The first Global Confucius Institutes Shandong Cultural Tourism Promotion Summit, jointly organized by Hanban (the Office of Chinese Language Council International) and the Shandong Provincial Tourism Development Commission, was successfully concluded in Qufu. This summit aimed to disseminate the profound culture of Shandong and shape the international image of the “Hospitality Shandong” brand, leveraging over 1,600 Confucius Classrooms worldwide to establish a new collaborative model combining the “Han Language and Culture Dissemination Platform of China” with local research and study-based cultural tourism resources. It opens a new window for the world to learn about Shandong’s culture and tourism.
At this summit, the headquarters of the global Confucius Institutes and the Shandong Provincial Tourism Development Commission reached multiple cooperation agreements. The first batch of 44 overseas Confucius Institute directors were awarded the title of “Confucius Tourism Ambassadors.” Experts such as Liu Lening, Director of the Confucius Institute at Columbia University, Professor of East Asian Languages and Cultures and Head of the Chinese Department at Columbia University, and Feng Haolie, Director of the Confucius Institute at the University of West Flanders in Belgium, shared insights from an international perspective on the international value of Shandong’s cultural tourism and the application of Shandong tourism elements in overseas Confucius Institutes. Their insightful speeches and clear strategies earned high praise and recognition from attendees.
Through this innovative and pragmatic strategic partnership, 30 global Confucius Institutes will also join in promoting Shandong’s cultural tourism. By establishing Shandong tourism promotion hubs, producing multilingual tourism promotional materials, organizing “Hospitality Shandong” tourism promotion events both domestically and abroad, and utilizing Confucius Institutes’ online and offline media to promote Shandong’s cultural tourism, overseas tourists will gain a deeper understanding of Confucius’s hometown. At the same time, Shandong’s outstanding culture and richly colorful tourism resources will continue to enter the global spotlight.
After the summit, domestic and international experts, scholars, and more than 60 overseas travel channel partners conducted on-site inspections of Shandong’s cultural tourism resources. By visiting ten major cultural tourism destination brands—including the Oriental Sacred Land, Peaceful Mount Tai, Spring City Jinan, the Ancient Capital of Qi, and the Fairyland Coast—they further experienced and connected with Shandong. In recent years, Shandong has continuously innovated in its overseas tourism marketing efforts. Through initiatives such as introducing a preferred selection method for overseas tourism marketing channel partners, establishing “Shandong Tourism Experts,” and inviting overseas channel partners to conduct field visits in Shandong, the province has continuously enriched, improved, and standardized its overseas marketing system. According to statistics, the Shandong Provincial Tourism Development Commission has now established partnerships with 68 tourism channel partners across 15 countries and regions overseas, and over 2,100 individuals have been certified as “Shandong Tourism Experts.”
As the birthplace of Confucian culture, Shandong’s millennia-old cultural heritage is unparalleled by other regions. The tourism image of “Hospitality Shandong,” along with its rich humanistic and natural tourism resources, serves as the best vehicle for culture and lays a solid foundation for the development of cultural tourism. The new model of cultural tourism promotion created by the Global Confucius Institutes Shandong Cultural Tourism Promotion Summit organically integrates Chinese language teaching with research and study-based cultural tourism, achieving an international and diverse mode of cultural dissemination. It opens a brand-new window for people overseas to better understand Confucius, Shandong, and China. At the same time, it injects new vitality into inheriting Shandong’s traditional culture, shaping the “Hospitality Shandong” brand image, and expanding overseas tourism markets.