Events, Tourism, Organisations & Operators,

How can Europe become attractive again for overseas visitors? Speaking at a press conference at ITB Berlin, the president of the European Travel Commission (ETC) explained how, under the label of Visit Europe, the EU is marketing itself to visitors from the USA, Asia and South America as a safe destination that has much to offer.The European Tourism Association (ETOA) and Tourism Economics believe the market will have recovered by 2024, but that obtaining visas will still be a challenge.
Overseas visitors were decisive for a recovery of the European tourism market. Visitors often travelled for weeks at a time and booked a large number of overnights. They also spent an above-average amount of money at their destinations. As such they were extremely important for a full recovery and future growth of the European tourism market, said David Goodger, director of Tourism Economics. While domestic tourism and tourism in neighbouring countries had almost recovered to pre-pandemic levels, there were currently fewer overseas visitors than in 2019.
According to the tourism expert, the latest surveys showed many people in overseas countries wanting to travel again. At the same time high inflation and recession were causing uncertainty. Currently, the number of travellers from the USA had already regained pre-pandemic levels. David Goodger believes that Brazil, India and Australia will recover in 2023. In 2023, people travelling from China and Japan will increase again, and numbers will have significantly recovered by 2024.
As overseas travellers often regard Europe as a single destination the European Travel Commission (ETC) is marketing its member countries under a common label, Visit Europe. ETC president Luis Araujo unveiled a new members’ campaign that presents Europe as a safe travel destination that has a lot to offer to nature lovers, culturally interested visitors and families.
Despite the optimism, which Tom Jenkins, CEO of the European Tourism Association (ETOA) shared, particularly with regard to the USA, he also saw obstacles to growth in the long-haul tourism market. Thus, in Europe issuing visas continued to be a national prerogative and could take weeks in some cases. Nor had long-haul flights and hotel capacity regained pre-pandemic levels. In that respect however he saw Europe as being on course.ADVERTISEMENT

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EVERY HOTEL OWNER CAN TAKE PART

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Dubai Metro Music Festival, a celebration of global music organised by Brand Dubai, the creative arm of the Government of Dubai Media Office, in partnership with the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA), got off to a rousing start today with enchanting musical performances. During the week-long Festival, held from 16-22 March, Dubai Metro stations will serve as stages for unique musical performances by 20 artists representing a range of musical genres.The first day of the Festival saw vast numbers of commuters and music lovers flocking to musical performances at five metro stations – Expo 2020 Dubai, Jebel Ali, Mall of the Emirates, Burjuman and Union.
The Festival forms part of the ongoing #DubaiDestinations campaign focused on highlighting the exceptional experiences, events and activities of #DubaiArtSeason.
Rowdah Al Mehrizi, Director of Marketing & Corporate Communication, Corporate Administrative Support Services Sector, RTA, said: “The Roads and Transport Authority is thrilled to see the Dubai Metro Musical Festival receive such an overwhelming response from commuters on its first day. Bringing this unique celebration of global music back to life at the Dubai Metro, which every day brings together commuters representing a cross-section of the city’s multicultural community, is part of our efforts to enrich Dubai’s cultural landscape and enhance the happiness of the community. Over the course of the week-long festival, an eclectic line-up of local, regional and international artists will enthrall audiences with mesmerising performances featuring string, percussion, wind and other unusual instruments.”
Shaima Al Suwaidi, City Branding Manager, Brand Dubai, said: “The Dubai Metro Music Festival has combined the strengths and resources of Brand Dubai and RTA to achieve our objectives of not only enriching Dubai’s cultural ambience but also offering exciting opportunities for musicians from the UAE, the region and around the world to showcase their talent to a culturally diverse audience. The first day of the event evoked a very positive response from the public, with many people thronging to the metro stations to watch the captivating performances. The huge response from the audience is testament to the Festival’s appeal as an event that goes beyond cultural barriers to touch people’s hearts and minds and the power of music to communicate to people in a universal language.”
The Festival was curated to bring together a group of musicians that represent unique sparks of creative talent in a wide diversity of instruments, genres and styles. Furthermore, the Festival was designed to encourage interaction between musicians and public audiences and foster a sense of creative community in the city.ADVERTISEMENTDiverse artistsArtists participating this year include traditional and experimental musicians, street performers, classical instrumentalists and fusion musicians. The Festival has also provided a platform for several UAE-based musicians to showcase their talent.
Musicians performing at the Festival represent diverse nationalities including Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Egypt, France, Indonesia, Mexico, Philippines, Portugal, South Africa, Syria, apart from the UAE.
Range of instrumentsSome of the traditional instruments featured this year include the cello, saxophone, drums, trombone, violin, Angklung and guitar. Musicians are also performing on non-traditional instruments like the electric and acoustic oud, hand pans, percussion instruments, steel pan, and electric guitar.
Innovative performancesAudiences at the Festival will have an opportunity to watch innovative performances like a one-man-band show, a flute beatbox show, and a performance featuring instruments made from recycled materials. Other highly anticipated performances include violin duets by twin sisters and a musician’s triple-guitar recitals.
The public will be able to watch the live performances from 4.00 pm to 10.00 pm every day. All the performances will be rotated across the duration of the festival to cover all five metro stations.

