Category Archives: Exhibitions

His Highness Sheikh Maktoum bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai, has inaugurated Arabian Travel Market (ATM) 2018 today, marking the start of the 25th edition of the show. He was joined by Nick Pilbream, Divisional Director, Reed Travel Exhibitions, and other VIPs who embarked on a tour of the exhibition as the four-day industry showcase got underway. This year’s show, held at Dubai World Trade Centre from April 22-25, 2018, has more than 400 main stand holders with representation from over 150 countries. With more than 40,000 visitors expected to attend, ATM 2018 will showcase over 2,500 exhibiting companies and 65 national pavilions. ATM 2018 has adopted Responsible Tourism – including sustainable travel trends – as its main theme and this will be integrated across all show verticals and activities. Arabian Travel Market celebrated its silver jubilee with over 2,500 exhibitors and 40,000 industry professionals from 150 countries. Travel trade professionals from across the world’s hospitality industry will showcase the largest exhibition of regional and global hotel brands, with hotels comprising 20% of the total show area. ATM 2018 will welcome over 2,500 confirmed exhibitors including 65 national pavilions. More than 100 new exhibitors are set to make their ATM debut this year, including Visit Finland, Guizhou Province of China, Hungarian Tourism Agency, Polish Tourist Organisation, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Dubai Municipality Leisure Facilities Department, Yas Experiences, Indigo Airlines, Kurdistan Tourism, Jakarta City Government Tourism and Culture Office and Shanghai Municipal Tourism Administration, to name a few.

Celebrating its 25th year, the Arabian Travel Market press conference has kicked off amidst a crowd of local and international media at the Address Boulevard Dubai . Simon Press, Director Reed Exhibitions for ATM and WTM stated that this year they expect over 40,000 visitors and 2,500 exhibitors from over 100 countries at the event. Issam Kaim, CEO, DTCM reiterated their efforts to attract more travellers to the destination by various programmes implemented with their partners and stakeholders to enable 20 million visitors by 2020 and beyond. The latest news shared from DTCM and Emirates was the plan to introduce a transit visa package to those who travel to different destinations via Dubai. Olivier Harnisch, CEO, Emaar Hospitality Group shared the latest trends seen in the region and the introduction of a unique brand aimed at the millennials who would spend less time in the hotel room but more time on other activities of entertainment and leisure. This supports the overall vision of Dubai tourism to further go ahead with their 2020 strategy to attract the type of clientele they seek.

Riyadh Travel Fair (RTF) 2018 opened doors for the tenth consecutive year in Riyadh, with more than 300 exhibitors from 55 countries. The fair, organised by ASAS Exhibition and Conference Organising Company, is being held at Prince Sultan Grand Hall, Al Faisaliah Hotel, from April 10-13, 2018. The fair was inaugurated by Hamad Ali Alshowair, Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors of Riyadh Chamber. The four-day event will become the focus of business networking opportunities, insightful seminar sessions, discussions and recognition of the tourism industry’s achievements. Bander Algryni, General Manager, ASAS Exhibitions, said: “The 2018 edition is the largest Riyadh Travel Fair to date, thereby extending our prominence as the leading travel and tourism exhibition in the kingdom. More than 270 exhibitors from tourism boards, airlines, tour operators and hotels from more than 60 countries are currently present in the exhibition. It’s been a year of growth for not only the tourism and hospitality industry in the Kingdom, but also for RTF.” RTF 2018 show holds its strong Middle East support with 60 per cent of exhibiting companies from the GCC region including Abu Dhabi Tourism & Culture Authority, Government of Sharjah (Commerce & Tourism Development Authority), Ministry of Tourism Bahrain, Oman Tourism, besides featuring many firsts for the travel trade and consumer show.

Oman Air recently showcased its products at the Philippines Travel Agencies Association (PTAA) Travel Tour Expo and the Thai International Travel Fair (TITF). Both events provided a platform for the airline to showcase its latest news and products. Some 335 companies exhibited at the SMX Convention Centre in Pasay City, where more than 140,000 people attended over the course of the three day PTAA event. The exhibition hosted key representatives from airlines, travel agencies, tour operators, hotels, food concessionaires, government agencies and tourist organisations from across the world. The event allowed Oman Air officials the opportunity to promote Oman as a world-class destination to the growing Filipino travel market. ‎The airline was able to educate its fellow industry officials and new guests on the airline’s aircraft, upcoming routes, flight networks and frequency in general.  

The Arab-Brazilian Chamber of Commerce (ABCC) hosted the Brazil-Arab Countries Economic Forum on April 2, 2018 in São Paulo, Brazil in an effort to expand trade relations between the South American nation and the Arab world. The forum was held on the theme ‘Building the Future’ at Hotel Unique in partnership with the Union of Arab Chambers and the League of Arab States. High-level authorities, representatives from development agencies and specialists joined six thematic panels to talk about incentives, investment policies and opportunities that can be taken advantage of by both Brazilian and Arab companies, and organisations. Rubens Hannun, President, ABCC, said, “There are synergies still to be explored and plenty of room to grow in the flourishing relations between Brazilian and Arab organizations. The forum provided an ideal platform to discuss key avenues that would enable us to bring our ties to the next level of development. Bringing major stakeholders under one roof is definitely a step closer to our goal of strengthening further our cooperation to achieve mutually beneficial results.” Many leading sectors provide numerous collaborative opportunities for both Brazil and the Arab region, including construction, finance, renewable energy, food security, logistics, innovation, tourism, technology and investments. The panel discussions highlighted the growth potentials of some of these key areas.

