In order to promote the development of tourism between Hong Kong and Chengdu and to cultivate versatile tourism talents, the School of Tourism and Culture Industry of Chengdu University (CDU) and the School of Hotel and Tourism Management (SHTM) of The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) jointly initiated the project of the "Belt & Road: Forging Tourism between Hong Kong and Chengdu" in the summer vacation of 2023, at the invitation of PolyU.
The SHTM of PolyU has been ranked NO. 1 globally for six consecutive years in both the "University Ranking by Academic Performance" (URAP) and the "Hospitality & Tourism Management" in the Shanghai Ranking’s Global Ranking of Academic Subjects. A group of 12 teachers and students from CDU arrived in Hong Kong on August 6 for a two-week joint research project. Focusing on the theme of "Belt & Road: Forging Tourism between Hong Kong and Chengdu", the SHTM designed a series of courses on "Destination Marketing and Management" and "Research Methods" for CDU students. The project team also participated in the practical courses jointly taught by the teachers of the SHTM and the industry experts from Hotel ICON. They visited benchmarking hotel brands in the industry such as Hotel ICON, The Peninsula Hotels, Rosewood Hotels & Resorts, Mandarin Oriental Hong Kong, The Upper House, and The Murray Hotel for research, and conducted in-depth interviews with the senior management teams of these hotels. The research findings in English were presented to the experts of PolyU with the themes of "Bring Hong Kong to Chengdu’s Gen-Z" and "Enhancing Tourism in Chengdu based on the Preferences of Gen-Z" to. The brilliant performance of the students and their highly creative and practical proposals won high recognition and praise from experts from both sides.
Professor Kaye Chon, Dean of the SHTM, meets with the teachers and students from CDU
Group photo of the teachers and students from CDU with Mr. Julian Wipper, General Manager of the New World Millennium Hong Kong Hotel, and his team
Dr. Tony Tse, Professor of Practice of the SHTM, presents completion certificates to the students of CDU
The "Belt & Road: Forging Tourism between Hong Kong and Chengdu" project is one of the "New Cultural Tourism · Belt & Road Pivot Cities Exchange Program" of the School of Tourism and Culture Industry of CDU. In the summer vacation of 2023, the School of Tourism and Culture Industry also sent two students to the Ubon Ratchathani University (UBU) in Thailand for exchange and study with students from partner universities in 13 countries including the United States, the United Kingdom, and Japan. Students went into the classroom for classes and experienced local cultural customs through field trips and research activities. They forged friendships of peers from different countries and deepened their understanding of tourism resources and products in Thailand, and practiced theories from the perspective of destination marketing and management. In the final project report, the two students of CDU presented a well-designed destination promotion video to Ubon Ratchathani and UBU, which was unanimously appreciated.
Dr. Chutinun Prasitpuriprecha, President of UBU, presents completion certificates to the two students
The "New Cultural Tourism · Belt & Road Pivot Cities Exchange Program" will further enhance the internationalization of the School of Tourism and Culture Industry and contribute to the cultivation of globally competitive talents in the era of new cultural tourism.
