Travel agents, destination management companies and events specialists have been busy revamping their products and services. Several agencies have released group packages and suggested itineraries that take in both the Expo and a number of city highlights.

Integrated events agency and official Expo service partner MCI Group, can provide access to a select number of national and corporate pavilions for private meetings, product launches, press conferences, lunches or gala dinners during the evenings.

MCI can also organise ticket discounts, priority transfer arrangements and group check-in at dedicated entrance gates, as well as reserving access to specific pavilions to avoid queues.

TRANSPORT PACKAGE
Shanghai Jin Jiang Tours has launched a World Expo Express Coach package for US$23 per person. The rate includes pick-up from designated hotels and three round-trip transfers each day. For groups, arrangements can be made for express entry to the Expo site and advanced reservations to avoid queues.

Jin Jiang is also offering a number of package tours ranging from three to five days. The packages include English-speaking guides, airport transfers, advanced reservation or entry to popular pavilions and discount entry tickets for groups. The four-day package features a city tour with highlights such as visits to the Oriental Pearl TV Tower, Yu Garden and the Bund. The six-day package includes two full-day visits to World Expo 2010. “Given the large area of the Expo site, it would not be possible to see everything in a day,” says Cheng Yi of Jin Jiang.

CLIENT PROGRAMMES
Event management specialist Off-Site Connections (OSC) is organising hospitality programmes for a number of clients, says managing director Peter Kinnane. The company has produced ‘OSC World Expo Event Service’, a dedicated brochure of services offered to corporate groups.

“The World Expo runs for six months, so we don’t expect a mad panic," says Kinnane. “We will be mainly involved in organizing hospitality programmes and event solutions for groups attending the World Expo.”

OSC has organised events in Shanghai for clients including Pfizer and General Motors.

A flood of tourist publications will be launched to coincide with the arrival of World Expo. The Shanghai Municipal Tourism Administration has published an English-language city guide titled Absolute Shanghai. Collections of trivia on the World Expo and other guides will also be launched in tandem with the event.

WEB OFFERING
The Shanghai World Expo organisers are also joining in, with a monthly magazine titled 2010 Shanghai Expo. The electronic magazine includes English and Japanese content in addition to Chinese and can be downloaded via the official website (www.expo2010.cn). The website also offers news, previews, images, virtual tours, and information in Chinese, English, Japanese and French.

Charles Qian, travel account director at Pacific World Shanghai, says given the duration of the event, it is not expected to alter Shanghai’s normal tourism cycle.

The spike of enquiries for the period around the World Expo opening and closing ceremonies coincides with the city’s traditional peak tourism season. “Summer is very hot in Shanghai, so July and August are not as popular with MICE groups," he says.