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Yas Island Abu Dhabi sets to delight Rock and Roll fans with a daycation and staycation package to enjoy a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity as legendary rock band Guns N’ Roses makes history at Etihad Arena on June 1. With the iconic band kick-starting their world tour live from the heart of Abu Dhabi, Yas Island is offering fans the chance to avail a daycation package which comprises a ‘Dine and Event’ bundle starting AED 1,450, and a staycation package starting AED 1,590 which includes a hotel stay at one of Yas Island’s leading hotels from May 31 to June 4, both valid for booking on Yas Island’s website until May 31, subject to availability. The packages count with a Floor Standing Ticket and young spirits under the age of 12 are excluded within the ticket category.
Yas Island Abu Dhabi will be entertaining Rock and Roll fans with an unforgettable experience as Guns N’ Roses return to rock the stage at Etihad Arena in their first performance in the UAE since 2018.
For more information and bookings, please visit: https://www.yasisland.com/

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Thanks to a significant uptick in annual outbound journeys predicted over the next two years, the Indian tourism sector will represent a key focus during Arabian Travel Market (ATM) 2023, which will return to Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC) for its 30th edition from 1-4 May.According to recently released data from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), Indian nationals spent a record $10 billion in overseas travel during the first nine months of 2022, an increase of nearly 43% compared to pre-Covid figures.
Moreover, estimates from Indian business consultants, Nangia Anderson LLP, in association with the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FICCI), place the number of annual outbound journeys at more than 27 million, with a total value of over $42 billion by the year 2024. This makes India well-positioned to become one of the world’s most important outbound tourism markets and support growth in the Middle East’s tourism sector following the challenges of the global pandemic.
Danielle Curtis, Exhibition Director ME, Arabian Travel Market, said: “The levels of outbound travellers predicted from India in the coming years mean it can command serious attention within the travel, tourism and hospitality sector. At ATM 2023, we will give delegates, exhibitors and attendees the opportunity to explore the Indian travel sector through various show features, including the India Summit, which will look deeper into this key market.”
Many Indians regularly travel to the GCC region for leisure, business, or a combination of both, taking advantage of the short distance, with Mumbai to Dubai, just a three-hour flight. The number of direct flights between India and this region reflects these trends, with Emirates alone operating over 170 weekly flights to nine Indian cities – Gulf Air, Etihad, Qatar Airways and Oman Air each also have regular flights to Indian destinations.
Airfares to the Gulf from India are also far lower than for other destinations due to the short distance, further underscoring the convenience and popularity of leisure or business travel. In addition, there are 8.5 million Indian nationals currently working in the GCC, meaning there is already a significant level of familiarity between the two regions.ADVERTISEMENTLast year’s Arabian Travel Market (ATM) hosted several high-profile exhibitors from India, including Goa Tourism and Uttar Pradesh Tourism. This year’s event will be no exception, with new Indian exhibitors such as One Above Destination Management Services (DMC), Adventure Overland and Visaero Visa already confirmed.
ATM 2023 will explore the future of sustainable travel in line with its theme of ‘Working Towards Net Zero’. Having officially initiated its journey to net zero, the conference programme will explore how innovative sustainable travel trends will likely evolve. It will enable delegates to identify growth strategies within key vertical sectors while providing a platform for regional experts to explore a sustainable future ahead of COP28, which will take place in November 2023 at Expo City Dubai.
The conference will also feature a sustainability category at its annual exhibitor awards for the first time. Exhibiting organisations will be recognised based on the extent to which they have considered the environmental impact of their stands and their efforts to reduce their carbon footprint.
ATM 2023 is held in conjunction with Dubai World Trade Centre, and its strategic partners include Dubai’s Department of Economy and Tourism (DET) as the Destination Partner, Emirates as the Official Airline Partner, IHG Hotels & Resorts as the Official Hotel Partner and Al Rais Travel as the Official DMC Partner.
To register for ATM 2023, please log on to: https://www.wtm.com/atm/en-gb/enquire.html.
Souce: Zawya.com

