ATF 2019 14 to 18 January 2019
ASEAN TOURISM FORUM 2019, Halong Bay, Vietnam
ATF, where all the ASEAN Countries Meet The 38th Asean Tourism Forum concluded on the high-note in Quang Ninh Exhibition of Planning and Expo Center (QNEPEC), Ha Long, Viet Nam. More than 1,500 delegates attended the show and participated in over 100 meetings, business, education and social functions. TRAVEX (Travel Mart) was also the component of ATF 2019, showcasing ASEAN destination products and services. There were B2B connect and the official meetings by NTO and ministerial delegates during the show. More than 140 international and local media were also present to uncover the latest regional travel developments taking place on the show floor and through the NTO media
briefings by all 10 member states. A total of 400 delegates were hosted to this year's event. Some highlights of the show were: Friendly Golf Game for all delegates, Saigon - Ho Chi Minh City Night on board the Ha Long Princess Cruise for international media; the Opening Ceremony and Welcome Reception & Dinner by VNAT for all delegates, TRAVEX Lunch by Quang Ninh for buyers & media, Dinner by Quang Ninh, TRAVEX Lunch hosted by FLC, Brunei Night Reception and Philippines Night Late Night Function for buyers and media. And the Closing Ceremony of Visit VietNam Year 2018 & Gala Celebrating the Success of ATF 2019 for all delegates.
ASEAN UNVEILED TOURISM MARKETING INITIATIVES TO SUSTAIN GROWTH AND AWARENESS TO THE REGION At ATF 2019, A S EA N National Tourism Organizations (ASEAN NTOs) revealed their collective efforts in marketing initiatives to inspire travel to Southeast Asia. “While each Member State continues to promote their own country, the 10 ASEAN Member States also work together to promote Southeast Asia. This is the first time that ASEAN has shared their marketing work plans and
direction, since the adoption of the ASEAN Tourism Marketing Strategy (or “ATMS”) 2017-2020. Collectively, we aim to promote multi-country travel within this region, positioning Southeast Asia as a single destination,” said Mr John Gregory Conceicao, Executive Director, International Relations, Market Planning and Oceania, Singapore Tourism Board, who represented the Chair of ASEAN
To u r i s m C o m p e t i t i v e n e s s Committee (ATCC). Main marketing activities planned for 2019 include revamping the ASEAN tourism website, launching integrated marketing campaigns with partners, establishing more like-minded partnerships, as well as strengthening existing collaborations. The overall marketing efforts is intended to raise awareness of the diversity of
the ASEAN region and ASEAN Tourism brand. The ASEAN Tourism logo will be used as the main promotional logo for marketing purposes. In addition to the above, each NTO provided country updates as follows. ● Brunei Darussalam launched its new tourism branding “Brunei: Adobe of Peace” and a new website. This year, Bandar Seri Begawan will be named as the Capital of Islamic
From L to R: (Brunei Darussalam) Ms Rita SuzantyAndry, Special Duties Officer, Tourism Development Department, Ministry of Primary Resources and Tourism; (Indonesia) Mr. EdyWardoyo,Director for Marketing, Region IV, Ministry of Tourism; (Lao PDR) Mr. SounhManivong, Director General of Tourism Marketing Department, Ministry of Information, Culture and Tourism; (Malaysia) Datuk Musa Yusof, Director General, Tourism Malaysia; (Myanmar) Mr. HlaMyint, Director, International and Regional Cooperation Department, Ministry of Hotels and Tourism; (Philippines) Mr Arnold Gonzales, OIC – Deputy Chief Operating Officer, Tourism Promotion Board; (Singapore) Mr, John Gregory Conceicao, Executive Director, International Relations, Market Planning and Oceania, Singapore Tourism Board; (Thailand) Mr. ChattanKunjara Na Ayudhya, Deputy Governor for International Marketing (Asia and the South Pacific), Tourism Authority of Thailand; and (Viet Nam) Mr. Tran PhongBinh, Deputy Director, Tourism Marketing Department, Vietnam National Administration of Tourism.
Culture in Asia for 2019, whereby the country will promote more c u l t u ra l a n d I s l a m i c to u r i s m packages. ● Cambodia welcomed new flight connectivity in 2019 by Cambodia Airways, Philippines Airlines, Garuda Indonesia and Air China. Cambodia also revealed tourism investment opportunities in the North-East Zone, Key Coastal Zone and Phnom Penh, as well as confirmed the hosting of ATF 2021 in Phnom Penh. ● Indonesia targeted 20M visitors this year. To reach this goal, the government launched a series of programs including digital tourism, millennial tourism, and nomadic tourism; and a “10 New Balis” campaign to develop and promote lesserknown destinations. Moreover, a new Low Cost Terminal is in the plan.
