Hosts: the 9th United Nations World Tourism Organization, PATA Forum on Tourism Trends and Outlook, and the 5th Guilin International Scenery Culture and Tourism Festival

Co-organizer: Guilin Tourism Development Commission

Located in South China's Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region, Guilin is a well-known historical and cultural city with more than 2,000 years of history. The city's scenery is notable for its green hills, clear waters and unique caves and rock formations, all of which have earned Guilin fame as one of the most beautiful places in the world.

On Aug 4, the State Council released its Proposals on Further Promoting Tourism Investment and Consumption. According to the document, the Guilin Tourism Development Commission should stimulate tourism by promoting local traditional goods. It also recommends that Guilin integrate tourism with other industries and focus on research and development and sales to create a well-rounded tourism industry.

With this in mind, we would like to invite participants from all over the world to create and design tourism-related artworks, foods and other traditional goods that reflect the essence of Guilin for the Guilin Tourism Commodities Design International Competition.

As one of the most popular tourist destinations in China, Guilin has long been known for its karst topography and Danxia landforms. Guilin also boasts a great number of scenic spots: Lingqu Canal, one of the earliest canals in the world to connect two river valleys; the Longji terraced fields scenic area; Li River, Duxiu Mountain in Wangcheng; and Yangshuo county.

As the birthplace of one of China's largest outdoor shows that uses natural scenery (the Li River) as its backdrop, Impression Liu Sanjie integrates songs, imagery, colorful lighting, costumes, booming music and local faces to bring to life the celebrated and moving legend of the Song Fairy, Liu's third daughter.

The Han, Zhuang, Miao and Yao are the four main ethnic groups in Guilin, which has 14 in all, allowing tourists at home and abroad the chance to experience a variety of folk customs.

Participants in this competition should each have a style all of their own. Competition entries should have a sense of originality, practicality, usability and marketability as well as give tourists a lasting memory of Guilin.

Prizes:???? First Prize: 30,000 yuan

??????????? Second Prizes (shared by three): 5,000 yuan each

????????????Consolation Prizes (shared by 10): 2,000 yuan each

??????????? Online Favorite: 3,000 yuan

??????????? Awards for Online Voters (shared by 10): 200 yuan each

Dates to submit entries: From Sept 16 to Nov 15

For additional information, please go to www.guilin.com.cn and find the column for the Guilin Tourism Commodities Design International Competition.