Chongqing: What's the city about and why should I care?

Alright, so Chongqing's throwing itself another international travel agent conference. Big deal. They’ve been doing this since 2018, apparently. This time, it's the "fifth spirited iteration" – someone needs to fire their PR team for that line alone. Four hundred attendees from forty countries, blah blah blah. We're supposed to be impressed?

The Usual Suspects

Consular officials, travel agents, airlines… the whole tired gang's there. They even dragged in industry associations. It's like a tourism version of a corporate retreat, except instead of trust falls, they sign "cooperation agreements" that probably nobody will ever read, let alone enforce. According to International Travel Agent Conference Held In Chongqing, China Solidifies Global Tourism Leadership With Inbound Travel Opportunities, the conference aims to solidify global tourism leadership.

And Fiji was the "honored guest nation"? Seriously? What, did they run out of actual countries with a significant tourism industry? Don't get me wrong, Fiji's beautiful, but what does that have to do with Chongqing, China? Oh right, photo ops and press releases.

These "cooperation agreements" are supposed to "govern the future exchange of visitors." Give me a break. Last time I checked, people travel where they want, not where some bureaucrat in Chongqing tells them to. It's all just smoke and mirrors to create a "stable, predictable environment for cross-border tourism investment." Translation: "We want your money, and we'll say whatever it takes to get it."

The "Ambassadors" of What, Exactly?

Here's the kicker: they appointed five "international figures" as "2026 Chongqing Culture and Tourism Promotion Ambassadors." Ambassadors? Really? It sounds like some beauty pageant title. What are they going to do, wear sashes and wave at parades?

These "influential individuals" were "selected based on their pre-existing global reach and demonstrable affinity for the city." Okay, so they found some random bloggers and YouTubers who said something nice about Chongqing once. That's their big strategy? The city's "unique cultural and scenic offerings will be disseminated to a worldwide audience, transcending traditional, localized marketing campaigns?"

Let's be real, this is just cheap influencer marketing dressed up in fancy diplomatic language. They're hoping these "ambassadors" will post a few Instagram stories and suddenly, millions of tourists will flock to Chongqing. It's insulting to anyone who's ever worked in actual marketing.

I mean, are these ambassadors even getting paid? What are the key performance indicators, exactly? How do you measure "affinity for the city"? I just don't buy it.

Visa Nightmares and Payment Headaches

Offcourse, they had "specialized policy briefings" to address "practical improvements for international guests." Visa acquisition, accommodation standards, localized payment systems… the usual headaches. They're "prioritizing the needs of the international traveler." You know, the same needs they've been ignoring for years.

The fact that they even need to have these briefings proves how far behind they are. Visa requirements should be streamlined, accommodation should meet international standards, and payment systems should be seamless by default. It shouldn't take a conference to figure this out.

The article mentions "innovations in international medical tourism." Medical tourism? You mean people are actually choosing to fly to Chongqing for medical treatment? I find that hard to believe. Maybe I'm just cynical.

Is This All There Is?