The
official opening ceremony of ITB Berlin 2013 took place at the
International Congress Centre ICC Berlin on 5 March 2013.
From
6 to 10 March 2013 ITB Berlin will be mirroring the industry’s
increasingly dynamic market trends and providing a representative
overview of global travel products and attractive niche markets.
At
the 47th edition of ITB Berlin 10,086 companies from 188 countries
will be presenting their products and services on a display area
covering 160,000 square metres. The 26 halls on the Berlin Exhibition
Grounds are booked up. The focus is on Indonesia, the official
partner country of ITB Berlin, which is taking part with 120
exhibitors. Indonesia is represented in Halls 26 and 4.1. South
Sudan, an independent state since 2011, is a newcomer to ITB Berlin.
For the first time, exhibitors and travel agencies will be offering
tours directly to the consumer on the weekend of the show.
Dr.
Martin Buck, Director of the Competence Center Travel &
Logistics, Messe Berlin, said: ”The number of times a country is
visited is a very important sign of how popular a destination is.
Holidaymakers who repeatedly travel to the same country are a measure
of overall satisfaction with tourism services. In order to maintain
that situation those destinations must constantly adapt to
travellers’ needs.“
ITB
Berlin is bringing international bloggers and exhibitors together at
numerous panel discussions and lectures. A total of 250 bloggers from
Germany and abroad are expected to attend. For the first time ITB
Berlin is featuring a matchmaking event, which took place
on 7 and 8 March.
ITB
Berlin features the largest range of travel technology products
anywhere in the world. For years this section has been constantly
expanding. Due to the high number of bookings this year hotel portals
are also exhibiting in Hall 25. Around 150 companies from 25
countries are represented in Halls 6.1, 8.1 and 10.1, which will be
exhibiting their IT-related services and product innovations for back
and front offices in the travel industry as well as hotel software
solutions and hotel booking portals.
Dr.
Christian Göke, COO, Messe Berlin said, “More than a billion
travellers worldwide and the increasing popularity of easy-to-find
internet products have totally fragmented demand. People’s travel
motivation and travel products have become increasingly diverse. The
industry’s information and business needs are growing all the time.
At ITB Berlin exhibitors and trade visitors can gain a representative
and up-to-the-minute overview of the travel industry’s entire value
chain. They will find growth and niche markets, find information on
exploring new markets and ideas for innovative sales strategies.“
