After a shocking slump in travel levels last year, ebullient Southeast Asian country representatives at an international fair in Berlin say they are expecting a major turn-around in Asian tourism fortunes for 2004. More than 10,000 exhibitors - a record number - from 178 countries are in Berlin for this year's International Tourism Bourse (ITB). Many come from Asia. Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, the Philippines, Cambodia. Brunei, Vietnam, China and India all have prominent stands in ITB. "Naturally the …showed first 75 words of 779 total…

…showed last 75 words of 779 total…catalogue produced in cooperation with the national tourist offices of Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar. It seeks to persuade the world and Europe in particular, that Thailand serves not only as a desirable destination but also as a gateway and a hub with great air and road linkages. Travel experts here predict a "strong recovery" for the world's tourism industry in 2004, as it seeks to put a year of war, terrorism and health worries behind it.