This year's HCM City Tourism Day 2011 will highlight special aspects of five popular destinations – HCM City, Da Lat, Binh Thuan, Phu Quoc and Hai Phong, organisers of the annual event said yesterday, Mach 22.

Khanh said major firms like Saigontourist, TST and Viet Media Travel are expected to leave significant impressions on this year's event. In the context of inflation and an increase in prices of most goods and services, the festival will enjoin participants to stand by the Government's efforts to keep prices stable as much as possible, Khanh said.

The city Tourism Association has petitioned the Ministry of Finance to cut value-added tax by 50 per cent, corporate income tax by 50 per cent and allow travel companies to pay taxes two months late, an association representative said at the briefing.

The four-day event is being organised at the city's September 23 Park in downtown HCM City from April 7. The event will feature a travel fair, a Southern food festival, Golden Voice of HCM City Tourism contest, tai tu traditional music performances as well as the photo exhibition. Though the organisers were expecting to attract 80 companies to fill 150 booths, an additional four booths have been booked this year.

"The event aims to help travel companies publicise their brands and promote their services for the coming summer season," Khanh said. A dominant theme of HCM City Tourism Day 2011 is "Tourism Brand" and those brands that have made a mark in domestic and overseas markets will be honoured at the festival. It will name the top ten names in many categories including: destinations, inbound travel companies, outbound travel companies, domestic travel companies, tourism websites, luxury hotels, shopping stores, hotels for businesspeople, hotels for MICE (Meeting-Incentive-Conference-Event), tour companies and restaurants. A grand closing ceremony honoring top Vietnamese tourism brands will be broadcast live on the HTV9 channel.

Organisers said they expect to attract 200,000 people to the HCM City Tourism Day 2011 festival who will book tours and take advantage of other tourism services.