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African Tourism Board says Shalom to its newly appointed Ambassador to Israel

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The African Tourism Board appointed Dov Kalmann as its ambassador to Israel last week.

This announcement was made during the World Travel Market in London.


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Kalmann (60, married +3), has recently stepped down as CEO of Noya Holidays. Since then he is focused on creating a marketing bridge between foreign tourism brands and entities that have an interest in the booming Israeli outbound market.  Kalmann is operating these projects through “Pita Marketing”, a brand that belongs to Kalmanns’ company Noya Marketing & Tourism Ltd.

Kalmann reacted with excitement about the nomination as the “Ambassador” of Africa in Israel: “This nomination is not merely an expression of appreciation but actually obliges us to create a change of the awareness of Africa on the Israeli market. Israel is only a few flying hours from one of the most exciting travel destinations that are so appealing to the curiosity of the Israelis but are still so unknown. The many new airlines operating direct flights to Africa enable combining a safari with a pampering beach vacation in the Indian Ocean; a trip including fabulous soft-adventure experiences for families and couples in South Africa with one-to-one encounters with gorillas in Rwanda or Uganda; visiting the most amazing waterfalls in Tanzania; exploring the Jewish roots in Ethiopia and joining colourful musical and cultural experiences. Kalmann added: “There is another aspect that makes Africa so unique which I define as “inspirational tourism”. Nothing compares to joining a colorful Sunday morning praying in a local church, a tribal market, or a home-stay lunch with a local family in a township. These are life-changing experiences that do not compare to visiting monuments or standing in line with masses in an attraction park. These are emotions that no-one forgets. And that in my view is the Unique Selling Point of Africa.”

Pita started the Africa promotion in March with a first-ever conference to be attended by tens of leading African tourism players and their Israeli counterparts. “Our partner in South Africa published this event and within 24 hours, tens of leaders of African tourism brands had already signed up. We are planning a mass African festival on the streets and squares of Tel Aviv. We will organise trips by bloggers and other opinion-makers. We will invite all African ambassadors to a think-tank event. We will create a Hebrew facebook on Africa and much more. The nomination has created even more positive energy and passion in order to do what we have done for Thailand – make Africa into the top travel destination of the Israelis.

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African Tourism Board Chief Marketing Officer Juergen Steinmetz said: “We are privileged to have Dov on our team. He is well motivated and qualified to encourage travelers to look at opportunities throughout the African continent when exploring a new series of holiday destinations for the Israeli market. I love his out of the box approach and we welcome him to our team with a Shalom.”

The African Tourism Board is an NGO based in Pretoria, South Africa with a philosophy to have tourism as a catalyst for unity, peace, growth, prosperity, job creation for the people of Africa -with a vision where Africa becomes one tourist destination of choice in the world.

More information on the African Tourism Board: www.africantourismboard.com

MEDIA CONTACT: TravelMarketingNetwork, 954 Lexington Ave. #1037, New York, NY 10021 USA, PH: (+1) 718-374-6816, marketing@travelmarketingnetwork.com   

Boris, Brexit and Business Top the Agenda for Day One at WTM London

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UK Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, hailed the achievements of the country’s tourism industry in a welcome message to WTM London, the world’s largest travel trade event taking place today (Monday 4 November) at ExCeL London.

Johnson spoke of the UK’s success story in the 10 years since he first opened the event, when he was then Mayor of London. Since then, he said, tourism had boomed “from Skye to Skegness, from Brecon Beacons to Bognor”.

Johnson added: “Our capital city London has become the number one tourist destination in the world. The British Museum attracts more visitors than one European country I am too diplomatic to identify.”

Following Johnson’s message to the WTM Leaders’ Lunch, Nicky Morgan, Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, took to the stage.

She highlighted tourism’s £68 billion contribution to the UK economy. The industry, she said, accounted for 1.6 million jobs and last year, the UK attracted 38 million visitors who spent £22.7 billion.

