Press Conference of GITF 2025

2025-05-09

As a "veteran IP" in China's travel exhibition industry

the 33rd Guangzhou International Travel Fair (GITF)

held a press conference today at the Westin Guangzhou

 

Under the theme "Meaningful Tourism, Enduring Connections",. With a forward-looking perspective on Guangzhou's tourism industry, GITF2025 leverages the city's solid tourism foundation, seeks innovative growth, and pursues practical changes. It focuses on global sustainable tourism development, builds an international stage for cultural inheritance and industrial innovation, and creates an international platform for in-depth dialogue and resource connection, thereby stimulating the potential for high-quality development of Guangzhou's tourism industry that the world can share.

 

Mr. Suranga Algewatte, Consul General of Sri Lanka in Guangzhou, Mr. Ke Xiandong, Deputy Director of the Culture and Tourism Bureau of Guangzhou, Mr. Xiao Libin, Secretary-General of the Guangzhou Tourism Association, Mr. Wu Haohong, President of the Guangzhou Research and Practice Association, Ms. Cui Yijin, Head of the Guangzhou Branch of Hannover Messe Shanghai Co. Ltd., the organizer of the Guangzhou International Travel Fair, Ms. Zeng Yi, Head of the Bay Area Creative Culture, Sports and Tourism Zone, Mr. Yang Zhenning, Sales Director of Asia for 66 Degree Adventure Cruises, and many representatives from the cultural, sports and tourism industries attended the press conference together.

 

 

After 33 years of dedicated efforts and refinement

 GITF has long risen to become a global barometer of innovation in the travel industry

Each edition of the exhibition leads with an avant-garde perspective

presenting cutting-edge viewpoints that inspire new thinking among the tourism sector and travelers alike.

 

At the press conference, cultural and tourism guests delivered speeches, bringing the latest and hottest travel information and looking forward to GITF 2025 together.

 

Mr. Suranga Algewatte, Consul General of Sri Lanka in Guangzhou

"Sri Lanka has maintained close cooperation with the Guangzhou International Travel Fair for many years. This platform has greatly enhanced Sri Lanka's visibility in the Chinese market and attracted many Chinese tourists to visit our country. To further deepen our cooperation with the fair, this year we will promote Kandy, one of Sri Lanka's iconic cities, as the Starlight Partner Destination at GITF.

Sri Lanka has introduced many friendly policies and measures for Chinese tourists, such as a 30-day visa-free policy, an electronic travel authorization visa application system, strengthening air connections and launching more direct flights; offering customized travel packages, including cultural tours and eco-tourism adventure activities; and improving safety and comfort standards by providing Mandarin-speaking tour guides to ensure a smooth travel experience for tourists. Additionally, we are committed to promoting sustainable and meaningful tourism, allowing Chinese tourists to deeply experience the local culture and nature."

 

Mr. Ke Xiandong, Deputy Director of the Cultural and Tourism Bureau of Guangzhou

"The 33rd GITF has arrived. The number 33 symbolizes boundless possibilities. GITF has become a 'smart hub' for precise matching of global cultural and tourism resources. As one of the first national cultural and tourism consumption demonstration cities, Guangzhou is activating new industrial momentum through three major actions: First, it is deepening supply-side reform, integrating domestic and international cultural and tourism resources, and launching personalized and high-quality cultural and tourism products to meet the upgraded consumption demands of domestic and foreign tourists. Second, it is actively applying technology to enhance experiences, using VR, metaverse and other technologies to create immersive scenarios and promoting the implementation of new forms such as 'cloud tourism' and 'digital cultural and creative products'. Third, it is integrating cultural IPs with local characteristics, leveraging the cultural heritage of the Greater Bay Area and the opportunity of the National Games to develop distinctive projects such as intangible cultural heritage, homestays, and event tourism, and telling the 'Guangzhou story' well."

