Qatar National Tourism Council (QNTC) and Qatar Airways jointly organised the Qatar Mega FAM Trip from February 24 to 28, 2019, hosting a record-breaking number of 60 tour operators and wholesalers from five strategic markets including Northern China, Eastern China, Southern China, Western China and Hong Kong China. As part of the Mega Fam Trip, tour operators were also awarded with China Top Agents recognition certificates at a Gala Dinner to celebrate the growth in Chinese arrivals and Agency Partners.

HE Akbar Al Baker, Secretary General of QNTC and CEO of Qatar Airways said: " China is the largest outbound tourism market in the world and in 2018, we saw a significant growth of 38 per cent in the number of Chinese visitors from the previous year. This was a result of numerous breakthrough initiatives like visa-free entry for Chinese citizens since August 2018 and Qatar Airways flights from 6 destinations in mainland China, along with the marketing and outreach programs rolled out in the market through the QNTC offices in Beijing, Guangzhou, Shanghai and Chengdu. We are committed to continue working with our local and international partners towards further growth of this market.” He added, “We are pleased to host such fam trips for tour operators to Qatar to help them learn about the country's unique tourism experiences and products. Qatar has witnessed great diversification in the tourism source markets, which required developing new innovative tourism products and experiences that meet the tastes and aspirations of visitors from those markets.”

The Qatar Mega FAM Trip is for leading travel agents and industry media representatives from China to enjoy unique travel experiences available throughout Qatar. The different routes undertaken simultaneously, provided agents with a fresh perspective of Qatar, and to share their variety of experiences with the goal of educating other agents and enabling them to better sell the destinations upon return.

During their time in Qatar, agents had the unique opportunity to attend the sixteenth edition of the Doha Jewellery and Watches Exhibition (DJWE). The exhibition offers exclusive pieces from the world’s finest jewellery and watch brands and provides visitors with a hands-on experience in the jewellery industry, exclusive designs and more than 500 brands from over 10 countries.

China is currently the largest outbound tourism market in the world, with almost 150 million outbound Chinese travelers in 2018 alone. In September 2017, Qatar was granted Approved Destination Status (ADS) by the government of China.Thanks to Qatar’s visitor visa facilitation policies, Chinese citizens can now enter Qatar visa free, with a visa waiver that is valid for 30 days from the date of issuance and entitles its holder to spend up to 30 days in Qatar, during either a single trip or on multiple trips. In addition, the five-star national carrier, Qatar Airways has 31 weekly direct flights connecting Doha to Beijing, Guangzhou, Chongqing, Chengdu, Shanghai, and Hangzhou in mainland China.

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Khadiza Begum

Content Writer

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