ITB ASIA NEWS 2023 - DAY 1 EDITION

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I REGION I ASIA I ADVERTORIAL Busan: a strategic choice for MICE venues With an impressive history of facilitating over 100,000 events with 55 million attendees, the city remains a dominant force in the MICE industry. PRIME ACCESSIBILITY Busan's global accessibility is facilitated by Gimhae Airport and Busan Port, strengthened by the reintroduction of direct flights from key Asian cities and the upcoming Helsinki connection. The forthcoming Gadeokdo Airport is also expected to enhance the city's connectivity. For travellers within Korea, the ease of reaching Busan, either by a short flight or a KTX journey from Seoul, is a notable advantage. With its established convention centres, BEXCO and BPEX, and a diverse range of venues, Busan is wellprepared to accommodate the diverse needs of the MICE industry in 2023. BETWEEN BUSINESS AND TOURISM The city is encircled by seven beaches, all in close proximity to the urban centre, offering a range of leisure activities. The HAVENUE, Korea's only international conference complex located next to the sea, epitomises Busan's commitment to bleisure. This complex is a nexus of MICE facilities, tourist hotspots and accommodation, all accessible within 15 minutes. With a choice of over 60,000 rooms, ranging from opulent 5-star hotels to practical business accommodations, and an additional 15,000 rooms in the scenic Haeundae area, there's something to suit every preference and budget. New Korea Unique Venues in the spotlight at ITB Asia 2023 The Korea Tourism Organisation (KTO) is highlighting MICE at ITB Asia this year. The KTO has been fostering the Korea Unique Venue programme since 2017. This programme provides a selection of venues where travellers can experience Busan's retail scene is equally impressive, with shopping giants like Shinsegae and the Lotte Department Store dominating the landscape. For travellers seeking a more tranquil experience, wellness tourism and authentic Korean activities such as forest trekking and temple stays are readily available STAND K 031 a MICE event in host city or enjoy the unique charms of a specific region. While these venues are not traditional MICE facilities (i.e. convention centres, hotels), they give organisers the option of holding MICE events somewhere different. As the MICE industry continues to grow, venues are diversifying. Corporations and institutions, which tended to prefer large scale convention centres in the past, are increasingly seeking out unique places and experiences for their events. There is a trend for private, small-scale event spaces along with an interest in venues which showcase local cultures and characteristics. This year, the Korea MICE Bureau (KMB) selected new additional venues to bring the total number of Korea Unique Venues up to 52. The selection process for the new venues began in February with an open call from regional organisations (RTO, CVB). The resulting pool underwent an initial document and PT evaluation to create a shortlist, then in May and June, KMB conducted on-site evaluations with industry professionals to select the final venues. All Korea Unique Venues are selected through a rigorous process in which they are evaluated based on suitability, scale and distinct characteristics. The resulting selection guarantees an event experience which allows visitors to not only experience Korean tradition and culture, but also art, leisure sports, Korean Wave, natural scenery and more STAND J 05 14 ITB ASIA NEWS • WEDNESDAY 25 OCTOBER 2023 itb-asia-news.com