The countdown to ATW has begun

ibtm Africa

The 2016 edition of ibtm Africa, in association with SAACI, sponsored by Gauteng Tourism Authority and hosted by WTM Africa on 8 April, will provide African exhibitors in this niche field to meet face to face with selected senior international buyers, network with like-minded business people and harness the many opportunities that exist on the continent for MICE.

WTM Africa

WTM Africa, Africa’s leading B2B inbound and outbound travel and tourism event, is bursting at the seams in 2016. Exhibitors from across South Africa and other African countries will be exhibiting the very best that Africa has to offer and in addition international tourism boards, international hotel brands and product suppliers have signed up to benefit from quality appointments with buyers from all over the continent and beyond.

The WTM Africa events programme provides a reason to visit all on its own. All three days are packed with key and relevant seminars and presentations, by sought after speakers, on topics that are of key relevance to our industry. New this year is the introduction of the Travel Technology Show at WTM Africa where visitors can be educated on the very latest in trends in relevant technology.

The African Responsible Tourism Awards will also be taking place at WTM Africa on 7 April. Sponsored by Wesgro, the tourism, trade and investment promotion agency for the Western Cape, these prestigious awards recognise company’s achievements in innovation and responsible tourism.

For the second year running, the world’s largest travel insider community, Travel Massive has partnered to take advantage of the WTM Africa platform in which to share ideas, network and learn. WTM Africa has also partnered with Trip Advisor, the world’ for this year’s show.

TripAdvisor and E-Tourism Frontiers have created an all-new forum for destination managers called DATA: Destination Academy with TripAdvisor, with regional events held around the world. DATA provides destinations with an opportunity to talk about their experiences, challenges and successes in digital marketing while taking part in highly practical and regionally relevant training. DATA also provides attending destinations with access to exclusive, unpublished deep data from TripAdvisor that reveals new and valuable insights into traveller behaviour on their online path to purchase for travel to the region.

ILTM Africa

ILTM Africa, now in its fourth year, will again bring the best of African luxury and high-end products to luxury travel buyers from across the globe for targeted pre-scheduled appointments. ILTM Africa will be taking place 4-6 April and is by invitation only with all buyers and exhibitors having been through a strict accreditation process in order to participate.

Looking forward to 2016’s event, Alison Gilmore, director of the ILTM portfolio had this to say “Africa is proving to be the growth story of the 21st century – the variety of beautiful locations available to the luxury traveller throughout the continent is huge. As more hotels are developed, this story of success for African tourism is only going to continue. Now is the time for the African luxury travel industry to connect with the world’s best international Africa specialist agents during this time of growth and we are delighted to welcome the very best at this year’s ILTM Africa.” ILTM Africa has received 30 new confirmed participants at this years’ show of leisure and exclusivity.

General manager for Africa Travel Week, Chardonnay Marchesi concurred by saying “There is no better time for Africa to do business. Our continent has so much to offer to the travel and tourism industry at large. We are looking forward to bringing the best the travel and tourism industries have to the city of Cape Town next month. Look forward to seeing you there!”