The Viet Nam International Travel Mart 2022 (VITM 2022) themed ‘Sea and island tourism - The strength of Viet Nam's tourism’ is taking place at the Da Nang International Exhibition Fair Centre, 9 Cach Mang Thang Tam, from December 9-11. Da Nang tourism businesses hope that VITM 2022 is a fantastic opportunity for Vietnamese tourism businesses to connect with their partners and potential markets in a bid to push the county’s tourism recovery.

VITM 2022 is expected to offer great opportunities to Da Nang to accelerate its tourism recovery. IN PHOTO: International guests visiting a show booth at the Da Nang Golf Tourism Festival 2022. Photo: THU HA

Co-organised by the Viet Nam Tourism Association, the Da Nang People's Committee, the Da Nang Department of Tourism, and the Da Nang Tourism Association, VITM Da Nang 2022 aims to help nationwide tourism businesses to promote their products and brands in an attempt to drive the recovery of international tourism in the country.

The VITM Da Nang 2022 features over 300 booths of tourism businesses from more than 40 Vietnamese localities and 6 foreign countries. The event also welcomes 165 international guests from the UK, France, Germany, Italy, Australia, India, Japan, South Korea and ASEAN countries along with more than 200 people from Viet Nam’s leading tour operators, plus representatives from 500 service providers and tourist attractions across the country.

According to Mr Cao Tri Dung, the Chairman of the Da Nang Tourism Association, the event in Da Nang attracts 150 international guests, and the largest number ever gathered since its launch. In the post-COVID-19 crisis context, the VITM Da Nang 2022 is considered to be one of the most important events of the tourism sector in Da Nang, and Viet Nam as a whole, as this event attracts a large number of domestic and foreign tourism businesses. The event provides the opportunity for participating businesses to meet and build connections with their partners in a bid to increase international visitor arrivals in Da Nang, and Viet Nam at large. It also offer a golden opportunity for Da Nang to promote its destination through introducing preferential packages for tourists, and local attractions.

“Participating businesses are potential partners for Da Nang. The event will create a premise to develop new tourism products that are tailored to visitors' needs in order to bring more tourist to Da Nang, and Viet Nam as a whole, in the coming years. Large numbers of participants at VITM Da Nang 2022 are mainly attributed to great efforts of the event’s organizers and the attractiveness of the host place for this event," added Mr. Cao Tri Dung.

The VITM 2022 will give a chance to domestic and international businesses to promote their brands, introduce their products and build business relationships with their partners. In the photo: A show booth of the Da Nang Department of Tourism at the Asian Route Development Forum (Routes Asia) 2022. Photo: THU HA

Mr. Duong Quang Binh, the Director of Vietravel Da Nang branch, remarked that the VITM Da Nang 2022 contributes to warming up the tourism market in the low season, creating favourable conditions for domestic and international businesses to meet and build connections between them in a bid to bring more visitors to Da Nang, and Viet Nam at large, in the near future. Therefore, domestic tourism businesses put much expectations and high hopes on such emerging tourist markets for Viet Nam as India, and Malaysia.

The fair also features many B2B or business-to-business meetings, and 'B2C' or 'business to consumer' marketing. However, B2C model is not popular in Da Nang as local people do not have the habit of hunting affordable trips or tours at such an event. Therefore, it is hoped that Da Nang residents will know more about the VITM and develop a new habit of buying tours at this event.

Side events will take place in Da Nang during the 3-day VITM 2022, said Mr Nguyen Xuan Binh, the Deputy Director of the Da Nang Department of Tourism. Included are seminars themed ‘ The Strength of Connections - Far-reaching Breakthrough’, ‘Two Localities - One Destination’ to create tourism linkages between Da Nang and its neighbour in order to promote and market their destinations, ‘Effective Engagement via Digital Communication Platforms in Tourism’ to raise awareness about the importance of digital transformation in tourism.

Highlight on side events is a seminar to identify opportunities, challenges and solutions for Viet Nam’s Sea and Island Tourism. The event will bring together representatives of ministries, national government agencies, leaders of nationwide localities, research institutes, economic and tourism experts across the country to point out shortcomings in the development and implementation of polices for marine and island tourism. From there, they will propose solutions to correct inadequacies in developing new tourism products and marine and island tourism in a bid to tap full potential of this type of tourism in Viet Nam.

Reporting by THU HA – Translating by H.L