MUSCAT, MAY 17 - The 28th edition of Arabian Travel Market (ATM), the region’s largest travel and tourism showcase, returned to Dubai in-person on Sunday to shine the spotlight on ‘Tourism For a Brighter Future’.
With 2021 ushering in a new dawn for travel and tourism, leading industry figureheads from around the world kicked off the discussion on the ATM Global Stage as they explored factors delivering the sector’s fast-paced recovery.
Vaccinations, market segmentation and innovations in tech, travel corridors, marketing and product diversification were all highlighted as drivers for significant recovery by 2023.
Notable speakers included Dr Taleb Rifai, Chairman ITIC & Former Secretary General United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO); Scott Livermore, Chief Economist of Oxford Economics Middle East, Dubai; and Thoyyib Mohamed, Managing Director, Maldives Tourism Board.
Elsewhere on the agenda on the ATM Global Stage, tourism ministers and key industry stakeholders from the Gulf and Southern Europe convened during the ‘Tourism Beyond Covid Recovery’ session to discuss the vast opportunities for travel, tourism and hospitality presented by the potential return of mass leisure tourism, medical and educational travel, business events and beyond that, cross-cultural exchange and collaboration.
Meanwhile, delegates at the ATM Travel Forward theatre heard from world-class technology experts discussing industry-leading insights about the role of technology in the future of travel.
“Technology plays a critical role in facilitating the restart of global travel and tourism in the wake of the Covid-19 bounce back’’, said Danielle Curtis, Exhibition Director ME, Arabian Travel Market. “The discussions taking place at ATM Travel Forward highlight the readiness of travel businesses to face the new realities of the industry and provides a valuable forum for identifying the new technologies and innovations essential to restore travel confidence.”
ATM 2021 concludes at the Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC) on May 19, 2021.
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