Tourism Organization (SPTO) Adela Issachar Aru said that as a member of the SPTO, China has always been an important source market for the Pacific region.

"We deeply value the growing interest of Chinese travelers in the Pacific Islands," Aru said.

Bo Lin, a senior manager of the China International Travel Service Head Office, told Xinhua that the unique culture of the Pacific region has considerable appeal to Chinese tourists, especially the younger generation.

Through this exchange meeting, Chinese tourism merchants will explore more local reception resources in the island countries, and design more tailored tourism routes and products for the Pacific Island countries to meet the needs of Chinese tourists, Bo said. ■