 

Ms. Cui Yijin, the person in charge of the Guangzhou branch of Hannover Messe Shanghai Co., Ltd., the organizer of the Guangzhou International Travel Fair

"This year's GITF exhibition theme, 'Meaningful Travel', as an advanced model of sustainable tourism, is about to trigger in-depth discussions in the industry at the Guangzhou International Travel Fair. This concept breaks through the traditional development framework and builds a win-win development model that can be quantified by establishing a collaborative mechanism of interests among the six core stakeholders - travelers, local communities, tourism practitioners, tourism enterprises, governments at all levels, and the natural environment, based on positive psychology."

 

Mr. Wu Haohong, President of the Guangzhou Research and Practice Association

"The Guangzhou Research and Practice Zone will fully demonstrate the vitality of Lingnan research and practice. It will create a national research and practice benchmark through the implementation of the 'Three Major Projects', namely, the selection of high-quality thematic research and practice routes, the selection of high-quality thematic research and practice courses, and the launch of the 'One District, One Feature' activities."

 

Ms. Zeng Yi, the person in charge of the Creative Culture, Sports and Tourism Zone in the Bay Area

"The 'Astonishment Plan' has been splendidly upgraded. The audience will be amazed to encounter the National Games, interact with 'Xiyangyang' and 'Lerongrong'; meet the Zumba party; discover the Mini Art Tunnel of the Greater Bay Area, the 11-meter-long scroll 'New Journey of the Bay Area', the resident artists; witness martial arts, Hong Kong music, intangible cultural heritage Hong Kong-style milk tea, artisans, giant seal installations, and the collaboration of a hundred schools... and over a hundred creative and cultural gifts are waiting for you to discover on site."

 

Mr. Yang Zhenning, the Sales Director for Asia of 66° Adventure Cruises

"The first cruise ship with 'Chinese DNA', the Guangdong China Travel Polar Cruise 'Poseidon', makes its debut at GITF. It will bring everyone a polar feast. Our polar cruises are meticulously planned for Chinese people in terms of language, meals, onboard entertainment and exploration routes. At the same time, we have also brought exclusive benefits for this travel exhibition, hoping to enable more Chinese people to realize their polar travel dreams."

 

 

GITF is the earliest established and longest-running large-scale international tourism exhibition in China with an extremely high degree of marketization

 It has become an important ticket for buyers to expand business opportunities

After 33 years of refinement, Guangzhou, which dares to be the first in the world, has always been in the tourism exhibition industry, maintaining long-termism while constantly releasing new energy

 

 

The latest travel information about Guangzhou

 

During the just-ended five-day May Day holiday, Guangzhou received nearly 11.9 million tourists and achieved over 12.1 billion yuan in cultural and tourism consumption, representing year-on-year growths of 7.8% and 14.2% respectively. Multiple data indicators placed it among the top popular tourist cities in China.

 

As a significant source of global tourists and a "world-class" tourist destination, Guangzhou explicitly stated at the 2024 Tourism Development Conference: "By 2035, the total cultural and tourism consumption in Guangzhou will exceed 1 trillion yuan. A world tourism destination with core competitiveness, humanistic charm, and urban vitality will be fully established!"

 

The World Tourism Cities Federation's "World Tourism Economic Trends Report (2025)" indicates that global tourism revenue is expected to increase by 7.9% in 2025 compared to 2019. Among them, the Asia-Pacific region has become a new growth pole for the global tourism economy. It is expected that the total tourism revenue growth rate in the Asia-Pacific region in 2025 may exceed 10%, providing support for the tourism economic growth of emerging economies and even the world.

 

 

01. Innovation and Growth in Guangzhou's Tourism Industry

Creating an "Meaningful Tourism" Ecosystem

 

In 2025, GITF will continue to leverage its authoritative industry insights, professional summits, and high-quality exhibition services to deeply interpret the cultural and tourism landscape of this year's China Tourism Day theme, "Splendid Landscapes, Wonderful Journeys," and will also inject new energy into the Guangzhou Sports Year with the innovative model of "Sports + Culture and Tourism."

