On August 4, the opening ceremony of the 2017 Xi'an Silk Road International Tourism Expo was staged at Qujiang International Conference & Exhibition Center, attended by distinguished guests such as CNTA chairman Li Jinzao, Cambodian Tourism Minister Thong Khon, UNWTO executive director Zhu Shanzhong, governor of Shaanxi Hu Heping, chairman Han Yong of Shaanxi People’s Political Consultative Conference, deputy director Liu Xiaoyan of the Standing Committee of Shaanxi Provincial People’s Congress, and Wei Zengjun, vice governor of Shaanxi.

Organized by Shaanxi Provincial Commission for Tourism Development, the expo is themed on “Cooperation and Mutual Development along the Silk Road”, highlights the image of Shaanxi as a “world-class cultural tourism hub”, and serves as an international, specialized platform for the exhibition of, cooperation and exchange between and services for tourism professionals and ordinary people from at home and abroad. The expo spans across an area of 40,000 square meters and is divided into four exhibition zones: the exhibition zone dedicated to local tour operators, the exhibition zone for Chinese tour operators outside Shaanxi and overseas, the hot spring tour exhibition zone, and the exhibition zone dedicated to the self-drive tour and recreational vehicle camping.

It’s learnt that this year’s expo has the following three features. First, it gathers over 500 exhibitors and buyers from 31 Chinese provinces/regions/municipalities and 32 foreign countries and regions, in an attempt to further integrate into the international market. Secondly, it shares the latest ideas and fruits of tourism development, introduces the latest business forms such as hot spring tours and self-drive tours, exhibits higher-quality products and launches more targeted marketing services to better serve tourists. Thirdly, it emphasizes joint construction, sharing and win-win cooperation to form international collaboration by sharing resources, information and markets and stimulate tourism prosperity along the Silk Road and in the rest of the world.

After the opening ceremony, guests visited exhibition pavilions and exchanged with exhibitors from countries and regions along the Silk Road to inquire about their local tourism resources and expectations for tourism development.