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Captivating Concerts Blossom at EPCOT International Flower & Garden Festival March 1 – July 5, 2023

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Spring is in bloom at EPCOT International Flower & Garden Festival!  On now and continuing through July 5, 2023, EPCOT will blossom with innovative topiaries, fresh flavors and high-energy concerts for the whole family to enjoy. Over 127 days, guests can explore lush gardens, sample sweet and savory bites with refreshing sips, and shop new merchandise collections featuring Orange Bird, Snow White and Figment.  Starting at sunset, festival guests can celebrate with a vibrant spectacle of light on Spaceship Earth set to a fresh and fun new soundtrack. 
Enchanting Topiaries and Bright Blossoms
Making their debut this year, topiaries of Mirabel, Antonio, Isabela and Luisa from Disney Animation’s Academy Award-winning “Encanto” greet guests in the main entrance of EPCOT. Each imaginative topiary features details inspired by each character, including Isabela creating beautiful flowers between her hands and an illuminated butterfly for Mirabel. 
A new topiary of Princess Tiana from the Walt Disney Animation Studios classic “The Princess and the Frog” graces The American Adventure in World Showcase featuring a stunning ballgown and illuminated fireflies. In the France pavilion, Lumiere and Cogsworth topiaries return with innovative new elements, including lit candles for Lumiere and a working clock for Cogsworth. 
More than 200,000 bedding plants are added to the gardens of EPCOT for the festival, including an additional 60,000 bedding plants that create the iconic floral designs that make up the World Celebration East & West Lakes. The Dragon topiary, located in the Japan pavilion, is composed of sun-loving succulent plants, adding bursts of colors to the nearly 20-foot-long display.  ADVERTISEMENT
Because this year’s festival will be celebrated across two seasons, plant displays will also evolve with the weather, making for true seasonal beauty and detail. Guests visiting during both spring and summer months may see new selections as the season changes.
Find Fresh Flavors at Outdoor Kitchens
With more than 15 Outdoor Kitchens located throughout the park, guests can enjoy the freshest flavors as spring gives way to summer, including more than 50 new food and drink items.
Citrus flavors abound at The Citrus Blossom, now located at the Odyssey, including Orange Sesame Tempura Shrimp with Orange-Chile Sauce; Citrus Baked Brie with preserved lemon marmalade, limoncello-macerated blueberries and spiced Marcona almonds; and a light and airy lemon meringue pie. 
Befitting Princess Tiana’s residence nearby, Magnolia Terrace in the American Adventure pavilion features a menu with several new Louisiana-inspired bites and sips, including Muffuletta Panini with ham, salami, mortadella, provolone, and Swiss with olive salad; Crawfish Pie, Bananas Foster Bread Pudding and Bayou Cocktail, featuring Bayou spiced rum, coconut rum, fruit punch, and orange juice. The crowd-pleasing Spicy Chicken Gumbo with andouille sausage and BEN’S ORIGINAL™ Long Grain & Wild Rice returns to round out the menu.
To showcase the freshest flavors of the season, EPCOT Farmers Feast near Test Track® presented by Chevrolet® will offer a rotating menu, changing three times throughout the festival, featuring the finest local ingredients. Highlights include Spice Cake with cream cheese icing and candied pecans and parsnip on the Early Bloom Menu; Grilled Swordfish with crushed fingerling potatoes, pea and mint purée, grilled asparagus, and lemon beurre blanc on the Springtime Menu; and Sweet Corn Crème Brûlée with corn biscotti on the Summer Solstice Menu.
Guests can also take a tasty tour through the gardens and explore EPCOT with Garden Graze, a fresh food stroll highlighting 11 delicious sweet and savory plant-based offerings – all listed in the Festival Passport. 
Captivating Concerts Nightly at Garden Rocks

