ATW Virtual Wrap Up April 2021
‘ENGAGED’ AND ‘ENTHUSIASTIC’ – DELEGATES AT AFRICA TRAVEL WEEK HOLD THOUSANDS OF MEETINGS OVER 3 DAYS TO UNLOCK AFRICA TOURISM
- Three-day virtual event wraps up with thousands of 1-on-1 meetings with buyers
- Headline shows – WTM Africa and ILTM Africa – the prelude to hybrid experiences all the way up to September Connect in the City Live Event
Cape Town, 12 April 2021 – Africa Travel Week 2021 has wrapped up its first virtual trade show and content programme with over 5,000 successful 1-on-1 meetings, 4,000 views of content sessions and over 4,300 minutes of speed networking.
Held from 7 to 9 April, the virtual event included headline shows, World Travel Market Africa (WTM Africa) and International Luxury Travel Market Africa (ILTM Africa), where buyers and tourism destinations and products connected online to reignite tourism to the continent.
A content programme also featured over 40 panel discussions and presentations by 170 international and Africa speakers on tourism-related trends in Africa and beyond, from LGBTQ+ travel and responsible tourism to business tourism and travel technology.
“The feedback received from buyers, travel trade visitors, exhibitors and panellists has been overwhelmingly positive,” says Megan Oberholzer, Reed Exhibitions South Africa Portfolio Director: Travel, Tourism & Sports.
“Recognising that face-to-face meetings remain important, but balancing this with the need for our industry to connect at this time, we took a blended approach starting with a virtual event in April and live meetings later on in the year,” says Oberholzer.
“The organisation and format are great,” said Christophe Bazille, Managing Director at Hospitality Web Services attending the show. “It´s not replacing the face-to-face meetings happening during the travel fairs, but it´s great to connect again and see the positiveness of all the people we can e-meet. Tourism in Africa will definitely be back soon with such spirit and amazing destinations.”
Said LoAnn Holden, VP Communications International LGBTQ+ Travel Association (IGLTA): “Thank you for always supporting IGLTA and celebrating partnership and collaboration! We are proud to be part of this program and to promote welcoming Africa travel for all.”
“I want to say a profound thank you for showcasing Seeza SMEs. They are so excited about the engagements they are having with buyers. We are receiving phenomenal feedback from them,” said Septi Bukula, SEEZA Tourism SME Network.
“Further, the insights that the international panelists and presenters shared with delegates provided a captivating lens on the challenges our industry faces during COVID, but more than this the opportunities that exist for tourism within the constraints,” says Martin Hiller, Reed Exhibitions – South Africa Creative & Content Director: Travel, Tourism & Creative Industries.
Topics of interest shared during the event included:
- What does the future hold for group travel?
- Exclusive-Use Travel – the real deal or hype?
- The changing landscape of Africa’s source markets
- The New Normal: Where to go from the pandemic?
- Domestic tourism to the rescue
- Can Gen Z save the travel industry?
Enjoy a sneak preview of some of the presentations and panel discussions that will be available:
- The Future of Business Events: 2021 & Beyond
- Air Transport – the key to Africa’s tourism recovery
- The Opportunity of Domestic Travel
All the content sessions will be available on Africa Travel Week’s virtual portal until 9 May with selected sessions available from mid-May on ATW Connect. To access ATW Virtual, register here: https://atwconnect.com/register2021/
Later in the year, Africa Travel Week will host Connect in the City Live, exclusive to ATW virtual exhibitors and a selection of hosted buyers, and comprising:
- Familiarisation tours. ATW Virtual exhibitors will benefit from the opportunity to invite international buyers to experience their products first hand.
- During this time, exhibitors will be given an opportunity to educate buyers about their products and destination during a dedicated 15-minute time slot.
- A dedicated travel and tourism conference with a top-notch speaker programme of industry thought leaders and experts.
- Our ever-popular speed networking sessions where buyers are split according to region and product interests.
- The African Travel & Tourism Awards, with a special category recognising COVID-19 campaigns that focus on reigniting travel.
Attendees and industry professionals may also remain connected and informed throughout 2021 via atwconnect.com, ATW’s dedicated resource hub jam-packed with free digital tools, industry news and updates.
– ENDS –
Issued by: Big Ambitions
Contact: Claire Lathe
Tel: +27 84 245 2189
Email: claire@bigambitions.co.za
About World Travel Market
World Travel Market (WTM) Portfolio comprises leading travel events, online portals and virtual platforms across four continents, generating more than $7.5 billion of industry deals. The events are:
WTM Africa launched in 2014 in Cape Town, South Africa. More than 6,000 travel industry professionals attend Africa’s leading inbound and outbound travel and tourism market. WTM Africa delivers a proven mix of hosted buyers, media, pre-scheduled appointments, on-site networking, evening functions and invited travel trade visitors.
IBTM Africa is the leading conference for the meetings, incentives, conferences and events (MICE) industry in Africa and aims to inspire the business events world to deliver exceptional experiences for their customers. Targeting inbound business, IBTM Africa is the platform for African and Indian Ocean suppliers and international buyers to meet, network and transact business in a highly targeted and interactive environment.