Morgan acknowledged Brexit was an issue for the industry. She told the audience: “We are going to be leaving the European Union, but we do not want to put up borders that keep people in or out. We want to make it as frictionless as possible to visit – EEAA or Swiss nationals will not need a visa.”

Later that day Atout France and easyJet signed a major three-year partnership at WTM London to boost the numbers of British and German visitors to France.

The deal follows the success of a similar three-year partnership which focused on increasing numbers from the UK to French destinations.

The new agreement will see the airline and the tourism agency promoting destinations across easyJet’s French network and will have an annual budget of €1 million.

WTM London’s Headline partner Sri Lanka also took to the stage during the event outlining its objective to ‘build back better’ six months after the terror attacks that decimated its tourism industry.

Her Excellency Manisha Gunasekera High Commissioner – Sri Lanka High Commission in London, commenting that “Exactly one year ago at WTM we launched So Sri Lanka, our brand identity, which has now become so much identified with Sri Lanka.”

She added: “The message emanating from Sri Lanka is that it’s business as usual. We’re resilient, united and we have made a steady recovery.”

Also speaking to an extremely crowded room at WTM London, Greek National Tourism Organisations, Minister of Tourism Harry Theoharis explained their 10-year plan for tourism, which embraces sustainability, the destination announced at WTM today.

Theoharis explained: “Our vision is Greece as a full experience as we’ve never seen before… Greece is more than the sun and sea, the beach and ancient monuments.” 

He said quality, sustainability and authenticity were to be the cornerstones of the new plan, with an ultimate ambition to make Greece “one of the top global sustainable destinations.”

He added: “It’s about increasing the ceiling [on arrivals] but also trying to widen the shoulder seasons and tourism destinations.”

About World Travel Market

World Travel Market (WTM) portfolio comprises eight leading B2B events across four continents, generating more than $7 billion of industry deals. The events are:

WTM London, the leading global event for the travel industry, is the must-attend three-day exhibition for the worldwide travel and tourism industry. About 50,000 senior travel industry professionals, government ministers and international media visit ExCeL London every November, generating about £3.4 billion in travel industry contracts.

Next event: Monday 4 – Wednesday 6 November 2019 – London #IdeasArriveHere

About Reed Exhibitions

Reed Exhibitions is the world’s leading events business, enhancing the power of face-to-face through data and digital tools at more than 500 events a year, in more than 43 countries, attracting more than seven million participants. Reed’s events are held in the Americas, Europe, Asia Pacific and Africa and organised by 41 fully staffed offices. Reed Exhibitions serves 43 industry sectors with trade and consumer events. It is part of RELX Group plc, a world-leading provider of information solutions for professional customers across industries.

About Reed Travel Exhibitions

Reed Travel Exhibitions is the world’s leading travel and tourism event’s organiser with a growing portfolio of more than 22 international travel and tourism trade events in Europe, the Americas, Asia, the Middle East and Africa. Our events are market leaders in their sectors, whether they are global and regional leisure travel trade events, or specialist events for meetings, incentives, conference, events (MICE) industry, business travel, luxury travel, travel technology as well as golf, spa and ski travel. We have more than 35 years’ experience in organising world-leading travel exhibitions.

MEDIA CONTACTS:

Julia Newbound – WTM Portfolio Press & PR Lead

E: julia.newbound@reedexpo.co.uk

T: +44 (0)20 8910 7056 / M: +44 (0)7775 036 858

Nicole Smart – WTM Portfolio PR & Events Consultant

E: nicole.smart@reedexpo.co.uk

T: +44 (0)20 8910 7032/ M: +44 (0)79 1955 5510

Madagascar National Tourism Board organized a four-city roadshow in India and Raining responses from Indian Travel Trade

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Madagascar’s stunning beauty is so bountiful that a lifetime would not be enough to encompass them all. It is one of those rare destinations with the art of conjuring up your dream of getting away to discover the treasure island  and cultures. The traditional and natural heritage of Madagascar is undoubtedly rich with 80% of its wildlife sanctuaries,  national parks, beaches and adventure activities.

