BUENOS AIRES – In a bid to attract visitors from the Latin America market, China has gone on a charm offensive at this year’s International Tourism Fair of Latin America (FIT) to promoting itself as a top travel destination.
As the largest fair of its kind in the region and among the top five worldwide, FIT opened at Argentina’s capital Buenos Aires with more than 50 countries presenting their tourism sights, cuisine and cultural attractions.
Argentina’s Tourism Minister Gustavo Santos and Buenos Aires Mayor Horacio Rodriguez Larreta attended the opening.
“Our goal is to (attract) more (Latin travellers) to China,” Feng Jiang, one of the organisers of the China exhibit at the fair, told Xinhua news agency.
Another exhibitor from the Chinee pavilion at the fair, Alejandro Jiang, said both China and Latin America have in recent years taken “a huge step” to increase bilateral tourism flows.
However, while China is a popular destination among Latin American travellers, accessibility is still an obstacle, he said.
“The biggest problem we have right now is the journey,” Mr Jiang said. “There aren’t many airlines or flights (connecting China and Latin America), and that’s another thing we aim to expand.”
China’s Ministry of Culture and Tourism reported an increase of 4.7% in foreign arrivals in 2018 compared to 2017.
More than 30.54 million foreign visitors travelled to China last year, generating US$73.1 billion in revenue.