22 October 2008

Travelmole Guest Comment: Now is the time to explore China

Roy Graff is managing director of ChinaContact and been involved in ChinaÃ¢â¬â¢s growing tourism sector for over seven years. He has witnessed several downturns over that period but the market has always rebounded strongly.

Ã¢â¬ÅâœI am sure that you, just like us, are feeling the effects of the credit-crunch and general economic downturn. In each crisis, tourism gets hit quick and hard. But the fact that we are in this business must imply we are optimists and can see beyond the curve into the future, and peopleÃ¢â¬â¢s unending yearning to travel and explore.

We remember past global downturns - the traditional markets that we rely on in the West are going to slow down. But in the past few years, Chinese visitors have shown incredible resilience in the face of crisis after crisis (SARS, bird flu, Sichuan earthquakeÃ¢â¬~¦) and continued average double digit growth for the past 10 years.

Logic has it that right now is the time when tourism organisations, travel companies, hotel groups and airlines should explore this market further and consider it as a future alternative to slowing traditional markets. While the numbers are not at a critical mass, China continues its economic growth and is better positioned than Western countries to weather the credit crisis.

While it is inevitable that many Chinese companies will suffer from the global slowdown, the Chinese government has many tools at its disposal to stimulate the economy through job creation and encouraging more spending.

We recognise that looking ahead when things donÃ¢â¬â¢t look great in the present is not easy so we hope to encourage more people to become better aware of what China is about. Not only is it a promising market with increasing niche consumer travel segments, it is also a fascinating destination that offers endless opportunities for product development in myriad tourism channels.

Since 2005, my company ChinaContact has continually worked to promote greater awareness and understanding between China and the West in the fields of travel and hospitality. And as in each of the last two years, we bring together the best experts to World Travel Market, to share with everyone case studies and practical advise on engaging with the Chinese tourism sector.

WTM is the leading travel trade exhibition in the Europe, if not the world. During WTM, you are invited to an event called Ã¢â¬ËœChina - the Future of TravelÃ¢â¬â¢, the only annual travel industry forum outside China that has the credentials to educate and consult about China as a market and destination.

To encourage greater participation, the WTM-ChinaContact Forum is introducing a new ticketing structure special group discounts when give or more people from the same company, organisation or association register at the same time.

While the normal price is Ã&#pound;300 for a full day (both inbound and outbound sessions) or Ã&#pound;168 for half day, the group discount rate falls to Ã&#pound;180 for full day or Ã&#pound;99 for half day.

WTM exhibitors can enjoy discounted rates as part of our cooperation with WTM. We also introduced a special VIP delegate pass for Ã&#pound;388 that includes the full day forum, lunch (seated at the speakerÃ¢â¬â¢s table), a one-hour consultation session and a CD of the forum proceedings.Ã¢â¬~

For more information, visit the forum website at www.future-of-travel.org.

TravelMole registered users can enjoy 20% off the ticket price by using this dedicated registration link:
http://future-of-travel2008.eventbrite.com/?discount=tmreg211