Madagascar National Tourism Board in collaboration with Air Madagascar, Air Austral, Tsaradia and Air Mauritius had their first sales mission in India which was organized by ksaenterprise.com with its four-city roadshow in New Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore and Chennai from 21 Oct to 24 Oct 2019.

The honorable President and Chairman of Madagascar National Tourism Board, Mr. Narijao Boda highlighted the destination’s unique features and also to educate travel trade on the same and thereby attracting a large number of Indian travelers to the fourth largest Island country in the world.

 Mr. Narijao Boda said, “We are pleased to tap the India market; as both the countries have long cultural and traditional connection, it will be easy to understand the requirement of the Indian market which is very much potential for any African country.  We are very well aware of the strong outbound tourist growth of Indian market and closely work with the local partners to attract more travelers from India. We are in plans for the familiarization trip for 40 travel agents to Madagascar, to the selected travel trade and media. The segments we want to welcome are honeymooner and nature enthusiast to explore Madagascar.” One of Madagascar National Tourism Board’s next steps is also to invite bloggers to discover the Treasure Island and thus reach Indian travelers online.

At present there is no direct flight between India and Madagascar but Air Madagascar came with the great news to welcome Indian travelers with the direct flights connecting India’s financial capital with Madagascar’s capital town Antananarivo. The direct flight from Mumbai to Madagascar is expected to start from June 2020.

Mr. Rabaritsialonina Jaona, Overseas Sales Manager of Air Madagascar said, “We are excited to announce that by June 2020 Air Madagascar will connect both countries with the direct flight between Mumbai and Antananarivo the capital city of Madagascar. The direct flight will be of 6 hours journey bringing in Island Country closer to the travelers’ heart.”

Madagascar, being fourth largest Island country in the world offering a wealth of unique biodiversity fosters the development of outstanding plant and wildlife that includes 43 National Parks, 294 bird species, 6 endemic baobab species, around one hundred lemur species and over 1000 species of orchids. There are abundances of adventure activities one can enjoy in Madagascar, to name few are – bird watching, trekking, hiking, scuba diving, sport fishing, kite surfing, sailing, whale watching, motorbike, Quad, and Mountain bike trekking.

Media Contact :

Name : Karthik

Email : karthik@ksaenterprise.com

Phone : +91 7395828 858 

Wellness tourism is in good health at WTM London

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Experts and entrepreneurs will be taking the pulse of the booming multibillion-pound wellness sector during WTM London – the global event where ideas arrive.

Wellness tourism is currently estimated to be worth more than $639 billion a year – and growing at twice the pace of general tourism – according to the Global Wellness Institute.

Two panel discussions about making the most of this lucrative market will take place in the Inspiration Zones, while scores of exhibitors will display their wellness credentials out on the floor of ExCeL London.

The first will be Launching & Optimising Your Brand in the Wellness Space. It will explore how tourist organisations, hospitality brands and tour operators are increasingly marketing their wellness offerings.

The moderator will be Anne Dimon – Co-founder and President of the Wellness Tourism Association – who has decades of experience in wellness, travel, journalism and PR.

She will be joined by three expert speakers: Emily Mikus, Brand Manager at G Adventures; Mark Hennebry, Vice Chairman at Danubius Hotel Group; and entrepreneur Joanne Vomiero, Director and Founder of In This Life Wellness Travel.

Mikus spearheaded G Adventures’ industry-leading animal welfare policy and helped launch the operator’s new Wellness travel style. Hennebry will talk about his role overseeing 45 hotels with wellness and spa facilities in Hungary, the UK, Czech Republic, Slovakia and Romania. Vomiero has more than 20 years of experience in the sector and owns a wellness clinic in Australia.

Following the debate and Q&A session, Vomiero will demonstrate simple techniques to help delegates ‘Disconnect to Reconnect’.

The second debate titled A New Decade of Wellness Travel, will present an overview of the latest trends, look forward to the next decade in this sector and discuss the outlook with expert speakers. They will be Ozgur Cengiz, who manages the JOALI WellBeing Resort in the Maldives, and Aldina Duarte Ramos, the Global Director of Wellbeing for Accor’s luxury brands.