The ever-popular Garden Rocks Concert Series returns to the America Garden Theatre this spring featuring internationally recognized artists Friday through Monday and local Orlando talent rocking the house Tuesday through Thursday. This year’s lineup includes:
Smash Mouth Blue Oyster Cult (New) The Pointer Sisters Luis Figueroa (New) Piso 21 (New) Switchfoot (New) AJ Croce (New) Casting Crowns (New) Jason Scheff (New)  Plain White T’s Simple Plan And many others!  Dining packages for lunch and dinner are available at eight EPCOT locations with guaranteed seating at the Garden Rock Concert Series. Visit FreshEPCOT.com for full concert lineup and dining package availability. 
In addition to enjoying the festival, guests can explore the endless possibilities that EPCOT has to offer. Help save the galaxy on Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind, shrink to the size of Remy on Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure, dine with Disney Princesses at Akershus Royal Banquet Hall and so much more. Now through March 31, guests can also take advantage of their last opportunity to enjoy Walt Disney World’s 50th Anniversary celebration by hunting for golden statues featured in the Disney Fab 50 Character Collection. Through April 2, guests can finish their day of fun with the sights and sounds of “Harmonious,” a nighttime spectacular celebrating the power of Disney music and stories to inspire and unite us all. 
The EPCOT International Flower & Garden Festival is included with valid theme park admission and a park reservation for the same date. Guests can visit DisneyWorld.com for more information about planning their visit.

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Keep an eye out as BTN will once again be publishing its ever popular ITB daily for this years event. The on-line daily will commence tomorrow and can be found under the BTN publications drop down menu.

