SHANGHAI, CHINA – The Nevada Commission on Tourism will sign its ninth friendship agreement with a Chinese city or province at the China International Travel Mart (CITM) in Shanghai Wednesday, Lt. Gov. Brian K. Krolicki announced today.
Krolicki will lead a delegation of Nevada tourism professionals to attend CITM, and he will sign the friendship agreement with the lieutenant governor of Shaanxi Province Nov. 19. The agreement is a nonbinding document that pledges mutual support and cooperation between Nevada and the Shaanxi Province.
“Since opening our office in Beijing in 2004, we have made numerous and significant connections within the government of China, which help further our mission to promote travel to Nevada in China,” Krolicki, Nevada Commission on Tourism chair, said. “We have a consistent presence in China, so the residents there see and hear a lot about Nevada and want to travel here."
The Nevada Commission on Tourism was the first U.S. tourism entity ever to be licensed by the Chinese government to advertise in China. Nevada and other U.S. states have also lobbied to expand the U.S. Visa Waiver Program, and on Nov. 17, the program was expanded from 27 to 34 countries. By some estimates, this expansion could attract an additional 1 million visitors a year to the United States. One of the newly included countries is South Korea, where the Nevada tourism commission has a representative office to market the state to potential visitors.
CITM is a four-day travel industry and consumer tradeshow, the largest in Asia, and the Nevada Commission on Tourism has strategically planned to present a strong and visible presence at CITM and other important tradeshows to combat the current decline in travel and tourism. The tourism commission, with the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, has organized one of the largest displays of any U.S. state at CITM. The Nevada delegation will meet with tourism and travel industry representatives, as well as consumers, at the tradeshow Nov. 20-23.
“We are very excited to have this opportunity during CITM to describe to China’s professional tour and travel industry representatives and consumers the great variety of attractions that await them in Nevada,” Krolicki said. “Nevada warmly welcomes visitors from China and around the world, and our tourism industry works hard to accommodate their needs and desires and show them a wonderful time.”
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