A seminar on building Hainan into a high-quality international tourism consumption center, hosted by the Chris Ryan workstation and undertaken by the HNU-ASU Joint International Tourism College of Hainan University (HAITC), was held from April 21 to 22 at Hainan University (HNU).

A seminar on building Hainan into a high-quality international tourism consumption center is held at HNU from April 21 to 22. [Photo/WeChat account: HAITC]

The two-day seminar aimed to promote the development of the Hainan Free Trade Port and advance academic studies of international tourism.

It brought together professionals in tourism studies, chief editors of top tourism journals, and experts and scholars from international travel agencies.

Antony Wong (L), a professor at the HAITC, and Li Ping (R), vice-dean of the HAITC, preside over the opening ceremony of the seminar. [Photo/WeChat account: HAITC]

Chris Ryan (L), chief chair professor at the HAITC, and Zhou Bin (R), a professor from Ningbo University, give speeches at the opening ceremony. [Photo/WeChat account: HAITC]

Chris Ryan, chief chair professor at the HAITC, gave a themed lecture on different approaches to develop international tourist destinations on April 21. He talked about the importance of developing international tourism in Hainan, analyzed the characteristic tourism resources of cities on the island, and gave proposals to help Hainan further explore tourism resources.

In his speech titled "Research Progress and the Enlightenment of International Island Tourism", Zhou Bin, a professor of tourism management at Ningbo University, gave his insight on the development of island tourism, considering the global climate, communities and sustainable growth, as well as the market and tourists' consumption behaviors.

A report on residents' quality of life in the Hainan Free Trade Port, produced by the Chris Ryan workstation, was released at the opening ceremony. Based on surveys on residents’ quality of life and satisfaction in five cities across the province, the report put forward proposals to enhance their well-being.

Experts and scholars give keynote speeches at the seminar. [Photo/WeChat account: HAITC]

During the keynote speech session, experts and scholars from home and abroad gave speeches on community-based tourism development, travel-themed livestreaming, publications in leading international tourism journals, resource and environmental effects of tourism consumption, the impact of tourism fraud on tourist behavior, and the publication of research papers in peer-reviewed journals.

Professionals share their insights on the opportunities and challenges faced by Hainan's tourism recovery. [Photo/WeChat account: HAITC]

The seminar also included a sharing session which enabled professionals to discuss the opportunities and challenges faced by Hainan's tourism recovery.

Students at the HAITC said that the seminar benefited them a lot and that they look forward to attending more such high-level events.