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ITB Innovation Radar premieres in 2023 as a platform for showcasing exhibitors’ innovations – 11 innovative solutions presented, from start-ups to industry majors, such as FREE NOW and Dorint – Participants receive additional promotional benefits in cooperation with ITB BerlinITB Innovation Radar is one of the many novelties introduced at ITB Berlin 2023, the world’s leading travel trade show making its comeback as an on-site event on 7-9 March 2023. It scouts for innovations capable of producing a sustainable impact on the future of the travel industry by fostering social, economic, or technical change. In the months leading up to ITB Berlin 2023, we invited the exhibitors to submit their innovative solutions for review by the ITB Innovation Radar team free of charge.
As a result, the innovators’ catalog of ITB Innovation Radar features 11 entries showcasing software solutions, innovative products, and disruptive concepts. All kinds of exhibitors have an equal representation – from vibrant start-up companies to established industry majors. You can browse all the entries here, including the information on locating the innovators’ stands if you want to learn more in person during the show.
Here are the 2023 innovators:
Lato lets travel professionals streamline creating and sharing travel products and proposals. It allows users to collaborate and implement shared assets, producing attractive web-based digital travel apps. The cutting-edge translation and exporting technologies round up the profile.
TRZMO gives travelers freedom when it comes to seamless global roaming. It capitalizes on eSIM functionality, letting users go online within seconds. TRZMO also has a built-in travel journal feature, which lets travelers capture and revisit their favorite moments.ADVERTISEMENTRightFlight Robotics developed by RightRez is a flight booking engine that facilitates air sales while securing lower fares and cutting costs. It requires no GDS training for operation, and its built-in quality control rules make sure the optimal flights are booked as soon as the segments become available.
Mobility Budget by FREE NOW for Business is an employee benefit designed for companies that want to give their staff flexibility beyond the workplace. Employers can set up a travel allowance for private trips, commuting to work, or other mobility-related expenses.
VR Payment Experience developed by Worldline provides a simultaneous multi-factor authentication method for payment in virtual reality. VR headset users don’t have to take their devices off to conduct a purchase anymore, which creates a seamless augmented reality commerce experience.
GreenSquareConcept is an ambitious sustainability promise concept by the Dorint Hotel Group. It touches on each aspect of the hotelier business, from guest experience to resource allocation and employee work-life balance. GreenSquareConcept sets a clear development framework, offering the hotel group guidelines for sustainable growth.
Holipay is a payment method for holiday booking. It breaks down large payments into smaller transactions, reducing the end customers’ credit limit overextension. This approach leads to an increase in guaranteed bookings and lower cancellation rates.
GauVendi is an AI-driven hotel sales system that decouples physical rooms from products offered to customers. It provides unmatched flexibility and hyper-personalization for tailoring offers across specific segments and channels. Inventory management becomes more dynamic and automated.
GPM by Tamara Leisure Experiences is a comprehensive project management tool for the hotel branch. It integrates various data tools and solutions, offering teams across the whole function spectrum the space to collaborate and track their progress, centralizing task management and feedback.
TripOptimizer by Nezasa lets travel agents, airlines, and online platforms optimize flight booking when it comes to complicated multi-segment and roundtrip routes. It relies on artificial intelligence and proprietary algorithms to create optimal flight itineraries within seconds.
better.energy is an existing energy management solution by Betterspace. The developer responds to emergent market trends by integrating cutting-edge LoRaWAN technology and extended hardware options into its flagship solution. This offers numerous advantages to the hotel branch.
The ITB Innovation Radar team will conduct on-site interviews with the innovators during ITB Berlin 2023 on 7-9 March 2023. This will let us tap into the exhibitors’ visions for the future of the travel industry. We will share our impressions via ITB Berlin’s official social media channels.

