After the success of 64 conventions in South East Asia, Europe and the Middle East, TAAI is hosting its 65th convention in the Chinese city of Kunming in the Yunnan Province, from November 27-29, 2018.

For years, the Travel Agents Association of India (TAAI) has been promoting stronger development of tourism ties between India and destinations that offer great opportunities for the country to promote tourism. After the success of 64 TAAI conventions in South East Asia, Europe and the Middle East, this year TAAI is working towards a better connect with China.

The 65th TAAI Convention will be held in the city of Kunming in the Yunnan Province from November 27-29, 2018, at the Intercontinental Hotel. TAAI is looking at the possibilities of all delegates of the convention staying in one hotel. Kunming (at the southwest frontier of China) is just at a 2.4 hours flying distance from Kolkata and 3.4 hours from Delhi, on a direct connect.

This will be TAAI’s first convention in China and the organisation has been working with the Yunnan Provincial Tourism Development Commission (YPTDC) to offer a fruitful partnership to the tourism industry of both nations. At a recent press meet in New Delhi, TAAI and YPTDC signed a Memorandum and presented salient features of the convention. Though outbound from India to China is high, through the convention TAAI aims to highlight the destinations that are not widely known.

As the capital of Yunnan, Kunming is known as the ‘City of Spring’ for its pleasant climate and flowers that bloom all year long. Kunming was the gateway to Silk Road that facilitated trade with Tibet, Myanmar, Sichuan, India and beyond. Today, it is the provincial political, economic and transportation centre of Yunnan as well as the most popular tourist destination in southwest China, famous for its history and culture.

TAAI is also looking at organising pre and post convention tours in the cities surrounding Kunming like Shangri-La, Lijiang and Dali.

“Indian tourists coming to Yunnan have increased from around 6,000 in 2005 to more than 56,000 in 2017. More than 1,000 Indians are studying medicine and other things in Yunnan right now. We have many universities and colleges in the area and everyone there speak English. So, to cater to the language problem for tourists, we have student volunteers to help them,” said Shilin, vice director general, YPTDC.

Apart from her, Fang Limin and Liu Huibo, vice directors of International Marketing Department YPTDC; and Tian Xin, director, China National Tourist Office (CNTO) in New Delhi were present at the occasion, amongst others.

Representatives from airlines like China Eastern (that flies to Kolkata-Kunming- Kolkata daily), Shandong Airlines (fly to Delhi-Kunming-Delhi, four days a week), and China southern were also present at the convention.