Mekong Tourism Forum to be held in Angkor 7-8 May

The Mekong Tourism Forum 2010 will take place near the world-renowned UNESCO World Heritage site of Angkor Wat in Siem Reap, Cambodia, 7-8 May.The theme of the Mekong Tourism Forum 2010 is, ?New Roads, New Opportunities?. Business and government sector leaders will assess the latest tourism developments and investment opportunities along the regional road networks linking Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam and the southern China provinces of Yunnan and Guangxi.

?We are looking forward to hosting this influential networking gathering,? said Dr Thong Khon, Minister of Tourism for Cambodia. ?It will mark the progress of a pivotal business and travel industry forum initiated by the Asian Development Bank 14 years ago,? he said.

Across the Mekong region, new areas with limited or no tourism are now opening up along three main corridors: the southern coastal road from Bangkok to Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam via Cambodia; the central east-west route linking Northeast Thailand to southern Laos and Hue in central Vietnam; and the north-south Kunming-Bangkok road through northern Laos.

?Today villages and towns along the way are benefiting from the arrival of tourists where there were none before,? said Mason Florence, Executive Director of the Bangkok-based Mekong Tourism Coordinating Office. ?At the Mekong Tourism Forum we will discuss investment prospects and hear from tourism operators who are already taking advantage of opportunities along the new overland corridors.?

During the forum at the Angkor Century Resort & Spa, panel discussions will be held on ?Pioneering Mekong Tourism Products,? ?The Path to Community-based Tourism,? ?How Sustainable Tourism Can Drive Profit? and ?The Road Ahead?.

Government speakers will also update the audience on visa regulations, border crossing changes, airport developments, and new policies and incentives for the tourism sector.

Tourism has established itself as an economic force across the Mekong region, which still contains areas where average income is less than US$2 a day.

According to the latest statistics from PATA, in 2009 Cambodia?s international visitor arrivals reached 2.046 million, up 2% on 2008. Vietnam attracted 3.772 million, down 11%. Lao PDR received 862,000 visitors, down 3%. Myanmar attracted 243,000 visitors, up 26% from 2008 (when cyclone Nargis hit). Thailand received 14.1 million visitors in 2009, down 3% on the year before.

To help attract small and medium-sized tourism entrepreneurs and a diverse range of travel professionals, the MTCO, in conjunction with Cambodia?s Ministry of Tourism, has reduced the cost of attending the Mekong Tourism Forum 2010 to a nominal US$50 for the two-day event and US$30 for members of the Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA). The registration fee includes access to all forum sessions, including two lunches and two dinners.