Countries from all over the world will have a chance to showcase their cultures at the 2009 Qingdao International Tourism Expo, to be held at the Qingdao International Convention Center in Shandong province from August 21 to 23.

The annual event has been successfully held for four years, attracting over 900 representatives from 35 countries, including China, the United States, Britain, France, Malaysia and South Korea, as well as more than 150,000 visitors. The Expo provides a great boost to the tourism field at home and abroad, especially in the Asia-Pacific region.

This year’s Expo will feature the following four highlights:

The China-Japan-ROK Tourism Minister Conference will be held during the exhibition, involving tourism ministers from 11 cities, such as China’s Qingdao, Tianjin, Dalian and Yantai; Japan’s Kitakyushu, Fukuoka, Shimonoseki and Osaka; South Korean’s Pusan, Ulsan and Inchon.

Taiwan will make its debut at the Expo and a Shandong & Taiwan Tourism Summit will be held, providing a chance for cross-straits exchanges and cooperation in the field of tourism.

Tourist Bureau chiefs from 17 districts and cities in Shandong province will lead delegations to take part in the event, involving the province’s major inbound and outbound travel agencies.

Various cultures will have exotic displays, with the participation of travel agencies from 70 overseas countries, including Egypt, Turkey, Tunisia, Malaysia, the Czech Republic and Zimbabwe.

Editor Li Jing

By Wang Qian (China Daily Shandong Bureau)