USAID Mission Director, Dr. Anne Patterson and Minister of Tourism, Avedis Guidanian, launched the ‘Travel Lebanon’ exhibition held within the framework of the Beirut Garden Show at the Beirut Hippodrome.
Dedicated to rural tourism around Lebanon, Travel Lebanon is organized for the fifth consecutive year by Hospitality Services with support from the USAID-funded Lebanon Industry Value Chain Development (LIVCD) Project and in cooperation with the Ministry of Tourism.
The exhibition gathers more than 60 rural tourism partners over four days from May 30th to June 2nd, which will promote their rural destinations, activities, guesthouses, and services across Lebanon.
In addition, 18 rural tourism organizations exhibited several marketing and promotional tools completed as part of a USAID-funded grant entitled ‘Supporting Hospitality Services to increase the access of rural tourism MSME’s to rural tourism market opportunities’.
In recent years, the U.S. Government has invested more than USD 3 million to promote the rural tourism sector in Lebanon by developing businesses, products, and sites that generate income for small businesses, particularly through creating jobs and expanding economic opportunities in rural areas for women and youth.
LIVCD focuses on increasing economic opportunities in particular for women and youth in rural areas of Lebanon under selected agricultural value chains and via support to the rural tourism sector. One of its objectives is enhanced market access for small rural tourism organizations through increased visibility of their rural partners and their activities.
In her remarks, Dr. Patterson emphasized the U.S. government’s continuous support for Lebanon’s economic growth to increase employment and income generation through strengthening key sectors such as tourism.
“Travel Lebanon is a wonderful opportunity to launch the Lebanese tourism season. Rural tourism allows Lebanese and tourists to enjoy the beauties of Lebanon, while at the same time sustaining local economies. The exhibition is a great display of the wonders Lebanese regions have to offer,” said Guidanian.
He stressed that all these initiatives and tourism fairs contribute to encourage and improve tourism in Lebanon, for instance the Visit Lebanon forum which will open tomorrow with the participation of 150 companies active in rural tourism.
“Travel Lebanon is an opportunity for visitors to discover more about the country’s rich tourism sector, specifically rural tourism, and meet those working in it in order to plan their ultimate summer in Lebanon,” says Joumana Salame, managing director of Hospitality Services. “We highlight so many of Lebanon’s hidden gems, including eco resorts and nature reserves, in order to encourage people to explore new places and enjoy memorable adventures throughout the season. It really is a very special event.”
‘Travel Lebanon’ showcases Lebanon’s unknown areas and cultural heritage by promoting rural tourism products and services to more than 20,000 visitors including tourism and hospitality professionals.
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