European Travel Commission launches official Chinese website

The European Travel Commission (ETC) launched its official Chinese website here on Thursday in an effort to draw more Chinese tourists to the continent. Petra Hedorfer, president of the ETC, said the launch symbolized the recognition of China as one of the most import opportunities for outbound travel to Europe in the coming years. "With the launch of our new Chinese website portal, visiteurope.com, today we declare our common initiative to focus on the Chinese market inviting the people of China to come and discover the wealth of culture and diversity that our beautiful continent has to offer," Hedorfer said. The ETC is a non-profit organization headquartered in Brussels. On behalf of its 35 member National Tourism Organizations, the ETC promotes travel to Europe from long-haul markets and offers a forum in the field of tourism.