The three-day Mekong Tourism Forum (MTF) in Chiang Rai, which ended on June 14, attracted about 350 delegates from Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Myanmar, Vietnam and China’s Yunnan Province.

The event included a two-day conference, several workshops, a small trade show and meetings of the Greater Mekong Subregion Tourism Working Group. The theme for MTF 2012 was “20/20 Vision: Building on Two Decades of GMS Cooperation.” Organized by the Bangkok-based Mekong Tourism Coordinating Office, the event aimed to raise the profile of the GMS as a single tourist destination.

Chiang Rai, Thailand’s northernmost province, was chosen as the venue because it borders both Laos and Myanmar, and will play an important role as a bridgehead to the entire sub-region. One of the key border checkpoints allows visitors to cross from Mae Sai in Chiang Rai to Tachilek in Myanmar. The area where the borders of the three countries converge, known as the Golden Triangle, was a focal point for opium drug wars in the 1970s and ’80s.

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