 

The overseas exhibitors

Over 1,000 tourist destinations and institutions from 55 countries and regions are participating, with a strong lineup of overseas exhibitors including Sri Lanka, Germany, Italy, Russia, the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Qatar, Spain, France, Poland, Cuba, South Korea, Singapore, Nepal, Cambodia, Indonesia, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Saudi Arabia, Georgia, Kenya, Oman, Peru, Ireland, New Zealand, Turkey, Brazil, Malaysia, Ras Al Khaimah, Thailand, Bhutan, Madagascar, Amazon, Hong Kong, Macao, PATA (Pacific Asia Travel Association), and TPO (Tourism Promotion Organization).

 

Group exhibitions have become a major highlight of this year's event. Kandy, Sri Lanka, will take the lead as the "Star Partner", accompanied by over ten sub-exhibitors including SriLankan Airlines, Yuhuna Bay Hotels and Resorts, Temple Tree Resort & Spa Induruwa, Cinnamon Hotels and Resorts, and Asian Hotels and Properties PLC. Nepal's exhibition team is also impressive, with nearly 20 sub-exhibitors from renowned hotel groups such as Soaltee, Hilton, Fishtail, Barahi, and Sarowar making a grand appearance. Cambodia will showcase a variety of sub-exhibitors including Cambodia Hotel Association, Koh Russey Resort, FAIR FIELD by Marriott Phnom Penh, and TV-TOWER. TPO (Tourism Promotion Organization) will unlock the potential of emerging destinations such as Busan, Pohang, Iksan, Kota Bharu, and Batu City. The Hong Kong exhibition team will bring along 15 sub-exhibitors including Cathay Pacific Airways, Ocean Park Hong Kong, Dusit Thani Hong Kong, and Royal Pacific Hotel. The Macao exhibition team will also present over ten sub-exhibitors including Macau Tower, Air Macau, MGM, "Galaxy Macau" World-Class Integrated Resort, and City of Dreams Macau.

 

The domestic tourism sector 

The expo will also bring together numerous domestic cultural and tourism bureaus and enterprises, including those from Beijing, Tibet, Hainan, Chongqing, Guangzhou, Nyingchi, Chengdu, Chenzhou, Yangzhou, Taizhou, Anshun, Qiqihar, Bijie, Yunfu, Shanwei, Meizhou, Qingyuan, Zhanjiang, Wushan, Shufu, Qiannan Prefecture, Bomi, Zhaojun Cultural Tourism, Mangshan Forest Park, Yanguan Ancient Town, Tongxiang Puyuan, Changbai Mountain, Zhangjiakou Shixuechuan, Niubeishan, and Tongxiang Wuzhen, among others. Each destination will showcase a variety of hidden gems and unique experiences.

 

The exhibition will continue to offer consumers the opportunity to consult and purchase high-quality and cost-effective travel products on-site. Many tourism and cultural enterprises such as Guangdong China Travel, Guangzhou Tour, Kaili, Ctrip, Canton Tower, China Southern Airlines, Guangzhou Xinhua, Guangdong Provincial Art and Crafts Treasures Museum, Yixingyuan Culture and Tourism, Xingfu Zhijia, Mingyang Holiday, Guinness World Records, Xiangyu Culture and Tourism, Xincheng Business Travel, Guangzhou Gift, and Zai Culture and Tourism will all be present at the exhibition. The Guangdong animation industry will also create a trendy cultural and tourism consumption experience area on-site, offering a wide range of travel products and multiple discounts, as well as the latest interactive experiences.

 

 

02. The Guangzhou Tourism Exhibition Absorbs Cultural Energy

 Transforming the Special Zone into a "Lantern of Lingnan Culture"

 

While strengthening the three main sections of outbound and MICE tourism, inbound and destination promotion, and local travel agencies and scenic spots, and solidifying the platform for precise global resource matching, this year's exhibition has deeply upgraded its thematic content display, injecting fresh vitality into the special zones and focusing on "potential tracks" to create a series of innovative experiences.

