Northstar

www.travelweekly-asia.com 18 OCTOBER 2019 D AY 3 TRAVEL WEEKLY ASIA I T B A S I A S H O W D A I L I E S 7 "Today, Goa Tourism is focusing on hinterland tourism." – MANOHAR AJGAONKAR, GOA STATE MINISTER FOR TOURISM G oa Tourism Development Corporation has taken the first steps in the development of the Selaulim Dam into a botanical garden. An area of 42 acres will be developed to include an amphitheatre musical fountains, bird sanctuary, meditation and yoga zone, fruit orchards and rose garden, children's play area, artisans' village, nature interpretation centre and an orchidarium showcasing a variety of orchids. An adventure zone will include archery, bungee trampoline, rope challenge, paint ball, rock climbing, maze, rocket ejector, zorbing and a waterfall. Another proposed attraction is a showcase of the Seven Wonders of Goa, which will include some of the state's churches, temples, forts and heritage monuments. Goa turns to nature for tourism boost CREDIT: QWERTY0/GETTYIMAGES. CREDIT: SEOUL TOURISM ORGANISATION VISIT: BOOTH R38 VISIT: BOOTH MS14, LEVEL 1 Botanical garden to showcase Seven Wonders of Goa State minister for tourism, Manohar Ajgaonkar said, "Today Goa Tourism is focusing on hinterland tourism. Selaulim Dam is very beautiful during the monsoons and developing the property downstream on the same lines as the Brindavan Gardens in Mysore will add value and boost footfalls to Goa." Goa puts focus on churches, temples, forts and heritage monuments. BY CATHARINE NICOL Abu Dhabi gets artsy The Seoul Tourism Organization (STO) continues to see great success attracting corporate groups with its PLUS SEOUL MICE support programme, two years after it was launched in 2017. In March, STO sweetened the already-popular programme with additional benefits for groups of different sizes, including customised cakes and cookies branded with company logos, team- building programs and entertainment, event branding on buses and photo mosaic walls, and even on-site Korean cosmetic booths. So far in 2019, Seoul has already welcomed incentive groups of up to 2,000 guests from companies A Korean drumming workshop, one of several team-building activities available to groups through the PLUS SEOUL programme. like Allianz Life Indonesia, Prudential Life Insurance Hong Kong, and a Japanese communications company. Jihyun Kim, director of the MICE planning team at Seoul Tourism Organisation, shared that creative team- building is another big draw for groups holding their events in the city. "The Hallyu Korean Wave is known for popular variety shows that we can help groups to replicate, from cooking classes to learning dance moves from K-pop hits." According to the Union of International Associations (UIA) 60th International Meetings Statistics Report, Seoul hosted a total of 431 international meetings in 2018, retaining its top- three position among the most popular international meeting cities. BY BROOKE THIO Seoul wins hearts with enhanced MICE support programme VISIT: BOOTH H38 Living up to its recent inclusion in Skyscanner's most cultural cities, coming in at second place following Florence, Italy, Abu Dhabi will be hosting the 11th edition of Abu Dhabi Art from Nov 21 to 23. Held at Manarat Al Saadiyat, the event will see a fascinating programme of exhibitions, art installations, workshops and performances featuring established and emerging artists from Dubai and around the world. "Abu Dhabi Art continues to grow each year as we strive to make each edition more innovative and dynamic than the last," said HE Saif Saeed Ghonash, undersecretary of the Department of Culture and Tourism. The annual programme 'Beyond' will bring art into the city with large-scale sculptures and installations and remain on show for two months following the event. Art Basel Inside, a three- day event presenting thought leaders, installations and performances from diverse fields, will take place for the first time in Abu Dhabi on February 14-16, 2020. Themes like the environment and sustainability, as well as the role of the arts, will be explored. BY IAN JARRETT Olivier Beer, a commissioned artist for Abu Dhabi Art 2019's 'Beyond' programme Selaulim Dam is located 40 km from Margao, the second largest city by population, and the commercial and cultural capital of Goa.

• Cover