Dear Mekong Tourism Stakeholder,
Our Mekong Tourism team had one day to get refreshed after a productive ASEAN Tourism Forum in Chinag Mai, before heading back to Chiang Mai for the 5th GMS Environment Ministers' Meeting. Environmental topics from climate change, sustainainable tourism, to "over-tourism" are important issues for GMS tourism to communicate to this forum.
At ASEAN Tourism Forum, we officially launched the first regional tourism marketing campaign in the GMS - the Mekong Mini Movie Festival. At a press briefing, open to media and industry stakeholders, and joined by TAT (Tourism Authority of Thailand), VNAT (Viet Nam National Administration of Tourism), and MTF (Myanmar Tourism Federation), MTCO introduced the innovative campaign, which is powered by the MekongMoments.com collaborative social commerce platform.
A unique feature is that any organization and company regardless of size and type can drive business and exposure by promoting the campaign and encouraging guests, staff, and residents to include their own business hashtag in addition to the required hashtags - #MekongMoments, #Minis, and #Country/Destination - when uploading their mini movies of 60 seconds or less to their own social media (Instagram, Twitter, and Youtube).
We hope many of you share their experiences in mini movie format, and encourage your guests and staff to do the same. Prizes for country categories will be given out at the Mekong Tourism Forum in Nakhon Phanom during our Mekong Minis Movie Festival on June 27th when we screen the finalists. As part of the campaign, we also look to raise awareness of the endangered Irrawaddy Dolphins. Don't miss to be part of our tourism marketing movement in the GMS, and please spread the word. Watch the mini movie introducing the Mekong Minis.
We look forward to hearing from you as always, and hope you enjoy this second newsletter in 2018.
Have a great week!
Jens Thraenhart
Executive Director, MTCO
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News & Articles of the Week
News & articles that caught our attention over the past week:
The inaugural ‘Mekong Mini Movie Festival‘ (Mekong Minis), a short-film competition that celebrates the rich travel diversity of Greater Mekong Sub-region (GMS), is offering awards across several categories for the best submission that capture the essence of GMS daily life and travel. ... Read more about it.
Progress has been made in making ASEAN a united and single destination, said Thai Tourism Minister Weerasak Kowsurat during a press conference on Friday after the 21st meeting of ASEAN tourism ministers. ... Read more about it.
The Department of Tourism has called for responsible agencies to keep restrooms in tourist places clean at all times. ... Read more about it.
In 2017, Myanmar recorded a total of 1.1 million arrivals at Yangon International Airport. It was an increase of 7% compared to arrivals in the same period of 2016. Visa exemption between Myanmar and some ASEAN countries have increased arrival recorded growth Vietnam (+75%), the Philippines (+62%) and Singapore (+20%) and Thailand (12%). ... Read more about it.
“Rayong is one of these provinces we are promoting. As a land of fruits, fresh seafood and pristine beaches, Rayong offers all the favorite elements for Chinese tourists to make up a holiday full of fun,” said Tanes, who is looking forward to more and more Chinese arrivals to the province. ... Read more about it.
Tourists missing Cambodia’s beloved ‘bamboo train’ in Battambang can now board a replacement service that has been set up on a different set of tracks. ... Read more about it.
The World Heritage Site of Lijiang Town is one of the Mekong’s crown jewels and a must see. A stay in the old town for a couple days allows one to enjoy the unique architecture of the Naxi people, one of the indigenous people of Yunnan Province. ... Read more about it.
Seeking measures to address policy constraints and implement the relevant policies will help Vietnamese tourism to develop sustainably and gradually become a spearhead economic sector. ... Read more about it.
To nominate a destination that you think deserves recognition for their sustainability achievements, please e-mail top100@greendestinations.org. The deadline for 'early bird' nominations is February 18. ... Read more about it.
FEATURED MEMBER OF THE EXPERIENCE MEKONG COLLECTION: CHAY LAP FARMSTAY, VIET NAM
In 2011, the Mekong Project, ADB Bank and local government started the Chay Lap project with a vision to develop tourism in a largely passed through area near the entrance to Ke-Bang National Park. ... Read more about it.
EXO is looking for a GM in Cambodia. Terms are negotiable. Salary is about $5-6,000US/month, work permit, health insurance, and other benefits are included.. ... Read more about it.
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Recent Additions to the Mekong Tourism e-Library
The hostel market last year experienced skyrocketing growth of 32% in bed inventory, amounting to 63,632 beds in 1,766 properties across Southeast Asia. ... Download for free.
GMS TOURISM SECTOR STRATEGY 2016-2025
In 2004-2005, at the request of the GMS TWG and with the support of the Asian Development Bank (ADB), the first GMS Tourism Sector Strategy (GMS TSS) was formulated. In 2016, the GMS TWG updated the document to guide subregional tourism cooperation through 2025. ... Download for free.
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MTCO Seeks e-Library Contributions
In addition to economic reports, statistical analyses, industry studies, and much more, the Mekong Tourism e-Library hosts contributions in the following new categories:
Multi-Country Journeys & Mekong River Cruises
Tour and cruise operators offering multi-destination tours and cruises (defined as tours or cruises that visit more than one Mekong-region country) are welcome to send their eligible itineraries in PDF format. The objective is to develop a resource for those seeking Mekong experiences for their customers (or themselves).
Tourism Development Projects
Economic development agencies (bilateral or multilateral) and non-government organisations (NGOs) are encouraged to send, in PDF format, scopes of work, terms of reference, reports, and case studies pertaining to tourism-related projects in the Mekong region. The objective is to develop a resource for all Mekong tourism stakeholders.
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MTCO Seeks Tourism Experts
Subject matter experts, such as consultants, executives, and industry journalists, who are active in GMS travel & tourism, are eligible to become “Mekong Tourism Experts“. In return for regular (non-exclusive) business-, trade- or policy-related content, Experts will receive a range of profile-enhancing benefits ... View and register.
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MTCO Seeks Travel Storytellers
MTCO welcomes anyone with a passion for storytelling who wishes to share their unique and unusual travel experiences: multi-destination Mekong journeys and experiences linked to social, cultural, or environmental causes. In return for regular content, Storytellers will receive a range of profile-enhancing benefits ... View and register.
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Mekong Tourism is a collaborative effort between Cambodia, China, Lao, Myanmar, Thailand,
and Vietnam to promote the Greater Mekong Subregion as a single tourism destination.
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