Celebrating its 10th anniversary as ‘Asia’s Leading Travel Trade Show’, ITB Asia 2017 is celebrating its milestone year with a flying start as the trade show sees a surge in exhibitor demand from industry heavyweights as well as the travel technology sector. Organised by Messe Berlin (Singapore), the show will take place from 25 – 27 October 2017 at the Sands Expo and Convention Centre, Marina Bay Sands.
ITB Asia 2017 garnered the highest number of bookings in ten years at the end of its early-bird phase. With exhibitors spanning across the travel industry all the way to the technology sector, more than 80 per cent of its show floor has already been booked for exhibition. Participants can look forward to seeing key industry players including Advantage Austria, VisitFinland, Spain Tourism Board, Catalan Tourist Board, Luxembourg for Tourism, Saint Petersburg Convention Bureau, Turkish Tourism and Information Office, Brand USA, Tourism Authority of Thailand and India Tourism.
“After four consecutive years participating in ITB Asia, we have no doubt that ITB Asia is the best platform for destinations and companies across the tourism industry to boost their business in the Asia-Pacific region. It is easy to see why it is the most prestigious trade show of its kind as the show features high-quality VIP hosted buyers, good organisation as well as innovative industry developments,” said David Miró, Asia-Pacific Regional Director of Catalonia Tourism Board.
“We are also extremely grateful for the opportunity that we were offered last year to present, for the first time in South-East Asia, the Castells (human towers), a UNESCO World Heritage tradition from Catalonia that dates back to the 1700s,” he added.
Scandinavian and Eastern European countries are showing even stronger exhibitor demand this year with Promote Iceland joining for the first time and Innovation Norway expanding their exhibitor space. In addition to stronger exhibitor demand from Eastern European and Scandinavian countries, participants can expect a strong showing from Asia at ITB Asia 2017 too as South Korea and Japan are strengthening their presence this year with Japan National Tourism Organization and Korea Tourism Organization, JTB Group and Hanatour Services Inc. Although Europe and North Asia are set to dominate the show floor, Southeast Asia will also feature prominently thanks to a growing demand from the region as well as Indonesia’s return to ITB Asia as the biggest exhibitor this year following a tremendously successful ITB Asia show last year.
“Our successful run at ITB Asia 2016 resulted in more than US$20 million in potential transaction value for the Indonesian tourism industry,” said Rizki Handayani, Director of Promotion for Southeast Asia, Ministry of Tourism of the Republic of Indonesia.
In line with this year’s focus on travel technology, participants will also have access to a full suite of technology businesses. This will include leading technology specialists in reservation software solutions and travel network systems in the likes of Jac Travel, Peakwork AG, Tourico Holidays, Go Global Travel, Vertical Booking and Juniper to name a few.
ITB Asia 2017 will also transform the structure of interactions between exhibitors, buyers and delegates through an enhanced appointment matching system which will allow all participants to connect with each other ahead of the show.
Exhibitors can now access participants at all levels including trade delegates and media to set up pre-scheduled appointments. This will not only unlock the full potential of all participants at the show, but also present plenty of opportunities for participants to build business relationships along the industry chain as well as across different sectors, creating a more seamless and productive trade show experience at ITB Asia 2017.
“We are delighted to see such strong levels of participation at ITB Asia this year. The surge in exhibitor demand is testament to ITB Asia’s leadership in the travel trade show industry and we aim to continue this positive momentum as we celebrate the show’s tenth anniversary. This is a key milestone year for all of us at ITB Asia and we are excited to celebrate this occasion together with all our exhibitors and partners” said Katrina Leung, Executive Director of Messe Berlin (Singapore), organiser of ITB Asia.
The ninth instalment of ITB Asia last year attracted 846 exhibitors, as well as 895 buyers and more than 10,876 attendees over three days. To accommodate this year’s surge in exhibitor demand, ITB Asia is currently exploring an expansion of the show floor.