Minister: Tourism Needs Effort, Not Panic

In the wake of terrorist attacks in the US, Asean countries will have to intensify efforts to promote the region as a destination for tourists, who will be less likely to travel in the near future because of the attacks, Cam­bodia’s tourism minister said Sunday.

The region is entering its peak tourist season, but potential visitors are still shaken by the Sept 11 attacks in New York and Wa­sh­ington, Minister of Tour­ism Veng Sereyvuth said.

“There has to be more effort to make Asean more attractive—to bring more tourists to the region. We must do more now. We must do more than before,” the minister said, adding that a “drastic” drop in tourist arrivals could occur over the next four months.

Now more than ever, Asean countries will have to combine their efforts to make the region appealing to nervous travelers, Veng Sereyvuth said, adding that potential visitors must be reassured as Cambodia and its neighbors strive to “strengthen our regional markets.”

“Maybe we have to refocus our marketing efforts,” Veng Serey­vuth said of his own ministry.

Pointing out that Asean nations alone have 500 million people, and then adding in huge potential tourist influxes from Japan, South Korea and China, he suggested that some other Asian tourist destinations may have “reached their peak. We can offer Cambodia as a new destination, full of potential, rich in our culture,” he said.

Veng Sereyvuth leaves today for a World Tourism Organ­ization conference to be held in both Seoul, South Korea, and Osaka, Japan. Senior members of the 139-nation organization meet every two years to evaluate the international tourism industry, anticipate its future and devise new strategies for marketing.

The WTO conference, which lasts until Oct 1, will likely focus on the worldwide effects of the  attacks on the US, Veng Serey­vuth said.

And while he said the impact of the attacks will likely be felt in the “immediate term,” he warned against discounting tourism altogether.

East Asia and Pacific countries welcomed 117.7 million visitors in 2000 an increase of 14.5 percent over 1999, according to Veng Sereyvuth. That is nearly twice the pace of the 7.4 percent increase in travel worldwide in 2000 compared to 1999.

“Tourism is a strong industry,” he said. “I would not panic as a result of the attack on the United States.”

 

By Brian Calvert

the cambodia daily

In the wake of terrorist attacks in the US, Asean countries will have to intensify efforts to promote the region as a destination for tourists, who will now be less likely to travel in the near future because of the attacks US, Cambodia’s tourism minister said Sunday.

The region is entering its peak tourist season, but potential visitors are still shaken by the Sept 11 attacks in New York and Washington DC, Minister of Tourism Veng Sereyvuth said.

“There has to be more effort to make Asean more attractive—to bring more tourists to the region. We must do more now. We must do more than before,” the minister said, adding that a “drastic” drop in tourist arrivals could occur over the next four months.

Now more than ever, Asean countries will have to combine their efforts to make the region appealing to nervous travelers, Veng Sereyvuth said, adding that potential visitors must be reassured while at the same time Cambodia and its neighbors strive to  “strengthen our regional markets.”

“Maybe we have to refocus our marketing efforts,” Veng Sereyvuth said of his own ministry.

Pointing out that Asean nations alone have 500 million people, and then adding in huge potential tourist influxes from Japan, South Korea and China, he suggested that some other Asian tourist destinations may have “reached their peak. We can offer Cambodia as a new destination, full of potential, rich in our culture,” he said.

Veng Sereyvuth leaves today for a World Tourism Organization conference to be held in both Seoul, South Korea, and Osaka, Japan. Senior members of the 139-nation organization meet every two years to evaluate the international tourism industry, anticipate its future, and devise new strategies for marketing.

The World Tourism Organization conference, which lasts until Oct 1, will likely focus on the worldwide effects of the attacks on the US—the worst acts of terrorism in world history—Veng Sereyvuth said.

And while he said the impact of the attacks will likely be felt in the “immediate term,” he warned against discounting tourism altogether.

Numbers for international travelers to East Asia and the Pacific have been growing at nearly twice the pace of the 7.4 percent increase worldwide in 2000 compared to 1999. East Asia and Pacific countries welcomed 117.7 million visitors in 2000 an increase of 14.5 percent over 1999, according to Veng Sereyvuth.

“Tourism is a strong industry,” he said. “I would not panic as a result of the attack on the United States.”

 

 

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