Chinese and Hungarian officials inaugurated here Friday night an official office tasked with promoting the Asian country's tourist attractions, the first of its kind across Central and Eastern Europe (CCE).
The China National Tourist Office, established by the China National Tourism Administration (CNTA), is a natural outcome of the rapid development of China's tourism industry, Zhang Lizhong, a senior CNTA official, said at the opening ceremony.
The office is responsible for promoting China as a tourist destination across the CCE and further expanding bilateral collaboration in a booming global travel industry, added Zhang.
Also speaking at the ceremony, Istvan Lepsenyi, state secretary of Hungary's economy ministry, noted that as the CCE is not yet an important tourist source market for China, he hopes that the office will help increase the number of mutual visits between the region and China.
Lepsenyi said he believes that China will attract more and more tourists from CCE countries with the help of the tourist office in Budapest. China's ambassador to Hungary, Duan Jielong, also praised the establishment of the office, saying that it will add new impetus to China-CCE tourism cooperation.
China's special representative for China-CCE ties, Huo Yuzhen, Hungary's ambassador to China, Cecilia Szilas, and representatives from across the CCE attended the opening ceremony.
To celebrate the opening of the office, a light and fireworks show was staged in the Hungarian capital in the evening. The CNTA has established 21 overseas tourist offices.
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