ASEAN tour-operators Show interest in KP Tourism at ITB Asis

SINGAPORE, Nov 15 2012: The international tour operators evinced keen interest in opening the gateway to international tourists in Pakistan?s scenic and picturesque Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, said a statement issued here on Thursday.

The statement, coming at the heel of ITB Asia Singapore ? a three days trade show to promote tourism and travel, said that tour operators from Singapore, Dubai, China and other countries showed considerable interest in tourism potential in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and offered to bring teams to explore its natural beauty.

The statement issued by media department of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Tourism Corporation said that a four-member team of Tourism Board led by Minister Syed Aqil Shah participated in a networking session with local tour operators in Singapore to introduce the province as a tourist attraction to international tour operators and hoteliers.

The Tourism Board participated in the tourism and trade show. This year 865 exhibitors from 72 countries participated. A lot of interest was shown by European and Asia Pacific tour operators in Pakistan tourist attraction.

The minister highlighted Khyber Pakhtunkhwa?s exceptionally rich and beautiful sights for tourist?s attraction and pointed out that apart from its graceful geography, the province, owned a rich Buddhist cultural heritage and possessed enormous potentials for development of tourism sector.

On eco tourism, he said, the province excelled in marking some areas as sanctuary for nourishment of certain rare and precious species of animals and birds.

Syed Hasan Javed, Pakistan High Commissioner to Singapore, in his opening remarks said that Khyber Pakhtunkhwa was one of the main trading centres on the ancient Silk Route and was a major crossroads for various cultures between South and Central Asia and Middle East.

?The province is Pakistan?s Switzerland,? he said, adding that it was home to some of the highest mountains in the world and attraction for adventure tourists and citadel of Gandhara civilisation.

Syed Jamalud din Shah, Secretary of Tourism, Sport and Youth Affairs, invited the Singaporean tour operators to visit the province to see for themselves its tourist attractions.

A video ?Pakistan Heaven on Earth? was also shown to the participants of the networking session