Opening doors for the tenth consecutive year, Riyadh Travel Fair (RTF) 2018 is set to be held at the Al Faisaliah Hotel, Riyadh from April 10-13, 2018. The four-day event will become the focus of business networking opportunities, seminar sessions, discussions and the recognition of the tourism industry’s achievements throughout the year. More than 270 exhibitors will be present representing more than 50 countries. Over 50 national and regional pavilions will also have a prominent presence. The show floor space has also increased by 10 per cent compared to the 2017 event. “Last year, RTF featured 270 exhibitors with visitor attendance at 27,329. That was an increase of 30  per cent compared to the 2016 edition. This year will continue our year-on-year growth as exhibitors hit over 270 and expected visitors numbers over 30,000,” said Bander’ Al Gryni, General Manager, ASAS Exhibitions (organiser of RTF). The Riyadh Travel Fair is open to both travel professionals and the general public looking for in-depth destination information and special deals. Visitors to the 2018 edition will be able to interact directly with various tourism authorities, hotels, airlines and travel agents from around the world.

The Sharjah Commerce and Tourism Development Authority (SCTDA) is all set to showcase Sharjah’s latest major tourism projects and infrastructure developments during its 21st participation at ITB Berlin 2018, to be held from March 7 to 11. H.E. Khalid Jasim Al Midfa, Chairman, SCTDA, who will attend the five-day event, is set to lead the delegation. High-level representatives from 12 government and private organisations will also join the SCTDA team to put the spotlight on their world-class tourism and cultural services and initiatives. The participating government institutions will consist of Knowledge without Borders, Expo Centre Sharjah, The Sharjah Investment and Development Authority (Shurooq), Environment and Protected Areas Authority (EPAA), The Sharjah Museums Authority and Sharjah International Airport. The private companies will comprise Oceanic Khorfakkan Resort & Spa, Ramada Hotel & Suites Sharjah, Radisson Blu Resort, Sharjah, Sharjah Airport Travel Agency,  Al Rais Tours & Holidays, and Sheraton Sharjah Beach Resort & Spa. H.E. Al Midfa said, “ITB Berlin is a strategic opportunity for us at SCTDA to put Sharjah on the international tourism and business maps in line with the government’s economic development agenda. Germany and other major European nations are important markets for Sharjah. As such, we consistently roll out relevant initiatives catering to European visitors to further strengthen our relations as well as form new mutually beneficial agreements.”

The UAE will continue to lead the GCC’s luxury hospitality segment to 2022, with 73 per cent of existing luxury hotel stock and 61 per cent of the region’s current luxury pipeline located in the country, according to data released ahead of Arabian Travel Market 2018, set to be held at Dubai World Trade Centre from April 22-25. The research demonstrates that luxury properties have increased three-fold in the GCC in just 10 years, with 95 per cent of these properties operated by international management brands. Despite taking the lead position, the UAE will face strong competition from Saudi Arabia, which is expected to witness the most significant increase in luxury hotel supply to 2022, with a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 18 per cent from 2018 onwards. Historically, Saudi Arabia dominates CAGR trends, with luxury property development from 2013-2017 accounting for 11 per cent of the Kingdom’s growth in supply, compared to 8 per cent in the UAE, 7 per cent in Kuwait, 6 per cent in Oman and 5 per cent in Bahrain. In 2017, the UAE topped the table, with 35 per cent of the year’s pipeline made up of luxury projects most concentrated in Dubai.

Finland has been selected as the destination partner for ITB China, set to be held in Shanghai from May 16-18, 2018. Around 50 delegates from Finland, which has a strong presence on the show floor, will be representing the country at ITB China this year. Finland will also be the co-host of ITB China’s official opening dinner with some 600 guests in attendance. “Finland has proven that it is attaching great importance in enhancing Chinese tourists’ travel experience. Finland is running a multitude of visa centres in China, working on e-visa solutions for Chinese tourists and has opened up for Chinese mobile payments systems, thereby adding a lot of convenience for the Chinese visiting Finland. These are just some examples clearly proving Finland’s devotion to the Chinese travel market,” said David Axiotis, General Manager, ITB China. Paavo Virkkunen, Executive Vice President, Business Finland & Head of VisitFinland, commented, “Chinese travellers are a very important tourism source market for Finland, and the growth in visitor numbers has been impressive in recent years. We are working to enhance our partnership with travel trade partners in China to provide unqiue travel products to Chinese travellers and ITB China provides us with a great platform to present Finland to Chinese decision makers.”

Hosted by the Department of Culture and Tourism–Abu Dhabi (DCT Abu Dhabi), the Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) Travel Mart 2018 kicked off in Al Ain Region, as part of the PATA Adventure Travel and Responsible Tourism Conference and Mart 2018 (PATA ATRTCM). Participants engaged through pre-matched appointments, and face-to-face meetings with adventure product buyers and sellers from across the world. HE Sultan Al Mutawa Al Dhaheri, Executive Director, Tourism Sector, DCT Abu Dhabi, said, “We would like to thank all the delegates for taking part in all the meeting at the PATA Travel Mart this year. We strongly believe in the need to create strong partnerships between the private and public sectors to drive the industry forward.  Our aim to host and attract conferences is to make Abu Dhabi the place to engage with all of our international stakeholders, and exchange knowledge which would benefit our economies and communities.” To conclude the successful conference, delegates took part in a day tour of Al Ain to experience Abu Dhabi’s top tourism offerings, including the Al Ain National Museum and Sheikh Zayed Palace Museum, amongst other renowned cultural and heritage sites.