·
Middle East’s travel and
tourism leaders have come together virtually to discuss the future of the
region’s industry post-COVID-19
Dubai, United Arab Emirates, 10 May
2020: Arabian
Travel Market (ATM), recently hosted
the first digital ATM Advisory Board meeting with the impact of the COVID-19
pandemic on the tourism and hospitality industry dominating the discussion.
The Board will continue to provide guidance
on industry themes, challenges, growth opportunities and future strategies in
the Middle East travel and tourism sector, however, this will now be set
against a backdrop of COVID-19 and how the industry can adapt to the ‘new norm’.
Danielle Curtis, Exhibition Director ME,
Arabian Travel Market, said: “The Advisory Board is a cross section of industry
leaders who provide an insight based on firsthand experience of the trends
impacting the tourism industry. Their knowledge ensures ATM continues to act as
a voice for the industry by providing support and direction during these
difficult times.
“The COVID-19 pandemic has brought the
travel and tourism industry, like many others, to a halt, with very little
indication of when the recovery will begin. It is therefore imperative we
continue to listen and understand where we are as an industry, what the future
could potentially look like and what we can do to work together to aid the recovery
when it comes. ATM continues to play a crucial role in supporting the industry
to achieve this.”
The meeting addressed the impact
COVID-19 will have on the international trade show arena through discussions focused
on the key learnings from businesses during the pandemic and the resulting
changes to the industry. It also provided an insight into the ‘new normal’ for
the tourism industry, and the approach to dealing with new social distancing
measures, reliance on domestic tourism and the impact of airline restrictions.
Three
phases of recovery were identified during the discussion. Phase one will focus on
domestic travel and the local market, the second phase will be regional travel,
and finally the international market when borders begin to open again.
It was also agreed social distancing,
health, hygiene, and safety will be prioritised over offerings, for those who
want to travel. To that effect, hotels will be subject to full sanitisation and
the implementation of complete social distancing in restaurants and at all
public facilities.
It is anticipated customers will also demand
more information on the way hotels or restaurants support and re-educate staff on,
amongst others, the way tables are serviced or the implementation of new house-keeping
procedures. This is underscoring a need for an overhaul of the entire marketing,
product development and service offerings to change, to give confidence to the
consumer.
Recovery was discussed with the overarching
consensus indicating this will depend on how the situation evolves, with
emphasis placed on listening, market research and insights while maintaining an
element of flexibility so the industry can adapt as the situation develops.
To support the industry, the
organisers of ATM have announced the launch of ATM Virtual, a three-day event delivering
positive business and networking opportunities to the region’s vast travel and
tourism community. Taking place from 1-3 June 2020, the event will feature comprehensive
webinars, live conference sessions, roundtables, speed networking events,
one-to-one meetings, as well as facilitating new connections and offering a
wide range of online business opportunities.
Board attendees included:
Al
Mohannad Sharafuddin, Founder and Chairman, Arabian Falcon FZ LLC
Chris
Newman, Chief Operating Officer, Emaar Hospitality Group
Gregory
Fuller, Director, Brand Activation, Brand & Event Marketing Operations,
Dubai Tourism
Haitham
Mattar, Senior Advisor, Ministry of Tourism of Saudi Arabia
Jeff
Strachan, Director, Dubai College of Tourism
John
D. Davis, Chief Executive Officer – MENA, Colliers International
John
Northen, Executive Director – Hotels Division, NEOM
Mark
Willis, Chief Executive Officer – Middle East & Africa, Accor Hotels
Mohamed
Awadalla, Chief Executive Officer, TIME Hotels
Mona
Faraj, Founder & Managing Director, Insight-Out Consultancy
Mellissa
R Pitt- Chalmers, Vice President Global Sales, Middle East & Africa,
Marriott International, Inc
Pierric
Duthoit, Sector Lead Branding – Middle East & North Africa, Google
Raki
Phillips, Chief Executive Officer, Ras Al Khaimah Tourism Development Authority
Registrations
for the ATM Virtual are open. To register as a visitor, please click here. For media registrations, please click here.
ENDS
Arabian Travel Market (ATM), now on its 27th
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. While the live show has been postponed to 16-19 May
2021, ATM will keep the industry connected by running ATM Virtual from 1-3
June 2020 featuring webinars, live conference sessions, speed networking
events, one-on-one meetings, plus so much more – keeping the conversations
going and delivering new connections and business opportunities online. www.arabiantravelmarket.wtm.com.
Next events: ATM Virtual:
Monday 1st to Wednesday 3rd June 2020
Live ATM: Sunday 16th
to Wednesday 19th May 2021 – Dubai #IdeasArriveHere
About Reed Exhibitions
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 500 events in almost 30
countries across 43 industry sectors, attracting more than 7 million participants.
Our events,
organized by 35 global offices, leverage industry expertise, large data sets
and technology to enable our customers to 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 and analytics for professional and business customers across
industries. www.reedexhibitions.com
About Reed Travel Exhibitions
Reed Travel Exhibitions
is the world’s leading travel and tourism event’s
organiser with a growing portfolio of more than 20 international travel and
tourism trade events in Europe, the Americas, Asia, the Middle East and Africa.
Our events are
market leaders in their sectors, whether it is global and regional leisure
travel trade events, or specialist events for meetings, incentives, conference,
events (MICE) industry, business travel, LGBTQ+ travel, luxury travel, travel
technology as well as golf and spa travel. We have over 35 years’ experience in
organising world-leading travel exhibitions. www.reedtravelexhibitions.com
About World Travel Market
World Travel Market
(WTM) Portfolio comprises nine leading
travel events across four continents, generating more than $7.5 billion of
industry deals. The events are:
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. london.wtm.com
Next event: Monday 2nd
to Wednesday 4th November 2020 – London #IdeasArriveHere
WTM
Latin America attracts about 9,000 senior executives and
generates about US$374 million of new business deals. Taking place in São
Paulo, Brazil, this show attracts a global audience to meet and shape the
direction of the travel industry. More than 8,000 unique visitors, including
buyers and travel agents, attend the event to network, negotiate and discover
the latest industry news. latinamerica.wtm.com.
Next event: Tuesday 20 October to
Thursday 22 October 2020 – São Paulo
WTM
Africa
launched in 2014 in Cape Town, South Africa. Around 5,000 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. africa.wtm.com.
Next event: 2021 – Cape Town
