On November 17th-19th, the 2020 International Mountain Tourism Alliance Annual Conference opened in Guiyang. The Conference is concentrated on the theme of "The Path of Mountain Tourism Development in the Post-COVID World". During the annual conference, the participants focused on this major topic, and discuss depth in how to promote the revitalization and quality of mountain tourism after the pandemic, and provide thoughts guidance and practice support for global mountain tourism management and promotion of global tourism industry.

This Annual Conference is hosted by the International Mountain Tourism Alliance. UNWTO, WTTC, PATA, GTEF, WTA, WTCF, ASEAN-China Centre, WCCO and other well-know international organizations and associations provided powerful support.

Ladies and gentlemen,

Thank you very much for the invitation to speak at 2020 IMTA Conference in Guiyang. It is my pleasure to be here today.

To start, I have the honor of conveying to you the best regards of the Bavarian Deputy Minister President. Hubert Aiwanger. Mr. Aiwanger is a strong supporter of the hospitality industry in Bavaria. The policy of the Bavarian government is supporting the tourism sector due to its utmost importance for the Bavaria’s economy and especially the economy of rural parts of the Free State of Bavaria.

Ladies and gentlemen, China has been Bavaria’s most important trading partner since 2018. Our economic partnership now spans over more than 30 years. Bavaria and China are growing closer together and we want this to be a lasting development.

To ensure a continuous exchange, we have a representative offices in our partner provinces Guangdong, Shandong and Sichuan. Our offices assist Chinese and Bavarian companies and organizations in all stages of market entry, trade and collaboration. We also organize tailor-made programs for companies like delegation visits, trade show participations or webseminars. I invite you to use the free services and offers we provide to deepen collaboration between Bavaria and China.  

Bavaria is the largest federal state in Germany with about 13 Million inhabitants. It is centrally located in Europe bordering the Czech Republic and Austria. Bavaria is an economic powerhouse with a GDP of 633 billion Euros. But it is also a state with a stunning countryside. The Alps with Germany’s highest mountain – the 2962 m. high Zugspitze – mark the border to Austria. Several smaller mountain ranges – our Mittelgebirge – offer additional vacation choices for mountain lovers from all over the world.

In China, Bavaria is especially known for the competitive industry. It is one of the leading locations in Europe for future industries, such as industry 4.0 and Intelligent Manufacturing. 

Bavaria is home to global companies, like ADIDAS, BMW or Siemens but also a strong base for the innovative small and medium sized enterprises. Chinese investors appreciate that Bavaria is strong both in research and in training skilled professionals. With a share of 30.2% of all patent applications in Germany Bavaria is among the top high-tech and R&D locations in Europe. And those R & D capabilities and high-tech capabilities are also used for the tourism industry. 

But Bavaria is also number 1 in Germany for tourism. In 2019 more than 40 million people visited Bavaria – 20% of them were foreigners. This accounted for almost 101 million overnight stays in Bavarian hotels and hostels. With a total turnover of almost 34 billion Euros the hospitality sector is a cornerstone of the Bavarian economy. This is especially true for rural and mountain areas.

The tourism sector in Bavaria offers guests 43,833 hotels and over 454 registered campground. It employs almost half of a million people. As a Bavarian specialty, about 4,000 working farms offer about 50,000 beds to visitors who like to experience farm life first hand.

An outstanding network association of tourism enterprises is the Bayerische Hotel- und Gaststättenverband DEHOGA Bayern e.V. which is committed to the interests of hoteliers and restaurant operators and acts as a recognized partner for the political dialogue, nationally and also, internationally.

The success of the Bavarian hospitality sector would not be possible without skilled and highly trained professionals. Bavaria has a large number of hotel and vocational colleges that offer specialized training in the tourism and hospitality sector. Furthermore, the University of Kempten, the Munich University of Applied Science or the State Vocational School Centre Wiesau offer dualstudy programs to train specialists in tourism and hospitality management. 

In addition, the innovation- and business-friendly climate in Bavaria favors the development of start-ups in the tourism sector and young entrepreneurs in the tourism industry can expect support from a range of Bavarian organizations.

The Bavarian government supports the hospitality sector in multiple ways and launched the initiative Tourism in Bavaria – In Harmony with Man and Nature in June 2018. Let me just give you some examples:

(1)We support regions, cities and villages in improving their touristic infrastructure.

(2)We offer support to operators of cable cars who modernize their equipment.

(3)And we support the modernization of restaurants.

(4)In addition, a contact platform named Wirtemail was introduced which allows restaurant owners to contact experts in the Bavarian Ministry for Economic Affairs, Regional Development and Energy directly via email.

(5)In cooperation with the association DEHOGA, small and medium sized restaurant and hotel operators can receive free consulting services and get an analysis of their potentials made.

Support of the tourism sector is especially needed in times of the COVID-19 pandemic. Since international and domestic travel came to a sudden halt, many hospitality and tourism enterprises are struggling to survive. The Bavarian and German governments immediately offered emergency help in the form of loans and subsidies already back in the spring 2020.

Germany and Bavaria are now experiencing a second wave of COVID-19 infections. On November 2nd, all hotels and restaurants had to close for at least a month. Take-out orders cannot make up for the business lost. To support the sector the State of Bavaria is reimbursing tourism businesses 75% of the income lost due to COVID- 19. The amount received is based on last year’s income.

A major challenge for the tourism sector is digitization. Tablets and smart phones have become a fixed part of tourism and expectations of customers have increased tremendously. Customers expect digital services when gathering information about potential destinations, when making reservations and when navigating while on vacation.

To support the tourism sector in Bavaria with digitization, tourism operators are provided with a guide manual on digital marketing. They also receive support in their online and digital marketing and the newly introduced BayernCloud offers data sharing services for the tourism industry. 

Ladies and gentlemen, When it comes to mountain tourism Bavaria and Guizhou have a lot in common. Whether it’s hiking in the Fichtelgebirge, rock climbing in Fränkische Schweiz, mountain biking in Chiemgau or skiing in the Alps, Bavaria’s tourists enjoy being active in harmony with the splendid nature. 

All support programs mentioned apply to tourism operators in mountain areas. 

Due to the sensitivity of the mountain ecosystems, the Ministry for Economic Affairs, Regional Development and Energy cooperates with the Ministry for Environmental Affairs when it comes to mountain tourism. There are specific projects for nature tourism like for example a new award for Bavarian Mountaineering Villages. 

A tourism format which fits the mountain areas perfectly is Urlaub auf dem Bauernhof which translates as vacation on a farm. Families can experience the life on a working farm while vacationing and participate in jobs like feeding life stock, herding cattle of milking cows. This format also provides additional income for farmers.

Dear ladies and gentlemen, Bavaria has a lot to offer. Bavaria is not only a prime tourism location but has extensive experience and know-how in the hospitality sector. I am convinced that there is potential for a collaboration between Bavaria and Guizhou.

I wish this conference success. Thank you very much for your attention.