The tourism authorities of Zhongshan, Zhuhai and Macao met in Zhuhai yesterday (1 March) for the “Work Meeting of the Tourism Alliance of Zhongshan, Zhuhai and Macao” in order to exchange news and trends, deepen regional cooperation between the 3 cities, and jointly expand their visitor source markets continuously. Riding on this opportunity, Macao Government Tourism Office (MGTO) organized a two-day familiarization visit to Zhuhai and Zhongshan for Macao trade partners to enhance their understanding of the tourism resources in the Greater Bay Area.
MGTO Director Maria Helena de Senna Fernandes; Director of Zhongshan Culture, Radio, Television and Tourism Bureau, Luo Jianhua; Deputy Director of Zhuhai Culture, Radio, Television, Tourism and Sports Bureau, Wu Xiangming, as well as other officials of the three tourism authorities attended the meeting. As the Rotating Chairman of 2018, Zhuhai first presented a summary of the tourism projects jointly undertaken by the three destinations last year. Following that, a chairman rotation ceremony was held and designated the Zhongshan Culture, Radio, Television and Tourism Bureau as the Rotating Chairman of this year.
Director of Zhongshan Culture, Radio, Television and Tourism Bureau, Luo Jianhua, introduced the joint promotion cooperation plan in 2019 and discussed the collaborative promotional projects to be implemented this year. At the meeting, the 3 tourism authorities agreed to carry out joint promotion with the theme of Dr. Sun Yat Sen’s life history and cultural heritage; promote each others’ major festive events; as well as to update the Zhongshan, Zhuhai and Macao food guide.
In mid-May last year, tourism authorities and industry representatives of Zhongshan, Zhuhai and Macao jointly organized tourism promotions in Jinan of Shandong and Quanzhou of Fujian to present the rich tourism resources and multi-destination tour routes in the 3 cities. As part of the promotion strategy, the three tourism bureaus not only designed routes for multi-destination tours but also published a food guide in Chinese and English, with the objective of enticing more visitors from the Mainland and abroad to visit Zhongshan, Zhuhai and Macao on one trip.
Travel trades joined familiarization visit in Zhongshan Zhuhai
MGTO Director Maria Helena de Senna Fernandes and Head of Destination Marketing Department of MGTO, Betty Fok, led a delegation to Zhongshan and Zhuhai for visit and exchange on 1st and 2nd March. The delegation comprises 8 leaders from 3 Macao tourism organizations, namely Travel Industry Council of Macau, Macau Travel Agency Association and Association of Macao Tourist Agents. Zhuhai Wanshan Marine Development Experimental Zone is the first local marine comprehensive development experimental zone in Guangdong province with rich marine and island tourism resources. The familiarization visit arranged by Zhuhai Culture, Radio, Television, Tourism and Sports Bureau includes locations such as Guishan Island, island home-stay lodgings and Dongao Island. The delegation visited Guzhen Huayi Plaza in Zhongshan the next day.
Zhongshan, Zhuhai and Macao have formed a tourism alliance to carry out joint marketing initiatives under their image as the “Fragrant Hill in the past; Zhongshan, Zhuhai and Macao today” since 2006, with the aim to entice more international visitors to Zhongshan, Zhuhai and Macao in one trip and brand the Pearl River Delta Region as one travel destination. They conduct regular meetings each year to discuss annual collaborative plans. The three tourism authorities also take turns to assume the role as the tourism alliance chairman.
MGTO wishes to capitalize on the new possibilities opened up by the Greater Bay Area development as well as the Belt and Road initiative to better integrate the tourism resources of the three cities and magnify their strengths as a regional tourism brand; through the work of its overseas representatives to collaborate with their local travel agencies, MGTO will actively promote sales of multi-destination tourism products in different visitor source markets.
