Qatar Tourism Authority (QTA) has signed an agreement with Ctrip on the sidelines of the 14th China Outbound Travel and Tourism Market (COTTM) currently taking place in Beijing. 
The agreement with China’s largest outbound tourism reservation platform is set to boost QTA’s on-the-ground efforts to promote and market Qatar as an attractive tourism destination for Chinese tourist and travel trade.
“We are pleased to announce our co-operation with Ctrip which will complement our various promotional activities aimed at attracting more Chinese visitors to Qatar,” QTA’s chief marketing and promotion officer Rashed al-Qurese said.
“Ctrip will soon become a platform for Chinese visitors and industry partners to know about Qatar and book. We look forward to this being a strong foundation for a long-term partnership with Ctrip,” he added.
The agreement aims to improve the Qatar destination brand recognition and increase Chinese tourists’ bookings and reservations in Qatar. 
According to QTA, the agreement will see Ctrip launch various features to help Chinese tourists plan their visit to Qatar, including original materials about the destination’s authentic experiences. 
Qatar’s hotels, airlines and travel agencies will also be featured on the landing page of Ctrip. Web users can view their Qatar ‘pocket books’ either through the Ctrip application or on a PC.
“Qatar is a prominent emerging tourism destination in the Middle East which is changing our perceptions of the region’s tourism destinations through the modernity of its cosmopolitan capital and rich history and cultural highlights,” Ctrip’s destination marketing CEO Qian Zhen said.
“We look forward to promoting the destination’s authentic tourism experiences to our ever-growing database of Chinese travelers and deepening our cooperation with Qatar,” Qian added.
Thanks to Qatar’s recent visa policy changes, Chinese citizens can now enter Qatar visa-free. 
The visa waiver is valid for 30 days from the date of issuance and entitles its holder to spend up to 30 days in Qatar, during either a single trip or on multiple trips. 
In addition, the five-star national carrier, Qatar Airways has 31 weekly direct flights connecting Doha to six key cities across mainland China. 
The first quarter of 2018 saw a 27% increase in Chinese visitor arrivals compared to the same period last year. Data analysis also shows that China is Qatar’s fastest growing source market.
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