2024 China International Travel Mart kicks off in Shanghai, showcasing global tourism options

The 2024 China International Travel Mart (CITM) opened in Shanghai on Friday, promoting the growth of global tourism through novel experiences that embrace new technologies and old traditions.

With the theme "Nihao, China," this year's CITM, organized by China's Ministry of Culture and Tourism, is being held at the National Exhibition and Convention Center (Shanghai) from Friday to Sunday.

While a significant portion of the approximately 53,000 square meters of exhibition space is dedicated to China's domestic and cultural tourism, other areas of the floor entice visitors to explore exciting cultures across Asia and the world.

One of the most popular attractions at the exhibition is the Japanese pavilion, where visitors are treated to traditional performances rich with dance and music.

"The aim of participating in this year's CITM is to showcase the charm of various regions in Japan," said Hiroshi Yakumaru, executive director of the Shanghai office of Japan's National Tourism Organization.

Another highlight of this year's CITM is the VR exhibit, "Back to Sanxingdui – A Fantastic Journey to the Ancient Shu Kingdom", which invites visitors on a journey through ancient culture, seamlessly blending rich heritage with cutting-edge VR technology.

"We have around seven scenes, starting at the museum and taking visitors back to the ancient Shu civilization. After a series of explorations, they will return to the museum," said Bi Yanhao, Chief Technology Officer of Aicmeta.

The CITM is China's premier international travel exhibition and the largest of its kind in Asia. Starting from 2001, the event has alternated between Shanghai and Kunming, the provincial capital of southwest China's Yunnan Province, each year.

This year's event has attracted more than 1,000 international exhibitors from over 80 countries and regions, alongside nearly 600 overseas travel agencies, while over 600 business-to-business meetings are scheduled to be held during the event.

2024 China International Travel Mart kicks off in Shanghai, showcasing global tourism options

The death toll from a landfill collapse in the central Philippine city of Cebu has risen to eight by Monday morning as search and rescue operations continued for another 28 missing people.

The landfill collapse occurred on Thursday as dozens of sanitation workers were working at the site. The disaster has already caused injuries of 18 people.

Family members of the missing people said the rescue progress is slow, and the hope for the survival of their loved ones is fading.

"For me, maybe I’ve accepted the worst result already because the garbage is poisonous and yesterday, it was raining very hard the whole day. Maybe they’ve been poisoned. For us, alive or dead, I hope we can get their bodies out of the garbage rubble," said Maria Kareen Rubin, a family member of a victim.

Families have set up camps on high ground near the landfill, awaiting news of their relatives. Some people at the site said cries for help could still be heard hours after the landfill collapsed, but these voices gradually faded away.

Bienvenido Ranido, who lost his wife in the disaster, said he can't believe all that happened.

"After they gave my wife oxygen, my kids and I were expecting that she would be saved that night because she was still alive. But the night came and till the next morning, they didn't manage to save her," he said.

Death toll in central Philippine landfill collapse rises to eight