Arabian Travel Market (ATM), now on its 28th year, continues to be the focal point for the Middle East’s resilient and ever-changing travel and tourism landscape and prides itself on being the hub of all travel and tourism ideas, providing a platform to discuss insights on the ever-changing industry, share innovations and unlock endless business opportunities. Arabian Travel Market is part of Arabian Travel Week. #IdeasArriveHere
Next in-person event: Sunday 16 to Wednesday 19 May 2021, Dubai World Trade Centre, Dubai
Next Virtual Event: Monday 24 to Wednesday 26 May 2021
Arabian Travel Week is a festival of events taking place within and alongside Arabian Travel Market 2021. It includes ATM Virtual, ILTM Arabia, Arival Dubai, the Travel Agents’ Academy, The ATM Influencers day, the Digital Influencer Speed Networking and Travel Forward – a new travel tech and hospitality innovation event launching this year. It also features the ATM Buyer Forums, ATM Speed Networking Events as well as The Saudi, India and China Summits. Providing a renewed focus for the Middle East’s travel and tourism sector, Arabian Travel Week will take place in Dubai from Sunday 16th to Thursday 26th May 2021.
www.wtm.com/arabian-travel-week/en-gb.html
IBTM Asia Pacific, the leading event for the meetings and events industry in Asia Pacific, is the must-attend two-day event for the region’s meeting, incentives, conference and events industry. Thousands of meetings and events buyers, suppliers and international trade media are expected to visit Marina Bay Sands in Singapore for the inaugural event in June.
Next Event: Tuesday 8 to Wednesday 9 June 2021 at Marina Bay Sands in Singapore
https://www.ibtmasiapacific.com/
WTM Latin America attracts around 19,000 participants – 11,586 unique. The trade show, which takes place in São Paulo, has a worldwide audience that meets to establish the direction of the travel industry. The event is recognised for attracting a high level of professionals from the segment, including buyers and travel agents. It also offers programmes with qualified content and plenty of opportunities for networking and generating business that is relevant to the travel industry
Next Event: Tuesday 3 to Thursday 5 August 2021 – Expo Center Norte, São Paulo http://latinamerica.wtm.com/
IBTM Americas, the leading event for the meetings and events industry in North America, Latin America, Europe and beyond, is the must-attend two-day event for the region’s meeting, incentives, conference and events industry. Thousands of meetings and events buyers, suppliers and international trade media visit Centro Citibanamex in Mexico City every August.
Next Event: Wednesday 18 August to Thursday 19 August 2021 at Centro Citibanamex, Mexico City
WTM London, the leading global event for the travel industry, is the must-attend three-day exhibition for the worldwide travel and tourism industry. Around 50,000 senior travel industry professionals, government ministers and international media visit ExCeL London every November, generating over £3.71 billion in travel industry contracts.
Next Event: Monday 1 November to 3 November 2021 at ExCel London
London Travel Week, brought to you by WTM London, is the one-stop-shop for event hosts and visitors to be able to shape the next 12 months of travel together. The festival of events supports the global travel and tourism industry through capturing invaluable news and enhancing industry connections.
Next Event: Friday 29 October – Friday 5 November 2021
https://londontravelweek.wtm.com/
Travel Forward London is the leading travel technology event, co-located with WTM London. Travel Forward is renowned for showcasing the next-generation technologies for the travel, tourism and hospitality industry. Over 19,000 travel officials and 150+ innovative solution providers attend for 3 days of cutting-edge insights, open debate and unrivalled networking opportunities. The combination of a 2-day conference, interactive exhibition and start-up showcase makes Travel Forward truly unique.
Next Event: Monday 1 November to 3 November 2021 at ExCel London http://travelforward.wtm.com/
WTM Virtual, is the WTM Portfolio virtual platform, created to offer global delegates the chance to arrange one-to-one virtual meetings, to do business, attend conference sessions and roundtables, take part in speed networking and more. WTM Virtual embrace the global leading travel shows in one platform.
WTM Global Hub, is the new WTM Portfolio online portal created to connect and support travel industry professionals around the world. The resource hub offers the latest guidance and knowledge to help exhibitors, buyers and others in the travel industry face the challenges of the global coronavirus pandemic. WTM Portfolio is tapping into its global network of experts to create content for the hub. https://hub.wtm.com/
IBTM World, the leading global event for the meetings and events industry, is the must-attend three-day event for the worldwide meeting, incentives, conference and events industry. Thousands of meetings and events buyers, suppliers and international trade media visit Fira Barcelona every December for IBTM’s flagship show, with over 74,000 business meetings taking place.
Next Event: Tuesday 30 November to Thursday 2 December 2021 at Fira Barcelona
IBTM Connect is the leading online knowledge hub for the global meetings, incentives, conference and events industry. Established in 2020, it is packed with cutting-edge content to help inspire and educate the global meetings and events industry, with regularly updated industry news and insights, as well as on-demand interviews and webinars with high-profile industry experts.
About Reed Exhibitions Global: Reed Exhibitions is a leading global events business. It combines face-to-face with data and digital tools to help customers learn about markets, source products and complete transactions at over 400 events in 22 countries across 43 industry sectors, attracting more than 7 million participants. Our events leverage industry expertise, large data sets and technology to enable our customers to connect face-to-face or digitally and generate billions of dollars of revenues for the economic development of local markets and national economies around the world. Reed Exhibitions is part of RELX, a global provider of information-based analytics and decision tools for professional and business customers.www.reedexhibitions.com
About RELX: RELX is a global provider of information-based analytics and decision tools for professional and business customers. The Group serves customers in more than 180 countries and has offices in about 40 countries. It employs over 33,000 people, of whom almost half are in North America. The shares of RELX PLC, the parent company, are traded on the London, Amsterdam and New York Stock Exchanges using the following ticker symbols: London: REL; Amsterdam: REN; New York: RELX. The market capitalisation is approximately £33bn, €39bn, $47bn.*
*Note: Current market capitalisation can be found at http://www.relx.com/investors