2025 WTA Members’ Day · Lhasa Successfully Held

Lhasa, May 18, 2025 — The 2025 WTA Members’ Day · Lhasa was successfully held at the Shazha Courtyard, Barkhor Street, Lhasa. Distinguished attendees included Mr. ZHANG Xu, WTA Chair; Mr. XIAO Youcai, Standing Committee Member of the Tibet Autonomous Region Party Committee and Party Secretary of Lhasa Municipal Committee; Mr. WANG Qiang, Deputy Party Secretary and Mayor of Lhasa; Mr. XU Peng, WTA Vice Chair; Mr. WANG Pei, Deputy Director of the Department of Culture and Tourism of the Tibet Autonomous Region; Mr. WANG Kunxin, Principal Researcher at the World Tourism Alliance Research, along with leaders from various provincial cultural and tourism departments, WTA members, and prominent cultural and tourism entrepreneurs from Tibet.

The event, organized by the WTA and hosted by the Lhasa Municipal People’s Government, focused on the theme "Symbiosis of Cultural Heritage and Tourism Development". Discussions explored how cultural heritage and tourism development can form a bidirectional empowerment relationship in the context of the deep integration of the cultural and tourism sectors. The goal was to contribute valuable insights to the development of Lhasa’s cultural and tourism industries.

In his opening speech, Mayor WANG Qiang emphasized the significance of Lhasa joining the WTA in March this year, marking a milestone in the city’s tourism development. He noted that this partnership reflects the Alliance’s recognition of the unique plateau civilization and pristine ecology of Lhasa. The city is committed to safeguarding its heritage and providing excellent services, ensuring that tourism continues to make the world and life better. He further invited individuals passionate about the Snowy Plateau and the Holy City to visit, explore business opportunities, and contribute to the city’s development.

Mr. ZHANG Xu, in his address, introduced Members’ Day as one of the Alliance’s flagship events, which fosters a platform for ongoing internal communication and knowledge sharing. He praised Lhasa for its unmatched cultural heritage and ecological advantages as a jewel on the “Roof of the World”. This event provided the WTA a timely opportunity to gather in Lhasa and explore the symbiosis of cultural heritage and tourism development, while fostering meaningful discussions to advance Lhasa’s high-quality cultural tourism growth.

In the keynote speech, Mr. WANG Kunxin, under the theme "A New Journey of Cultural and Tourism Integration: New Pathways for Lhasa’s Tourism", analyzed the major challenges faced by Lhasa’s tourism sector and proposed solutions. He suggested several strategies, including exploring unique local cultures to diversify product offerings, integrating various business models to foster innovative tourism development, enhancing regional cooperation and marketing strategies, developing off-season tourism products to create a year-round tourism experience, and prioritizing talent development to improve service quality.

In the thematic sharing session, industry experts including Mr. WANG Wei, President of Shanghai Spring International Travel Service (Group) Co., Ltd., Mr. Nima Ciren, Vice President of the China Arts and Crafts Association, Mr. WANG Kan, Researcher at the Tourism Research Center of Capital University of Economics and Business, and Mr. CAO Shuai, CEO of the Government Cooperation Department at Tongcheng Travel, delivered insightful presentations from their areas of expertise.

Before the event, guests were welcomed with traditional Tibetan hospitality, including the offering of Khada (a ceremonial scarf), Qema (barley dough), and Chang (barley wine). Attendees also had the opportunity to experience Tibetan intangible cultural heritage, including Tibetan incense making, Tibetan paper craft, block printing, and Tibetan calligraphy.