Despite the economic crisis, European long haul market continued to perform extremely well, especially towards Asia.
BERLIN – ITB 2013 – REPORT: The opening of the latest ITB edition in Berlin is like every year an opportunity to take the pulse of the tourism industry. According to Dr. Christian Göke, COO Messe Berlin, Dr. Michael Frenzel, President of the Federal Association of the German Tourism Industry and Jürgen Büchy, President of the German Travel Association (DRV), the German market continued to perform extremely well while European outbound travel continued to remain relatively strong. “ Growth might slow down as business conditions are getting more difficult with additional taxes on travel. But we definitely did not experience a collapse of the outbound market despite all the negative prediction”, told Jürgen Buchy from DRV.
For Christian Göke, COO Messe Berlin – the organizer of ITB- the resilience and the dynamic of the travel industry is like a miracle. “ITB is in this way a true mirror reflecting our industry stand. We continue to welcome more exhibitors with over 10,800 this year from 188 countries, an absolute record. ITB is also particularly proud to anticipate future trends and highlight them. Our travel technology section is of utmost importance as social media and electronic travel tools reshape completely travel consumption. We are also proud of being the leading travel fair for LGBT (Gay and Lesbian) segment. Our Pink Pavilion is the largest of any travel fair in the world dedicated to this niche market. And finally our Adventure & Responsible Tourism Hall is celebrating its tenth anniversary on the topic of socially responsible tourism. CSR tourism is also growing in importance and we acknowledge it”, he said.
Europe continues to grow, albeit at slower pace, but remains one of the largest outbound markets. German travellers continue to travel more than ever said Mr. Büchy. According to DRV, Germans spent in 2012 more money on their holidays than in the previous year; they are again willing to pay more on travel contrary to all “talks about crisis”. The outlook for the coming season continues to be very optimistic.
Long haul travel out of Germany grew last year by 2.5%. This is reflected by the high demand for overseas travel at ITB. Asia is particularly present this year in Berlin. Countries such as Indonesia, the Philippines, Taiwan and China are represented on larger stands. India occupies also an entire hall while more participants are signaled from Nepal and Bhutan, both Himalayan countries enjoying an increase in travellers’ interest.
Indonesia, ITB partner country, can be found in Halls 26 and 4.1 and put up an incredible program of cultural events during the fair. Indonesia Minister of Tourism and Creative Economy, Mari Elka Pangestu hopes a lot from this coming ITB edition. “We hope that visitors to the fair will be amazed by the wealth of attractions that we offer as we have been cheering for 1,000 years our nature and our culture. This legacy is available to all of our visitors”.
Mrs. Pangestu added that she hopes that Indonesia’s presence will help to highlight more of Indonesia. “I really hope that we can show to the world that Indonesia is more than just Bali. I deeply feel that our biodiversity and the variety of our cultures will really be highlighted”.
The Minister stressed then how important is tourism for Indonesia: “Last year, Indonesian tourist arrivals grew by 5.2%, generating US$ 10 billion in tourist revenues as well as 7% of all employment. And I must also add that it also brings a high quality of life, bringing happiness to visitors but also to people working in this industry”.
Luc Citrinot a French national is a freelance journalist and consultant in tourism and air transport with over 20 years experience. Based in Paris and Bangkok, he works for various travel and air transport trade publications in Europe and Asia.
