Besides being one of the world's biggest export centres, Guangdong is fast becoming one of China's hottest tourist destinations. Provincial officials are trying to attract more foreign tourist inflows with the development of golf courses, hotels, theme parks, hot springs as well as beaches for business and family holidays. Guangdong's unique culture and history are a haven for cultural explorers and the region's array of fine cuisine, fine arts and traditional crafts are a magnate for people who love dolce vita.

Guangdong currently gene-rates about a quarter of the country's tourism proceeds. One tourism official last year said that Guangdong's tourism industry's annual indirect contribution to the province was more than 327 billion RMB and created three million jobs. For the past five years the industry enjoyed an average annual earning growth of 13.1 percent and contributed eight percent of the province's total GDP.

In the first three seasons of 2006, Guangdong's inbound tourism increased by 10.7 percent year-on-year, outpacing the country's average growth. Leisure holiday tours saw rapid development while the sight-seeing tours faced increased pressure.

Leading travel agencies started to appear in the managing board of some tour destinations; however, it is far from becoming a trend.

In November 2006, Guangdong officials said that by 2010, the province's tourism industry will mature to become one of the country's leading domestic and foreign tourism destinations and will serve as a transportation hub for China's inbound and outbound travellers.

PLACES TO START TOURING IN CHINA
"Guangdong does not have many must-see spots." said one National Tourism Bureau official. Although Guangdong does not have the terra cotta warriors, the Great Wall or Mount Everest, it does have the potential to become the first stop for foreigners travelling in China.

Guangdong's geographic location, efficient processing of travel documents for overseas tourists, developed transportation systems are all pluses in its favour for travellers.

Hong Kong, a world-class shopping Mecca and main tourist destination of the region, borders with Shenzhen. Macao, the Las Vegas of East Asia, borders with Zhuhai, a quaint seaside city. Several Pearl River Delta cities, including Shenzhen, Zhuhai, Jiangmen and Zhongshan, offer 144-hours visa-free status for foreigners who joined Guangdong package tours in Hong Kong or Macao. Number of overseas businessmen and families visiting Guangdong increased in the past several years after this policy was put into effect.

Guangdong also contains five major airports, an efficient network of railways and highways that connect tourists to many of China's main tourist destinations. Since PPRD regional co-operation was launched in 2004, the nine southern provinces and regions in mainland China have signed agreements to make travelling within the region barrier-free.

Foreign tourism organizations agree that Guangdong's potential as a tourism hub promises continued cooperation with international tour groups.

"We enjoy a very cordial relationship with Guangdong, and such friendly co-operation is expected to reach even the Pan-Pearl River Delta region, which is the heart of Asia's tourism industry," said Francesco Frangialli, secretary-general of the World Tourism Organization.

HOLIDAY DESTINATIONS
Guangdong has many advantages to becoming a business and family holiday destination. "Hot springs, golf courts and theme parks make Guangdong perfect for holidays," said Zheng Tongyang, Director of Guangdong Tourism Bureau.

Since the mountainous region in northern Guangdong successfully developed its own eco-tourism industry, the eastern and western wings of the province are following suit by planning tourism sites with their local attractions and advantages.

Guangdong has 3,000 km of coastline and over 800 small islands but lacks the same year-round pristine beach conditions of its neighbouring island-province Hainan. The province has included beach holiday sites development in its tourism development plan.

In recent years, Guangdong held an Tourism and Culture Festival every winter. This event combines the local tour destination promotions with cultural presentations from different areas of Guangdong and different countries, as well as staging street performances by local and international artists. The tourism carnival is now increasingly popular within the province and attracts a growing number of foreign and domestic tour agencies and visitors.    

Editor: Wing