A boost for tourism and education links, and a celebration of 20 years of friendship, will feature during a sizeable Dunedin delegation's trip to China.
Dunedin Mayor Dave Cull left for the two-week tour late last week, and later today will be joined in Qingdao by 11 representatives from a variety of Dunedin institutions.
The group - featuring representatives from the Otago Chamber of Commerce, University of Otago, Otago Polytechnic and Ngai Tahu - would spend three days in Qingdao, followed by a week in Shanghai.
The itinerary includes meetings, promotional events and the signing of new partnerships, to boost education, tourism and other links.
The Qingdao leg of the trip would include the signing of a ''Friendly Co-operative Relations MoU'' with Qingdao, newly appointed Enterprise Dunedin director John Christie said.
A memorandum of understanding between Enterprise Dunedin and the Qingdao Tourism Bureau was also intended to encourage tourism between the two cities, he said.
In Shanghai, the group would be joined by members of the Dunedin Chinese Gardens Trust and Dunedin Shanghai Association.
They would also be met by representatives from Otago Boys' and Otago Girls' High Schools, and Kavanagh and Taieri Colleges, travelling under the umbrella of Study Dunedin.
Among the groups' meetings, Taieri College would sign a school-to-school memorandum with Qidao No 2 Middle School, DCC export education co-ordinator Sarah Gauthier said.
Representatives from Enterprise Dunedin and the Shanghai Education Commission would also sign a new strategic partnership, aimed at positioning Dunedin as an international education destination, she said.
Mr Cull would also present two gifts to Shanghai Municipal Government Mayor Yang Xiong - a hand-bound book telling the story of the two cities' relationship, and a pounamu, kauri and rimu carving.
The gifts were part of this year's celebrations marking the 20th anniversary of the signing of the sister cities agreement between the two centres.
The cost of the trip would be divided between the parties, but council staff could not say yesterday what ratepayers' share would be.
Details would be released once finalised.
The bill for an earlier Dunedin delegation's trip to Shanghai and Qingdao in February was split between the parties, with ratepayers covering about $14,000.