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For the first time, national and international experts are represented in their own hall (26c) – Exhibitor numbers from Turkey are especially high – Medical tourism is becoming increasingly important in society
It represents a promising growth market in the tourism industry: at ITB Berlin 2023 from 7 to 9 March the medical and health tourism sector will be represented in larger numbers than at any previous event. For the first time, numerous medical and health tourism experts from Germany and around the world will be sharing their knowledge in their own hall (26c) which is devoted entirely to this segment. As concerns exhibitors, Turkey is among the countries strongly represented with specialist clinics, health and spa hotels, associations and destinations. M2 Health Travel is the main organiser of this segment. The Dünyagöz Eye Clinic is also exhibiting again at ITB Berlin. In addition to the many Turkish players, numerous international exhibitors are represented in the pavilion again. They include FIT Reisen, the European Historic Thermal Towns Association (EHTTA), The European Spa Association (ESPA), the association of the Health Tourism Industry (HTI), Ensana Health Spa Hotels and Bangkok Hospital.
Appeal for sustainable development of medical and health tourism
“Particularly after the Covid pandemic, medical tourism has played an important role in restoring health and well-being in society“, said Rika Jean-Francois, commissioner for Corporate Social Responsibility at ITB Berlin and in charge of this segment. “This segment is growing every year and keeping abreast with the latest findings and technologies“, she observed. At the same time it was important not to forget the challenges of climate change, she added. Rika Jean-Francois: “We need to rethink before restarting and must cooperate at global level. As with all the other tourism segments, medical tourism must become more sustainable.“
On Monday, 6 March 2023, Medical & Health Tourism at ITB Berlin will kick off with an ITB Clinic tour from 10 a.m. to 5.30 p.m. This is co-organised by ITB Berlin, Berlin Health Excellence, Visit Berlin and Diversity Tourism. The programme features an all-day tour for medical buyers and agencies, along with individual tours, presentations, lunch and transfers.ADVERTISEMENTOn Tuesday, 7 March 2023 at 10 a.m. on the Medical Stage in Hall 26c, Shaaz Mehmood, founder and CEO of Medijourn Solutions PVT Ltd., will speak about ’Promises and Hurdles in the Medical Value Travel Industry’. This will be followed by a presentation on ’Concierge Health Service – Diagnostic Telemedicine for the Tourism Industry’ by Dr. Clara Guerra, founder and chairman of the Board of Directors, Medikonsil-International. Afterwards, a presentation entitled ’Discover Albania’ will inform visitors about dental tourism. This will be followed by a panel discussion on ’Optimisation of SPA Hotel Operations’.
Together with ITB Berlin’s partners HTI, EHTTA and ESPA, the official opening of the Medical pavilion will take place from 1.45 to 2 p.m. At 1 p.m., media members can find out more and exchange views at the Medical Media Networking Lunch. The event is sponsored by the Catalan Tourist Board. Rika Jean-Francois, commissioner for Corporate Social Responsibility at ITB Berlin and in charge of this segment, and Thomas Bömkes, medical tourism adviser to ITB Berlin, Diversity Tourism GmbH, will hold the opening speech. In the evening, FIT Reisen will hold a networking reception at the pavilion in cooperation with ESPA and Quality in Health Prevention.
On Wednesday, 8 March 2023 on the pavilion stage, panel discussions as well as further presentations and interviews with experts will take place. Topics will include ’The Europe Question – how to attract Travelers from Europe’, and ’New Products in Health Tourism’, as well as robotics and sleep medicine. Barcelona is also promoting itself as a destination for medical tourism. Patrick Torrent, executive director of the Catalan Tourist Board, will hold a lecture entitled ’High value, high complexity’. In the evening, starting at 7 p.m., the ITB Medical & Health Night will take place at the Amaro Hotel Grand Central, featuring the presentation of the ITB Medical & Health Tourism Award 2023. The sponsors of the evening event are Great Spa Towns of Europe (GSTE), the European Historic Thermal Towns Association (EHTTA) and the European Spas Association (ESPA).
On Thursday, 9 March 2023, the focus will also be on learning, with lectures being held by international speakers on the pavilion stage. Events will kick off at 10 a.m. with a presentation on ’Digital Marketing and Building Trust for Medical Travel for Treatment’, followed by two interviews with experts and a presentation at 11.30 a.m. entitled ’Great Spas of Europe’. At 1.30 p.m., the panel discussion topic will be ’Intra-Region Medical Tourism’. Afterwards, visitors can find out more about medical tourism in India from a lecture entitled ’Heal in India’.
Medical, Wellness & Health track at the ITB Berlin Convention 2023
Connecting health and sports tourism: that will be the task of the Medical Tourism session at this year’s ITB Berlin Convention on Thursday, 9 March 2023 on the Green Stage in Hall 3.1.
At the Medical Wellness & Health track, starting at 3 p.m. a UNWTO Roundtable discussion on ’Connecting sports tourism to health’ will take place which will discuss ways to establish major synergies between sports and health. Taking part will be Patrick Torrent (executive director, Catalan Tourist Board), Simone Zagrodnik (executive director, European Historic Thermal Towns Association EHTTA), Kristjan Stanièiæ, M.Sc., director, Croatian National Tourist Board, Ceylan ªensoy, product marketing director, Türkiye Tourism Promotion and Development Agency (TGA), and Josip Paviæ, state minister of sports of Croatia. Ion Vilcu, director, Affiliate Members Department at UNWTO, will hold the opening speech.
Afterwards, marking International Women’s Day, the day’s last event at the convention is entitled ’Women and Medical Value Tourism’. Together with the female panel members, session moderator Ivana Kolar, CEO and founder of Tourizam365, will also talk about gender medicine.
Full details of the Medical Tourism programme are available for downloading as a PDF, or can be obtained as a programme leaflet at the info counter of the Medical Pavilion. Additional information on the Medical & Health Tourism segment at ITB Berlin 2023 can be found at itb.com/medicaltourism.

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