 

The special zones are brimming with vitality

The zones dedicated to homestays, intangible cultural heritage, cultural and creative products from museums, the creative cultural and sports tourism of the Pearl River Delta, and trendy markets have transformed into a "Lantern Cultural Kaleidoscope", fully showcasing the vibrant pulse of Guangzhou. Notably, the Guangzhou Pavilion, themed "Flowers Bloom in Guangzhou, Flourish in the World", combines elements of the 15th National Games to create creative sports-themed check-in spots such as running and cycling.

 

The intangible cultural heritage zone will display a variety of heritage skills including Cantonese enamelware, Cantonese embroidery, Lingnan puppetry, Guangzhou pastry molds, Xiguan bone-setting, Guangzhou olive carving (nut carving), the art of making wedding cakes (linxu), the production techniques of Zhongyi An Gong Niuhuang Pills, the preparation method of Xiaochaihu Decoction, Lingnan bonsai, the traditional milk-based snacks of Shawan, ivory carving, and handcrafted goldwork. During the event, representatives of these intangible cultural heritages and their inheritors will be present to allow citizens and tourists to experience them up close.

 

The homestay zone presents a "one house, one scene, one sentiment" travel experience, featuring over ten Red Cotton Star-rated homestays in Guangzhou such as Jingmu Mountain House, Ji Yunyao, Mo Niang's Home, Yilu Bowen Homestay, Taoshe Xiaoyin, Pusu Huajian, Tanyun Tianju, Yuchangwan, Changxi Home Homestay, Xihe Post, Xi Yuan · Manhaosi Hot Spring Resort Homestay, and Congxin Yin, offering a range of exciting experiences.

 

The cultural and creative products from museums zone collaborates with over ten museums including the Ruifeng Tea Culture Museum, Guangdong Museum of Chinese Medicine, Guangzhou Museum, Nanyue King Museum, Guangzhou Art Museum (Guangzhou Art Museum), and the Tunnel Museum. Through digital scene experiences, it transforms into a "visitable, learnable, and perceivable" miniature cultural exhibition space.

 

Silver Age Power: The New Wave of Age-Friendly Travel

The GITF 2025 will offer a stage for the "silver-haired generation". The "Silk Road Silver Age · Dance in Guangzhou" Square Dance Competition Finals, hosted by the organizing committee of the Guangzhou International Travel Fair, will be held during the exhibition. With the theme of "Road", this mass event gathering multiple teams from the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area turns square dancing into a cultural bridge, allowing the silver-haired dancers to showcase their vitality and creativity, and break the age barrier with their passion.

 

Ecological Scientific Expedition: In-depth Exploration Empowered by Science

This year, "Cultural and Tourism Visionaries" has joined forces with the cutting-edge Chinese scientific expedition team - Stone Exploration Record (Shi Tan Ji) and its founder, Dr. Chen Rui, a biologist from the Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, to create a global ecological corridor. The exhibition area will showcase in-depth travel content from Malaysia, the Amazon, Madagascar, Kenya, and Sri Lanka. Visitors can participate in creative check-ins on site and have a chance to win the 3D scene book "Enter the Amazon Science Popularization 3D Book · Interactive Reading Version" that recreates the real Amazon rainforest.

 

 

03. Practical Variables of Guangzhou Tourism

"The Year of the National Games"

 

In the "Year of the National Games", which will see the hosting of the 15th National Games by the end of 2025, Guangzhou will also launch a series of "culture and tourism + sports" integrated cultural, commercial, tourism and sports experience activities, creating new experiences, new ways of playing, and new scenarios to showcase the charm of a world-class tourist destination.

 

Cultural tourism + sports: The breakout expression of the 15th National Games

This year's exhibition takes advantage of the momentum of the "15th National Games" to create new sparks in the creative experience zone for culture, sports and tourism in the Bay Area. The zone will focus on "immersive experience + cross-border integration" to create astonishing scenes, allowing you to encounter the 15th National Games, the Greater Bay Area, martial arts, Hong Kong music, etc. in amazement. The mascots of the 15th National Games, "Xiyangyang" and "Lerongrong", will come to the exhibition site to support the National Games.

