ITB Berlin set to return as in-person show in March 2022

 Organisers in Germany have recently confirmed that ITB Berlin is scheduled to take place as an in-person event from March 9-13 next year. The announcement follows the successful hosting of the digital event this year, titled ITB Berlin Now, which welcomed 65,700 users over the past week. The trade show gave participants a virtual meeting place, with 3,513 exhibitors representing destinations, hotel chains and tech companies from nearly 120 countries making use of the new format.

Around 80 percent of participants made use of the networking features, which included business meetings via individual and group calls, chats and searching for business partners. Martin Ecknig, Chief Executive, Messe Berlin, said in a statement that the last 12 months have shown how important it is for the travel industry to have a platform in difficult times, in order to be sure of a specialist meeting place after months of uncertainty and in such an exceptional situation.

He mentioned that there was a keen interest in the many networking opportunities, in particular, which reflected the quality of ITB Berlin Now users. He informed that four out of five contact requests led to a successful business match. Speaking about the event next year, he shared that the experience gained at ITB Berlin Now will influence the planning for March 2022. He said that organisers will take the lessons learned and combine them with decades-long experience of organising in-person events.

He added that at the same time, authorities are also keeping all options open to expand ITB Berlin’s content and dates with a virtual event. He said that planning a hybrid trade show means combining the essential elements of an in-person and virtual industry event in the best possible way and mentioned that it gives every audience the best possible chance to take part in the trade show and convention regardless of where they are in the world.

Tags: ITB Berlin, ITB berlin 2021, ITB Berlin 2022, ITB Berlin NOW