Hotel & Tourism SMARTreport #39

Hotel & Tourism
SMARTreport #39
2018 Summer Edition 13
WORLD ROUTES 2018 HEADS
FOR GUANGZHOU, CHINA
Guangdong airport authority set to host the global meeting for airlines,
airports and aviation stakeholders
World Routes 2018 will be hosted
from September 15-18 by Guangdong
Airport Authority, the owner of Baiyun
International Airport. Baiyun is China’s
third busiest airport and the 15 th busiest
in the world, handling nearly 60 million
passengers in 2016. A second terminal,
opening this year, will be able to handle up
to 80 million passengers a year.
At the conference, airlines, airports and
destinations plan and negotiate future air
services.
Routes events are unique forums dedicated
to the development of new air services.
They revolve around pre-scheduled
meetings, an exhibition and a conference.
Four “regional” route development forums
are held between February and June in the
Americas, Asia, Europe and Africa, with
the flagship World Routes event taking
place in September.
Guangzhou, an economic hub on the
Pearl River in Guangdong Province, South
China, will provide the perfect platform
for the event in 2018. The city has been
an important trade centre for 2,000 years
due to its strategic position near the South
China Sea. Its economic strength has
helped Guangdong to maintain its status
as the richest province in China for the last
three decades.
The colourful Canton Tower and Cantonese
cuisine have made Guangzhou a popular
choice with international tourists. Other
attractions include the asymmetrical
Guangzhou Opera House, the Five Rams
Statue in Yuexiu Park, a variety of Buddhist
temples and Baiyun “White Clouds”
Mountain.
Guangzhou’s growth is set to continue
into the next decade as Baiyun’s expansion
projects are completed. The airport will be
transformed into a five-runway, threeterminal
operation that can handle 62,000
flights, 100 million passengers and three
million tons of cargo a year by 2025.
Steven Small, brand director of Routes
said: “Baiyun International Airport’s
development plans reflect Guangzhou’s
economic strength. China is due to
become the world’s largest aviation
market in the next seven years and Baiyun
will take a leading role in this growth.”
International route development
professionals from 270 airlines, 600 airports
and 80 tourism authorities attended World
Routes 2017 in Barcelona, and Guangzhou
can expect similar numbers next year.
Kejian Zhang, Chairman of the Board of
Guangdong Airport Authority said: “It’s a
great honour to win the right to host World
Routes 2018. I believe it will be an excellent
opportunity to showcase Guangzhou City
and Guangdong Province to the looking
forward to meeting all of the friends of this
great event. We’ll be meeting them with
our best service and full enthusiasm”