Maldives is being showcased colourfully at China’s number one B2B fair, China Outbound Travel & Tourism Market (COTTM) in the Chinese capital of Beijing.

Maldives is being represented at a 102 square metre stand from March 29-31 along with 37 participants from 18 companies of the Maldives tourism industry. With a newly designed stand showcasing the unique tourism products with colourful pictures, the stand consists of 19 counters, eight private meeting tables and five floating tables.

This year, various activities are held at the Maldives stand for the visitors attending the Maldives stand to experience a bit of the Sunny Side of Life. These include calligraphy, where names of visitors attending the stand are written in Maldivian language (Dhivehi) unique to the Maldives. Visitors can also experience underwater beauty of Maldives through a virtual reality headset. Moreover, visitors can pose for pictures near the photo booth placed at the stand, using frame board and post it on social media to win a surprise gift.

During the three-day exhibition, the Maldives delegation will meet with travel industry professionals and discuss potential future collaborations to promote the Maldives in China. New tourism developments taking place in 2017 will also be shared with the media during the events.

The 2016 edition of COTTM saw 400 exhibitors representing 65 countries reflecting a truly global reach.

According to the China Tourism Academy, the Chinese outbound travel market has exceeded the 100 million trips a year mark, which puts travel expenditure in excess of $128 billion in 2016.

In 2016, the Maldives welcomed 324,326 visitors from China which represented 25.2 percent of total tourist arrivals during the year. China has been the No.1 source market for the Maldives for the past seven years and will continue to play an important role in the Maldives travel industry.