● Lao PDR ran the “Visit Lao Year 2018” Campaign, to promote both primary and secondary cities e.g. L u a n g P r a b a n g , Va n g V i e n g , Vientiane, Champasak, Xiengkhouang, LuangNamtha, Khammouane, etc. This year, the Government would continue the effort by highlighting its cultural festivals, such as BounKinchieng (Hmong new year), Elephant Festival, Lao New Year (Water Festival), Rocket Festival andBounPhaThat LuangFestival. ● Malaysia produced the ASEAN Tourism Packages 2019-2020. There are 69 multi-country travel packages featuring ASEAN destinations from 38 travel agents, supporting the promotion of ASEAN as a single destination. ● Myanmar unveiled its new tourism brand “Myanmar: Be E n c h a nte d ”, to s h owca s e i t s friendly, charming, mystical and as-
yet-undiscovered destination. A visa-free relaxation scheme was extended to visitors from Japan, South Korea, Macau, Hong Kong, while Visa-on-Arrival was granted to Chinese and Indian citizens. ● Philippines reinforced its thrust of promoting the country as a responsible and sustainable tourism destination, by anchoring its projects focusing on green destinations and offering community-based products. Philippines Tourism Promotion Board also updated on its newlyopened airports, i.e. Bohol-Panglao International Airport, Mactan Cebu International Airport and Cagayan North International Airport. ● Thailand positioned itself as a world-class destination, aiming to offer quality products and services, stimulate expenditure and expand the niche market as well as stimulate the economy of rural areas by
promoting emerging tourism destinations. As ASEAN Chair in 2019, Thailand seeks to develop an ASEAN Community, which is peoplecentered and leaves no one behind. Singapore welcomed 16.9M visitors from January to November last year, an increase of 6.6% from the same period in 2017. Singapore Tourism Board continued to build upon its destination brand Passion Made Possible to tell an authentic Singapore story. Viet Nam achieved 20% increase in tourism arrivals in 2018, the highest growth among ASEAN countries. The country was awarded the“Asia's Leading Destination 2018” and “Asia's Best Golf Destination 2018” by World Travel Awards and World Golf Awards respectively. 2019 was earmarked “Visit Vietnam 2019 – Nha Trang, KhanhHoa” to promote the nation's cultural and coastal assets.
7th ASEAN-India Tourism Ministers meeting at ATF
H.E. Dato Ali Apong, Minister of Primary Resources and Tourism, Brunei Darussalam; H.E. Dr. Thong Khon, MoT, Cambodia; H.E. Mr. Alphons Joseph Kannanthanam, Minister of State for Tourism (Independent Charge), MoT, Govt of India; H.E. Dr. Arief Yahya, MoT, Indonesia; H.E. Prof. Dr. Bosengkham Vongdara, Minister of Information, Culture and Tourism, Lao PDR; H.E. Datuk Mohamaddin Ketapi, MoT, Arts & Culture, Malaysia; H.E. U Ohn Maung, Union Minister for Hotels and Tourism, Myanmar; H.E. Ms. Bernadette Romulo-Puyat, Secretary of Tourism, Philippines; H.E. Chan Chun Sing, Minister for Trade and Industry, Singapore; H.E. Mr. Weerasak Kowsurat, Minister for Tourism and Sports, Thailand; H.E. Mr. Nguyen Ngoc Thien, Minister of Culture, Sports & Tourism of Viet Nam; H.E. Dr. Aladdin D. Rillo, Deputy Secretary-General of ASEAN for ASEAN Economic Community.
The Union Minister for Tourism, Shri. K. J. Alphons attended the 7th Meeting of Tourism Ministers of ASEAN and India held in Ha Long City, Viet Nam. Shri. K J Alphons co-chaired the Tourism Ministers’ meeting with the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Viet Nam, Mr. Nguyen Ngoc Thien. The Ministers’ meeting noted the strengthened tourism performance of ASEAN and
India in 2018 with preliminary numbers of 139.5 million tourist arrivals to ASEAN and India in the year with an increase of 7.4% as compared to the previous year. The Ministers launched the ASEAN-India Tourism Cooperation Year 2019, and looked forward to enhancing cooperation with a view to increasing two-way tourist visits and promoting
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greater people-to-people exchanges between ASEAN and India. Earlier, during the ASEAN - India Commemorative Summit in January 2018, the Prime Minister of India had proposed designating the year 2019 as ASEAN-India Tourism Year. The Ministers’ meeting agreed to further enhance ASEAN-India cooperation in tourism under the
framework of the ‘2012 Memorandum of Understanding between ASEAN and India on Strengthening Tourism Cooperation with intensified efforts and activities. The meeting also noted the progress made in the implementation of the MoU through several activities in 2018 like Sharing the best practices, resources and facilities, Exchanging information pertaining to statistics & development strategies.
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Saigon - Ho Chi Minh City Night
ATF 2019 Opening Ceremony
TRAVEX
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ASEAN TOURISM FORUM, 2019
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SNAP SHOT