World Travel Mart Virtual 2020 in London
Travel Biz News —
Travel and tourism professionals from around the world are reconnected with business partners this week at World Travel Mart Virtual in London.
The three – day online event, including the Travel Forward Virtual and International Tourism & Investment Conference (ITIC), kicked off in London on Monday (Nov.9).
The conference sessions hosted politicians, leading academics, health experts and the world’s media, as the travel industry plans for recovery in 2021.
The annual UNWTO, WTTC & WTM Ministers’ Summit on 9 November is the largest annual gathering of tourism ministers and private sector leaders.
Under the rallying cry of ‘To Create Safer, Greener, Smarter Travel & Tourism’, it hosted tourism ministers and private sector bosses debating the recovery of travel and innovations to deal with Covid-19 and sustainability.
It followed by ‘Tourism: The Path to Peace in the Middle East’, with the tourism ministers of Israel, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain.
These countries signed the “Abraham Accords”, an historic deal that enables business opportunities and tourism prospects in SEptember.
The ministers discussed the new travel and tourism opportunities and the sector’s role in supporting peace in the region.
It will be the first time the tourism ministers have met since signing the agreements.
The Euromonitor International report, launched on the first day of WTM Virtual, explained why global tourism will take between three and five years to recover from Covid-19.
Called Accelerating Travel Innovations after Coronavirus, the study will also reveal how the travel industry is innovating in order to survive the devastating impact of the pandemic.
The International Tourism & Investment Conference (ITIC) will have the mission statement of ‘Invest, Finance & Rebuild the Travel & Tourism Industry’.
The Responsible Tourism Programme takes place , with eight conference sessions featuring authoritative speakers from the private and public sectors.
The sessions will be: Resilience & COVID 19; Build Back Better; Tourism and Biodiversity; and Decarbonising Aviation, Responsible Tourism in India; Racism in Tourism; Certification and Consumer Choice; and Can we make tourism better?
The turbulence in aviation will be discussed on all three days of WTM Virtual ( November 9 – 11 ) , starting with a debate about trends and forecasts .
Called ‘The Long-run Evolution of Aviation Activity following the coronavirus pandemic’, it will feature expertise from Virgin Atlantic, Boeing, IATA and Tourism Economics.
“The travel and tourism industry is facing its worst crisis in living memory, so WTM Virtual will provide a crucial platform for planning the bounce-back, reconnecting with business partners, forging new connections, and learning about the best way forward,” WTM London, Senior Director, Simon Press said.
“2020 is the year where global connections need to be maintained, build those networks and understand what’s happening in these extraordinary and challenging times.”
November 9 , 2020
Image credit : London /WTM
