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September/October 2010 www.MekongTourism.org |
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Official newsletter of the Mekong Tourism Coordinating Office |
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In this issue: 2011 Tourism for Tomorrow Awards now Accepting Submissions Exotissimo Offering Special Leonard Cohen Concert and Tour Packages ITE 2010 Opens in New Venue in HCM City New Study Reveals Pervasive Social Media Use within Adventure Tourism Emerging Khmer Destination Unveils its First Website China Reawakens Asian Rail Plans Heritage Line to launch new Mekong River cruiser Vote for the PATA 2011 'Face of the Future' Tap New Markets at www.ExploreMekong.org Learn, Share, Engage at www.MekongTourism.org
2011 Tourism for Tomorrow Awards now Accepting Submissions
Nominations have opened for the 2011 Tourism for Tomorrow Awards, which recognises the best tourism businesses and destinations worldwide. Applicants may put themselves forward for awards in one of four categories Global Tourism Business, Conservation, Community Benefit, and Destination Stewardship, showcasing best practice in sustainable tourism.
Full story >>
Exotissimo Travel, a leading tailor-made travel company in
Southeast Asia, has been named as the official tour operator for the Mekong Session concerts in Phnom Penh. To celebrate and contribute to
the restoration of Phnom Penh, Cambodia, Leonard Cohen will perform at the Olympic Stadium on November 27, 2010. To aid victims of
Cambodia's recent tragic past, proceeds from this concert will benefit the Cambodian Red Cross and Cambodian persons with a disability.
New feature-length documentary film – Camera, Camera –
explores the Laos tourism phenomenon by focusing on interactions between the country’s locals and tourists from far-flung places. The film
combines interviews of travellers and photographs both of and taken by them during their time in Laos. Directed by Malcolm Murray, the
documentary premiered at the LA Film Festival in early summer, and has so far been positively received by audiences.
The sixth annual International Travel Expo (ITE), the largest
tourism event in Viet Nam, is being held September 30-October 2 at the new, modern Sai Gon Exhibition and Convention Centre (SECC) in the
Phu My Hung area in District 7. Attendees include 155 buyers from 35 countries and regions, nine tourism promotional organisations
including those from India, Turkey, China, Thailand, Myanmar, Malaysia, and 15 newspapers and magazines from 13 countries, including
Sweden, Italy, Thailand, Australia, Canada, Germany, China, Russia and France.
Representing the most current and comprehensive social media usage
study yet conducted within the adventure tourism trade sector, the Adventure Travel Trade Association (ATTA), Resmark Systems and Convince
& Convert today released, Travel, Tweets & Trends, a report indicating that social media usage among adventure tour operators is
pervasive, while its efficacy remains relatively uncertain.
Khiri Reach and GTZ have launched a community tourism website to
promote the little-known 8th-10th century Khmer ruins of Sambor Prei Kuk in central Cambodia. The website, www.samborpreikuk.com, was
jointly funded by Khiri Reach, the not-for-profit arm of Khiri Travel, and GTZ (German Development Cooperation), which is financed by the
German government. The objective of the site is to stimulate tourism in the Sambor Prei Kuk area, which has over 150 easily accessible
pre-Angkor temple ruins in a forest setting reminiscent of an Indiana Jones movie.
The Mekong Airlines Joint Stock Company (Air Mekong) has announced
it would begin operating eight flights per day to destinations around the country starting October 9. Doan Quoc Viet, Air Mekong chairman,
said Air Mekong would offer two service classes, including deluxe and economy, on its four CRJ-900 Bombardier jets. The company had a
total capital of VND300 billion (US$15.4 million) from its parent, the BIM Group based in Ha Long City, Quang Ninh Province, Viet said.
In 1960, Escap (the United Nations Economic and Social Commission
for Asia and the Pacific) initiated the Trans-Asian Railway – a 114,000-kilometre rail network between Asia and Europe. The project was
derailed by wars in Indochina, the Cultural Revolution in China and a lack of finance for Asian mega-projects. The scheme was given a shot
in the arm, on paper anyway, in 2006 when 22 Asian governments signed a deal to cooperate on the rail link. It went into effect in June
last year after China ratified it. More significant has been China's push to turn the rail-network dream into reality, especially in
Southeast Asia, which accounts for 8,000km of "missing links".
Heritage Line, the Vietnam-based cruise company which offers luxury
Mekong River sailings, is planning to launch its new ship, The Jahan, next year. The new liner will feature 22 cabins, including two 50sqm
Jacuzzi Suites, as well as a boutique, spa, library with laptops, iPods and DVD players, an observatory, pool deck, gymnasium and steam
room. The 70m-long vessel will operate a series of cruises between Ho Chi Minh City (My Tho) and Siem Reap, complementing the itineraries
offered by Heritage's existing liner, The Jayavarman. (Source:
TravelNewsVN)
Online voting for the 2011 ‘Face of the Future’ competition is now
underway. Entrants’ profiles and photographs are available to view at www.pata60.org, where PATA members can vote once for up to three
candidates between now and October 29, 2010. Each year, the ‘Face of the Future’ spotlights an individual who has worked to change or
advance travel-and-tourism in the Asia Pacific region. Nominations for the 2011 competition have been received from a variety of
countries, including Bhutan, Myanmar, Thailand and Samoa. All represent individuals who, despite their young age, have already made a
significant contribution to the Asia Pacific travel-and-tourism industry.
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