Apart from the soaring growth of economic and trade communication, China and ASEAN are extending their cooperation in the field of culture, and the just-concluded second China-ASEAN expo disclosed that tourism is the key to opening this gate.

"To ordinary tourists who come to visit the expo, they may not remember the specific trade turnover between China and ASEAN countries," said Wen Zhongliang, deputy secretary general of the expo, "but they can have deep impressions on the activities of 'City of Charm', for this really brings them the mood of festival."

In front of the display area of Chiang Mai, the wooden houses with Thai flavors become the camera focus of hundreds of travelers, while in the area of Beijing, many tourists from ASEAN nations were deeply allured by the traditional "flour figure art" of the traditional folk artists.

One of the most shining features of this expo, "City of Charm" showcases the most typical tourism cities of China and ASEAN.

The staff of the exhibition hall said thousands of visitors, both from home and overseas, come to enjoy the hallmarks of the 11cities. City of Charm deserves its fame.

A tourist from Beijing said he has great affectations for the southeast Asian nations. He had, during the past few years, visited Thailand, Singapore and Malaysia, and he is thinking of traveling to Indonesia and the Philippines at the end of this year.

According to statistics from China National Tourism Administration, 2.76 million Chinese, one third of the total who traveled abroad, visited the ASEAN countries last year, an increase of 45 percent over the same 2003 period.

At the same time, nearly 3 million people from ASEAN member nations toured China in 2004, a year-on-year rise of 52.6 percent.The latest report by the World Tourism Organization shows that during the past decade, about 65 percent of the foreign tourists touring China were from Asia, in which ASEAN travelers accounted for over a quarter.

The organization forecasts that China will become the world's largest tourism destination nation in 2013. And experts say the deeper and closer Sino-ASEAN relations will bring about a new tourism craze to the region.
 
(Xinhua News Agency October 25, 2005)