PATA Travel Mart 2013 will take place in Chengdu, the capital of Sichuan province in China, in September next year.

After Hong Kong (2006), Hangzhou (2009) and Macau (2010), Chengdu will be the fourth Chinese city to host PATA Travel Mart.

João Manuel Costa Antunes, PATA chairman, said: “The successful bid of Chengdu to host PTM2013 is meaningful, not only because it will be the first time for a main event of the association to travel to the Midwest of China, but also because Sichuan will be able to show to Asia-Pacific travel industry stakeholders its rich tourism resources and the amazing reconstruction (efforts) four years after the devastating earthquake.”

Martin J Craigs, PATA CEO, said: “PATA has been working closely with Chengdu in many capacities over the past few years, including the development of tourism training, co-branding a seminar on global tourism trends, and destination marketing. We are confident that Chengdu will be able to attract a good quality and quantity of international visitors and buyers to PATA Travel Mart 2013.”

Mu Tao, deputy director of Chengdu Municipal Tourism Administration, said: “Hosting PATA Travel Mart will boost Chengdu’s brand and image; it will also spur the continued growth of the business travel and exhibition economy.”