Mekong Tourism Coordinating Office Publications
Vang Vieng, Lao PDR
Year
2026
Greater Mekong Subregion Tourism Marketing Action Plan 2026-2030
Country: Regional
Language: English
Publication Author: Mekong Tourism Coordinating Office
The GMS Tourism Marketing Action Plan 2026–2030 provides a shared framework for promoting the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) as a compelling, sustainable, and multi-country tourism destination. Developed by the Mekong Tourism Coordinating Office (MTCO) in close collaboration with the National Tourism Organizations (NTOs) of Cambodia, China(Yunnan & Guangxi), Lao PDR, Myanmar, Thailand, and Viet Nam, the Action Plan translates the vision of the GMS Tourism Strategy 2030 into coordinated regional marketing initiatives.
Built around four annual regional campaigns, 24 priority destinations, and clearly defined target market segments, the Action Plan encourages greater cross-border travel while highlighting the region’s diverse landscapes, cultures, gastronomy, and local communities. It also promotes sustainable tourism practices, stronger public-private collaboration, and practical marketing approaches that support inclusive tourism development and enhance the international visibility of the Greater Mekong Subregion.
Year
2025
Greater Mekong Subregion Tourism Strategy 2030
Country: Regional
Language: English
Publication Author: Mekong Tourism Coordinating Office
Tourism is a key pillar of development in the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS), supporting economic growth, cultural exchange, and regional cooperation among Cambodia, Lao PDR, Myanmar, PRC, Thailand, and Viet Nam. As the sector recovers and evolves in the post-pandemic era, it faces persistent challenges such as overcrowding, infrastructure gaps, environmental pressures, and uneven service quality—issues that must be addressed to ensure long-term sustainability and inclusive growth.
The GMS Tourism Strategy 2030 is designed to address these challenges, in alignment with the overarching vision of the GMS Economic Cooperation Program Strategic Framework 2030. The strategy will guide GMS tourism to become more integrated, prosperous, sustainable, and inclusive.
Year
2021
Greater Mekong Subregion Tourism Recovery Communications Toolkit
Country: Regional
Language: English
Publication Author: Mekong Tourism Coordinating Office
As more people plan post-pandemic travel the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) wants to tell the world what is being done by government and private enterprises to restart tourism safely and sustainably, and that the GMS has not lost what makes it such an attractive place to visit.
This toolkit was created to help GMS tourism stakeholders produce and
communicate such messages.
Year
2021
Greater Mekong Subregion Tourism Recovery Communications Plan – Unlimited Experiences, Unlimited Stories
Country: Regional
Language: English
Publication Author: Mekong Tourism Coordinating Office
The COVID-19 pandemic has brought much hardship to communities and businesses dependent on tourism, with many struggling to keep afloat. At
the same time, the pandemic offers an opportunity to re-think how we can create a stronger and more resilient tourism industry built on local experiences that mutually benefit visitors and hosts. It is believed that sharing these experiences with the world is vital to enable a sustainable tourism recovery.
This tourism recovery communications plan intends to support a safe and sustainable tourism recovery in the Greater Mekong Subregion. Our collective efforts will help build confidence to travel and support a sustainable tourism recovery
Year
2016
Greater Mekong Subregion Tourism Sector Strategy 2016 – 2025
Country: Regional
Language: English
Publication Author: Mekong Tourism Coordinating Office
Regional tourism cooperation is a GMS priority. GMS countries are committed to developing competitive, inclusive, and sustainable tourism that improves socioeconomic well-being. Over time, the GMS steadily improved destination marketing, heritage conservation, travel facilitation, tourism-related infrastructure, and the business-enabling environment for tourism.
Despite these achievements, gateway destinations still receive a disproportionately large share of visitors and tourism benefits. GMS tourism stakeholders recognize that high tourism intensity can undermine inclusive economic growth, degrade the environment, and diminish interactions between visitors and hosts. To address these challenges, GMS national tourism organizations and the GMS Tourism Working Group have increased their efforts to promote more competitive, balanced, and sustainable tourism development.
The GMS Tourism Sector Strategy (2016–2025) will guide this initiative. It was formulated based on a robust situational analysis and meaningful consultations with public, private, and civil society organizations, development partners, academic institutions, and the media.
Year
2015
Experience Mekong
Country: Regional
Language: English
Publication Author: Mekong Tourism Coordinating Office
Given each GMS country is pursuing its own unique marketing and branding strategy, this document is designed to complement national efforts and identify opportunities where synergies can be achieved, with a view to boost multicountry visits and tourist spending, increase visits to secondary destinations, and increase return visits.
This GMS Tourism Marketing Strategy and Action Plan 2015-2020 (“the marketing strategy”) deliberately aligns with GMS member countries’ shared objectives to develop thematic multicountry tour programs and promote secondary destinations to help distribute tourism benefits more widely. The focus on joint marketing of multicountry tours is also consistent with the ASEAN Tourism Strategic Plan and ASEAN Tourism Marketing Strategy.
Year
2005
The Greater Mekong Subregion Tourism Sector Strategy
Country: Regional
Language: English
Publication Author: Mekong Tourism Coordinating Office
The tourism sector is a major contributor to the socioeconomic development of the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS). For this reason, the GMS Ministers include tourism as one of the flagship programs of the ten-year GMS strategic framework. The framework envisions a future where the vast potential of the subregion is fulfilled, people are freed from poverty, and sustainable development provides opportunities for all.
If managed strategically, tourism has the potential to generate jobs and economic benefits for people across the subregion. Managing strategically means ensuring that the benefits of tourism are more equitably distributed among countries and, especially, to the poor. It also means minimizing the negative impacts of tourism on the subregion’s cultural and natural heritage, on the environment, and on society as a whole.
If these challenges are met, the tourism sector will increasingly contribute to the GMS vision, and help GMS countries achieve the Millennium Development Goals of poverty reduction, gender equality, and environmental sustainability.
