The International Travel Exhibition 2011 (ITE-HCMC) opened in Vietnam's southern Ho Chi Minh City on Wednesday with the theme, "Four countries - One destination" (four countries include Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar).

According to the Vietnam News Agency, attending the opening ceremony were Vietnamese Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Hoang Tuan Anh, Cambodian Minister of Tourism Thong Khon, Lao Minister of Information, Culture and Tourism Bosengkham Vongdala, and Myanmar Minister of Hotel and Tourism Tint Hsan; and representatives of domestic and foreign travel agencies from 40 countries and territories.

ITE-HCMC 2011, the 7th of this kind so far held in the city and one of the country's leading travel events, showed up its broader scale and international significance. The goal is not only promoting cooperation and development of travel activities among the four countries and highlighting each country's unique tourism products, but also providing opportunities for regional travel agencies to exchange information and cooperation for their business, Vietnamese Minister Hoang Tuan Anh said at the opening ceremony.

According to the expo organizers, the first two days (Sept. 14- 15) are reserved for about 30 meetings by 161 representatives of foreign travel agencies with domestic partners, during which they work on plans for business promotion and development. The remaining two days (Sept. 16-17) will be open for visitors, with many attractive promotion programs.

On the sidelines of the expo, a travel promotion seminar is held to lure more investment in tourism in each country in particular, and in the ASEAN community in general.

The "Travel Award" will also be presented to travel agencies having high-quality products and services, which will contribute to building a healthy competitive travel environment and good travel brands in the four countries.