Year 4 students from the Bachelor of Science in Tourism Business Management programme at the Macao University of Tourism (UTM) held the “Tourism Revitalization: Destination Marketing and Smart Tourism Forum and Student Exhibition” on May 8. The event aimed to explore how to inject new vitality into Macao’s historical districts through innovative marketing and technological solutions.
The forum brought together professionals from the fields of urban planning, community development, and technology for in-depth sharing and cross-sector dialogue. From the perspective of planning logic and urban renewal, Mr. Teng Kai On, Vice President of Urban Planning at CAA City Planning & Engineering Consultants Ltd. and member of the Urban Planning Council, shared practical experiences in urban renewal. He explored how to effectively enhance the economic vitality of old districts while preserving cultural context and avoiding excessive commercialization.
From a community perspective, Ms. Lo Ka Man, Event Coordinator of the District Development Center of the General Union of Neighbors of Macao, shared her experience in integrating scattered merchants and civil organizations in old districts to create featured business circles with a unified brand image. Regarding technological empowerment and smart initiatives, Mr. Alpha Tong, Solutions Architect of Alibaba Cloud Intelligence Macao, demonstrated diverse applications of “Tourism + Technology,” explaining how smart technology can be used to enhance the in-depth travel experience for tourists. During the interactive discussion, the guests jointly explored the key bottlenecks that various fields need to overcome in the process of achieving synergetic district development in Macao, providing valuable forward-looking suggestions for district collaboration.
The forum was followed by a student exhibition, showcasing a series of destination marketing and smart tourism schemes designed by the Year 4 students for the revitalization of Macao’s historical districts. By skillfully applying creativity and smart technology tools, the students demonstrated the younger generation's passion for urban cultural heritage and their professional ability to transform academic theories into innovative practices.