 

In late April 2025, Guangzhou released "50 Tourist Routes for the Year of the National Games", meticulously connecting the distinctive scenic spots in each district of the city. Cultural landmarks such as the Maritime Silk Road Ancient City, Xiguan Arcade, and the New Central Axis Art District have all been included. Among them, a special "Travel with the Games" themed product was launched, featuring a variety of theme routes like Snow Town Fun, Mountain Climbing, Golfing, and Sailing, as well as Cycling Adventures. These routes deeply integrate sports with leisure travel, providing tourists with diverse sports and leisure scenarios.

 

 

04. Guangzhou Tourism High "Intelligence"

Industry Leaders Collide on Future Travel and Enduring Connections

 

The five major theme forums of this exhibition cover core contents such as outbound transformation, inbound breakthrough, study tour innovation, cultural relic revitalization, and value tourism. It invites over 50 industry leaders and experts to discuss the future trends of the industry, thereby deepening the connection and collision of ideas and further exploring the global cultural and tourism ecosystem.

 

China Outbound Tourism Theme Forum

The China Outbound Tourism Theme Forum will take "Rebuilding Outbound Tourism: Sustainable Connection and Value Co-creation" as its theme and for the first time establish a three-dimensional dialogue system of "Ecological Friendliness - Cultural Symbiosis - Value Sharing" to reconstruct the industry value chain. Peter Semone, the President of the Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA), will attend the forum and deliver a keynote speech.

 

China Inbound Tourism Theme Forum

Under the favorable visa policy background, the inbound tourism theme forum will focus on "Inbound Tourism Trends from a Global Perspective"decode “Global Inbound Tourism Recovery and China's Strategic Opportunities” in two roundtable dialogues, and look for “From Port to Destination: Breakthrough Points in Inbound Tourism”. From Ports to Destinations: The Breaking Point of Inbound Tourism”. Mr. Li Xieju, Executive Director of Guangdong Association of Travel Agents, will attend the forum and host the roundtable dialogues.

 

Study Tour Theme Forum

The Theme Forum on Study Tour will focus on “Starting a New Chapter of Study Tour”, focusing on cultural identity and resource linkage. It will bring together representatives from government agencies, industry associations, education experts and cultural and tourism enterprises to discuss how to promote two-way exchanges between youths in Hong Kong and Macao and the Mainland, deepen cultural resonance, and promote the construction of an international cooperation network for study tour, which will help Guangdong Province to build up an international cooperation network for study tour and help Guangdong Province to build up an international cooperation network for study tour. At the same time, it will promote the construction of international cooperation in study tours and help the high-quality development of the study tour industry in Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macao Greater Bay Area.

 

“Let Cultural Relics Come Alive” Sharing Session

This year's “Let Cultural Relics Come Alive” Sharing Session will connect museum IPization and intergenerational innovation, discussing “From Collections to IP: The Way to Break the Circle of Museum Cultural Creation” to “Museums for Generation Z and Silver Hair: Intergenerational Needs, Conflicts and Integration and Innovation”. From “From Collections to IP: The Way to Break the Circle” to “Museums for Generation Z and the Silver-Haired: Intergenerational Needs and Integration and Innovation”, the conference will explore the new scenarios of cultural and museums activated by digital technology.

 

“Meaningful Tourism” Forum

The “Meaningful Tourism” Forum, the first of its kind at this year's event, will put PATA's Asia-Pacific vision into practice, and at the same time utilize effective tools to enhance the effectiveness and satisfaction of China's outbound tourism in the Asia-Pacific region, and draw a new blueprint for a sustainable tourism economy. In addition, more than 30 on-site events and seminars will be held in Guangzhou, attracting guests from all over the world to share the latest travel information, see the new trends of the global travel industry, and seize the new track of the global travel industry.

 

GITF2025 is like a strong link

between cultural resonance, technological innovation and business win-win

 injecting infinite possibilities for the global tourism industry

From May 15-17, let's gather in Guangzhou, the city of flowers,

for a “meaningful” travel date!