Meanwhile, delegates can meet more than 150 companies on the exhibition floor, which specialise in wellness. There are also dozens more hotels, tourist boards, tour operators, attractions and venues that offer wellness and spa services.

Highlights include wellness treatments launched by Hastings Hotels in Northern Ireland. The independent hotel group has a new collection of face and body treatments for those who are living with, through and beyond cancer.

Elsewhere in the UK, the Wales Coast Path will promote new guides and itineraries, and a free augmented reality app, which is part of a national initiative to get children more active outdoors.

Coming from further afield, two luxury properties from the Maldives will be at WTM London to market their wellness services.

A private island spa will open in 2020 at Sheraton Maldives Full Moon Resort & Spa on in North Malé Atoll. The luxury wellness area is the final part of a $20 million renovation programme at the beachfront resort.

The Westin Maldives Miriandhoo Resort in the Baa Atoll will also highlight its different wellness themes for each month. Specialist practitioners visit the resort to focus on particular areas of health and fitness, and nutritional menus at the four restaurants and bars support the themes.

WTM London Senior Exhibition Director Simon Press said: “The wellness tourism sector goes from strength to strength each year.

“Our program of debates, backed up by hundreds of networking and business opportunities, means that WTM London is offering a very healthy diet of ideas, inspiration and connections to help firms to make the most of this growing sector in 2020 and beyond.”

Launching & Optimising Your Brand in the Wellness Space – 5 Nov 2019, 15:00 – 16:00 Asia Inspiration Zone

A New Decade of Wellness Travel – 6 Nov 2019, 11:00 – 12:00 Americas Inspiration Zone

Hastings Hotels

Stand: UKI300

Wales Coast Path

Stand: UKI100

Sheraton Maldives Full Moon Resort & Spa

Stand: AS140

Westin Maldives Miriandhoo Resort

Stand: AS140

About World Travel Market

World Travel Market (WTM) portfolio comprises eight leading B2B events across four continents, generating more than $7 billion of industry deals. The events are:

WTM London, the leading global event for the travel industry, is the must-attend three-day exhibition for the worldwide travel and tourism industry. About 50,000 senior travel industry professionals, government ministers and international media visit ExCeL London every November, generating about £3.4 billion in travel industry contracts.

Next event: Monday 4 – Wednesday 6 November 2019 – London #IdeasArriveHere

About Reed Exhibitions

Reed Exhibitions is the world’s leading events business, enhancing the power of face-to-face through data and digital tools at more than 500 events a year, in more than 43 countries, attracting more than seven million participants. Reed’s events are held in the Americas, Europe, Asia Pacific and Africa and organised by 41 fully staffed offices. Reed Exhibitions serves 43 industry sectors with trade and consumer events. It is part of RELX Group plc, a world-leading provider of information solutions for professional customers across industries.

About Reed Travel Exhibitions

Reed Travel Exhibitions is the world’s leading travel and tourism event’s organiser with a growing portfolio of more than 22 international travel and tourism trade events in Europe, the Americas, Asia, the Middle East and Africa. Our events are market leaders in their sectors, whether they are global and regional leisure travel trade events, or specialist events for meetings, incentives, conference, events (MICE) industry, business travel, luxury travel, travel technology as well as golf, spa and ski travel. We have more than 35 years’ experience in organising world-leading travel exhibitions.

MEDIA CONTACTS:

Julia Newbound – WTM Portfolio Press & PR Lead

E: julia.newbound@reedexpo.co.uk

T: +44 (0)20 8910 7056 / M: +44 (0)7775 036 858

Nicole Smart – WTM Portfolio PR & Events Consultant

E: nicole.smart@reedexpo.co.uk

T: +44 (0)20 8910 7032/ M: +44 (0)79 1955 5510

15,000 travel industry experts attended OTDYKH Leisure Fair 2019

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From 10-12 September 2019 the Expocentre in Moscow hosted the prestigious 25th anniversary of the OTDYKH Leisure expo. Over the course of three days almost 15,000 travel industry experts attended the fair, and over 600 exhibitors participated from 35 countries and 41 Russian regions. The expo showcased developments in a range of sectors, such as industrial, event, medical, sports and gastronomic tourism. Companies from across the travel industry took part, including tour operators, hotels, resorts, airlines and transport companies.

