Khon Kaen to host a world-class tourism forum, prepping itself as a new MICE destination

Time Out Bangkok in association with TCEB
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This November, between November 28 and 30, we’ll see travel experts from all over the world flocking into the northeastern province of Khon Kaen as Thailand Convention and Exhibition Bureau (TCEB), the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT), and the Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) gather together in an effort to launch Khon Kaen as a new MICE destination by hosting the PATA Destination Marketing Forum 2018 (PDMF2018), an international forum that promotes tourism in the Asia-Pacific region.

One of the largest provinces in the northeastern part of Thailand, Khon Kaen boasts a perfect combination of long-rooted traditional culture, developed infrastructure, and fast-growing economies. Khon Kaen is also located at the ideal location, providing easy mobility to numerous cities in the Greater Mekong Sub-Region. “Khon Kaen has already developed its infrastructure to the point that it is well ready to step into the world’s MICE industry. The number of big international events in Khon Kaen, therefore, has kept rising. We are now pleased that we will soon welcome Thai and foreign visitors joining the PDMF 2018 too,” comments Khon Kaen governor Dr. Somsak Changtragul.

“It’s an honor to host such an international forum. This honor moreover, confirms Khon Kaen’s readiness to become a new MICE City in Thailand. As Khon Kaen hosts various international events such as APEC Ministerial Meetings, International Conference on Humanities and Social Sciences, and Thai-ASEAN Trade Fair, more tourists and MICE participants have come to our province. Their arrivals have generated increasingly higher tourism income for Khon Kaen,” he concludes, adding that Khon Kaen is expecting a rise of overnight visitors from 3.8 million these days to more than five million in the future.

The PDMF2018 gathers influential tourism experts in travel and tourism for inspiring, insightful and engaging discussions on some of the major issues in marketing and managing tourism growth to lesser-known destinations. The event, formerly known as the New Tourism Frontiers Forum, stems from the need to help secondary and tertiary areas grow and develop into widely recognized, bucket-listed tourism destinations.

The format of the event is collaborative yet informative, delivered through a two-day programme consisting of a one-day conference, networking events and a day of on-ground activities known as the Technical Tour and Tourism Marketing Treasure Hunt, where the on-ground activities will be incorporated into the next day’s workshop on digital marketing.

Mrs. Supawan Teerarat, Senior Vice President of Strategic and Business Develop at TCEB, explains that PDMF2018 will be held under the “Growth with Goals" concept. “TCEB, TAT, and Khon Kaen will co-host this event in line with the policy to boost the economy of a provincial city and develop it as MICE City alongside Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Pattaya and Phuket.” She also adds that this event will take Khon Kaen, a long-time favorite meeting location for local government agencies, to the international level.

To support the PDMF 2018, the Tourism Authority of Thailand has prepared a set of technical tours that encourage participants to experience the most of Khon Kaen traditional culture. There are three routes available: (1) Isan Craft & Culture (SilaCommunity – Wat Chai Sri), (2) The Abundance of Isan (MeKin de Farmily – Dinosaur Museum) and (3) The Wisdom of Isan (Ban Hua Fai Silk Village – Wat Thung Setthi).

Find out more about PATA Destination Marketing Forum 2018 at www.pata.org/pdmf

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