The Penang International Travel Exchange (PITE), a programme owned by Penang Convention & Exhibition Bureau (PCEB) opened today at the Setia SPICE Convention Centre.
With the 2-day B2B sessions and half-day forums happening at Setia SPICE Convention Centre
and gala events held across Penang’s attractions, PITE this year welcomes 80 buyers from a
total of 11 countries like China, the Philippines, India, Vietnam, Indonesia, Singapore, Thailand,
Myanmar, Azerbaijan, the United States and the Middle East. The buyers will be joined with 50
sellers from the Malaysia leisure tourism and business events industry.
Also attending the launch include the Honourable Mr Yeoh Soon Hin (Penang State Executive
Councillor of Tourism, Arts, Culture & Heritage), Mr Ashwin Gunasekeran (Chief Executive
Officer of PCEB), and Mr Presanth Chandra (Managing Director of Apollo Conferences).
Organised by Penang-based Professional Conference Organiser (PCO) Apollo Conferences,
buyers and the media will be exposed to the various products in Penang through B2B sessions
and outdoor familiarisation trips with Penang’s business events industry players. PITE also
sees a half day forum with diverse speakers from the travel industry.
“PITE is a programme initiated with a vision to further expose Penang’s best qualities in
enhancing buyers’ and the media’s experiences through a curated itinerary. The Business
Events Penang industry is committed to provide the buyers first-hand involvement in the various
activities and events,” said Ashwin Gunasekeran, CEO of PCEB in his speech this morning.
“I am certain that the PITE itinerary this year is filled with a fair amount of outdoor familiarisation
activities in Penang, which includes site inspections to a few of the attractions that make up
Penang,” said the Honourable Mr Yeoh Soon Hin, Penang State Executive Councillor for
Tourism, Arts, Culture & Heritage.
There will also be networking events in the form of a heritage hunt around Penang, and exciting
gala dinners within the itinerary that will further allow engagement between the sellers and
participants. Among the highlights of PITE 2019 are a gala dinner for the buyers on the iconic
Penang Ferry, and networking events at The TOP and The Habitat. They will also get to sample
the UNESCO World Heritage Site and other parts of Penang through a different view and
exposure.
To capture their experiences here for lasting memory, PCEB is organising and sponsoring the
#PITE2019 Social Media Contest for the participants of PITE this year. There are 3 categories
– the Most Liked Post, the Most Number of Post and the Most Creative Post. The contest is
opened to all platforms and posts have to include the hashtags: #PITE2019 and
#Penang2020BEUnfiltered. “Each winner will receive full hosting for PITE 2020,” announced
Ashwin during the opening ceremony.
The first edition of PITE last year saw Penang hosting 120 buyers from India and 47 sellers
from Malaysia. PITE returns next year from 6th – 10th October 2020
1) Apollo Conferences
2) DoubleTree Resort by Hilton Penang
3) Entopia by Penang Butterfly Farm
4) Hotel Equatorial Penang
5) Jazz Hotel Penang
6) Lexis Suites Penang
7) Malaysia Airlines
8) Malaysia Convention & Exhibition Bureau (MyCEB)
9) Olive Tree Hotel Penang
10) Penang Hill
11) Rapid Ferry
12) Setia SPICE Convention Centre
13) The Habitat Penang Hill
14) The TOP Penang
15) The Wembley
16) Tropical Spice Garden
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