This ground-breaking event was officially endorsed by the Russian Federation’s Ministry of Culture, the Federal Agency for Tourism, the Russian Union of the Travel Industry and the Russian Association of Tour Operators.
The opening ceremony of the expo was attended by an official delegation, headed by the Deputy Minister of Culture, Alla Manilova. Also present were the Advisor of the Head of the Federal Tourism Agency, Elena Lysenkova, and the President of the Chamber of Commerce, Maksim Fateev. Other esteemed guests included the ambassadors of Brunei, Spain, Mexico, Myanmar, Moldova, Panama and Egypt.

The participants

A range of top international tourist destinations had exclusive stands at the event, including the Dominican Republic, India, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Thailand, China, Spain, Serbia, Cuba, Tunis, Morocco, Taiwan, Egypt etc.
In addition to the returning exhibitors, the OTDYKH Leisure Fair 2019 welcomed a number of newcomers; among them were Iran, Taipei, Jamaica and Moldova. Cuba was a sponsor country for the first time.

41 Russian regions participated in the event. The newcomer regions were Astrakhan, Volgograd and Kemerovo, the Republic of Mari El, Khakassia and Sakha (Yakutia).They showcased the best of what the Russian Federation has to offer, and in particular the Komi Republic was announced as a sponsor region.

B2B Marketing Events

The highlight of the expo was a series of exclusive B2B marketing events for the exhibitors. These included roundtable meetings between leading Russian tour operators and international organisations, as well as a sales-call service and bespoke workshops by industry professionals. One of the stand-out events was the B2B Speed Dating service, where industry specialists were granted the opportunity to have back-to-back, individual meetings at the exhibitors’ stands. The roundtable discussions facilitated productive exchanges on a diverse range on topics including international security, charter flights and the simplification of tourist visa procedures for Russian citizens.

The Hosted Buyer Program

Another highlight of the expo was the hotly anticipated Hosted Buyer Program 2019, where high-level buyers, tour operators and travel agencies from 18 Russian regions held meetings with exhibitors. An innovative new matchmaking system, debuted at the 25th edition of the OTDYKH Leisure Fair, allowed exhibitors to schedule meetings in advance in a specially designated business area, resulting in 430 meetings over the course of the event.

The Business Program

The OTDYKH Leisure Fair 2019 featured a comprehensive business program, comprised of 45 business events with over 150 speakers and almost 2,700 participants, cementing its status as a leading industry platform in Russia. Talks centred on the trends currently dominating the tourism market, and how they are projected to develop in the near future.

On the first day of the event, discussions focused on the development of domestic and inbound tourism in Russia. Other prominent seminars explored the role of creative industries, the growing popularity of folkloric culture and the impact of digital technology in the travel industry. On the second day talks centred on the rise of medical tourism in Russia, IT solutions in travel and new trends in business tourism. On the final day the topics were event tourism (such as the 2018 FIFA World Cup) and the development of industrial tourism in the Arctic. An important part of the program on the third day was the discussion on ecotourism, and the increasingly relevant role of ecology in tourism.

The final day of the expo ended on a creative note with a video competition entitled “Hello Russia, My Homeland!” in which a record number of videos were entered, showing the best tourist attractions from across the Russian Federation.

The next OTDYKH Leisure Fair will take place on 8-10 September 2020, at the Expocentre in Moscow, Russia.

MEDIA CONTACT: Anna Huber, Project Manager, Travel Exhibitions Division, Euroexpo Exhibitions & Congress Development GmbH, Tel.: + 43 1 230 85 35 – 36, Fax: + 43 1 230 85 35 – 50/51, a.huber@euroexpo-vienna.com , http://www.euro-expo.org/