ITB Asia, ‘Asia’s Leading Travel Trade Show’, wrapped up on a high today as the annual event achieved record-breaking numbers. Held at the Sands Expo and Convention Centre in Marina Bay Sands, Singapore between 17 – 19 October 2018, the three-day conference and exhibition recorded an impressive 25,000 business appointments this year. Having hosted more than 1,000 exhibitors and over 1,000 buyers this year, ITB Asia 2018 has also recorded an increase of 8.9% of total visitors representing more than 127 countries from last year’s anniversary event.
This year, ITB Asia 2018 welcomed new exhibitors as it unveiled its largest exhibitor showcase yet. This included Abu Dhabi, Botswana, Canton Sarajevo, Croatia, Fukuoka, Kansai, Mauritius, Mexico, Papua New Guinea, Poland, Rovaniemi, Slovakia and Ukraine among many others.
Under the overarching theme of “Travel Reimagined”, this year’s conference programme delivered major trends provoking disruption across the travel industry and how companies are innovating to stay ahead. With over 260 speakers, key industry experts delivered fascinating insights at the keynote sessions, as well as focused topics for the MICE and Corporate segment, the Travel and Tech space and Muslim Travel conference sessions which were very well-received.
“Having surpassed last year’s impressive milestone, we have yet again achieved record-breaking numbers as we continue to see the show flourish. As we look forward to next year’s ITB Asia, we continue to build and strengthen our efforts in maintaining ITB Asia as the premier event of the year and the go-to hub for remarkable travel content and inspiring experiences. My greatest thanks and appreciation go out to all our supporters across the industry and the teams involved for their endless hard work in making this event happen”, said Katrina Leung, Managing Director of Messe Berlin (Singapore), the organiser of ITB Asia.
Following yet another successful edition, the show is already receiving high exhibitor re-bookings for ITB Asia 2019. As early as now, the surge in interest for next year’s show has been seen from hotel groups such as Amara Hotels & Resorts, Best Western International, Frasers Hospitality, Resorts World Sentosa, WorldHotels AG and many more. ITB Asia sees continued strong support from destinations in the ASEAN region as well as Abu Dhabi, Turkey and Jordan in the Middle East and exhibitors such as Austria and Lufthansa City Center amongst others. Eastern European exhibitors such as Hungary and Poland have also confirmed their stand bookings for the 2019 show.
ITB Asia 2019 will be held from 16-18 October 2019 at Sands Expo & Convention Centre, Marina Bay Sands. Interested exhibitors may email exhibitor@itb-asia.com.
For more information on ITB Asia 2018, visit www.itb-asia.com.
About ITB Asia 2018
ITB Asia 2018 took place at the Sands Expo and Convention Centre, Marina Bay Sands, from 17 – 19 October 2018. It is organised by Messe Berlin (Singapore) Pte Ltd and supported by the Singapore Exhibition & Convention Bureau. The annual three-day B2B trade show and convention will feature hundreds of exhibiting companies from the Asia-Pacific region, Europe, the Americas, Africa and the Middle East, covering not only the leisure market, but also corporate and MICE travel. Exhibitors from every sector of the industry, including destinations, airlines and airports, hotels and resorts, theme parks and attractions, inbound tour operators, inbound DMCs, cruise lines, spas, venues, other meeting facilities and travel technology companies are all expected to attend.
Now in its eleventh year, ITB Asia is the premier meeting place for the travel trade industry for forging new partnerships and strengthening existing business relationships with the most important players in the region. Whilst celebrating a decade of ITB Asia, last year, its huge success saw 940 exhibitors, 951 quality buyers, 6,140 minutes of conference, more than 11,000 attendees and 22,000 business appointments.
