Category Archives: Exhibitions

One of the ardent advocates of non-saya dates for weddings, Rajeev Jain, MD, Rashi Entertainment, believes that the Indian wedding industry will witness a significant rise as the pandemic eases. “I believe that international weddings are opening up very fast and by 2022 we will witness many international weddings. The client will spend more on entertainment as new concepts arise. The expenditure on food and clothes will also go up as the number of functions will increase due to being held within India,” he says.  

Tourism Malaysia is participating for the third time at the third edition of the Gulf Travel Show (GTS) from 12 to 14 October 2021. As a platinum partner, Malaysia is having its own virtual pavilion with 13 booths consisting of Tourism Malaysia Dubai, Tourism Malaysia Jeddah, Langkawi Development Authority (LADA), Malaysia Healthcare Travel Council (MHTC), together with three DMCs/tour operator partners, one product partner, as well as five hotels and resorts from the island of Langkawi. Following this year’s participation, Manoharan Periasamy, the Senior Director of Tourism Malaysia’s International Promotion Division for Asia & Africa says that GTS 2021 is a platform that allows industry players to share the development and implementation of safety for domestic and international travellers in preparation for reopening the borders, especially for the Middle East market. “Malaysia has successfully completed the vaccination of more than 90 per cent of its adult population against COVID-19, and as a result, domestic tourism has fully reopened effective Monday, 11 October 2021. In the meantime, Tourism Malaysia is gearing up in preparing to welcome more tourists and also continuing in promoting the #WeMissYou campaign ahead of the reopening of our international borders that is expected after we achieve 90 per cent complete inoculation nationwide,” says Manoharan. Nasaruddin Bin Abdul Muttalib, Chief Executive Officer of LADA adds, “On 16 September 2021, the government has announced the reopening of Langkawi as the pilot project for Malaysia’s domestic travel bubble, aimed at reviving the nation’s tourism industry. Langkawi has become the first holiday destination in Malaysia to open its doors to domestic tourists who are fully vaccinated. The visitors are also subject to the standard operating procedures (SOP) compliance and are required …

Jay Bhatia, Vice President, TAAI recently visited the mega fam held by the Expo 2020. TAAI and Expo 2020 have tied-up to promote the Expo across its member travel and tourism companies through presentations, roadshows and Webinars for the next 6months. Talking about the fam, Bhatia said, “Wonderful experience of over 180 cultures from around the world with all countries participating at the Expo, which will be on from October, 2021 to 31st March 2021. This is a fantastic location for families and tourist who are desirous to see the future of various economies.”

Welcoming visitors from around the globe, His Excellency Sultan bin Rashid Al Khater, Undersecretary of the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, inaugurated the Qatar Pavilion at Expo 2020 Dubai on October 1st. The opening was attended by General Commissioners from GCC participating countries as well as a number of dignitaries, officials and partners. Following the inauguration, His Excellency toured the Qatar Pavilion which highlights the country’s achievements across various fields, showcases the most pioneering projects that are being developed in accordance with the National Vision 2030, and spotlights Qatar as the upcoming host of the 2022 FIFA World Cup. He also visited the pavilions of participating GCC countries, where each country’s most prominent achievements were showcased. The Qatar Pavilion was designed by internationally-renowned architect, Santiago Calatrava, who represented a modern interpretation of the four elements presented in the Coat of Arms of Qatar. Its architectural composition draws inspiration from the two crossed and curved swords, encompassing a Dhow and island with two palm trees, that are at the core of the national emblem of the state of Qatar. Santiago Calatrava said, “We are honoured to have been chosen for the design of the Qatar Pavilion at Expo 2020. Our relationship with the State of Qatar and its people lies very close to our heart. The Qatar Pavilion’s design draws inspiration from the four elements represented on the Coat of Arms of Qatar and pays tribute to the nation’s cultural heritage.” The coinciding pair of buildings of the Qatar Pavilion consist of two main galleries of exhibition spaces. Gallery 1 serves as an introductory space and invites visitors to explore the past, present, and future of Qatar through visual arts, sound …

According to the results of the SAP Concur study, Indian business travellers (99%) want to resume work travel within the next 12 months. Nearly 78% of business professionals surveyed in India were eager to start a journey, and according to the study, the percentage was much higher than the global average. About 84% of Indian business professionals felt that their inability to extend travel would hurt them both professionally and personally. Respondents from India said that most business activities such as new deal sign ups, (47%), customer additions (41%) and contract renewals (43%) would be adversely affected if their organizations did not increase business travel.

To say that virtual events will take over is a myth, feels Sandeep Nagpal, VP & Head of Marketing, Cvent India. He says, “Virtual will go hybrid. While physical events will happen, the same events will be viewed by thousands virtually. That is an opportunity both for planners as well as hotels. There are a lot of venues in the world that are transforming themselves into hybrid venues.”

M!CEtalk Digital Conclave, powered by Cvent India, on rebooting Indian MICE landscape will be held on 25th August, 2021 at 11am IST. The panelists include Nikhil Desai, MD, Goa Tourism Development Corporation; Sabbas Joseph, Founder-Director at Wizcraft International Entertainment; Rajdev Bhattacharya, Global Head (Travel and Hospitality ) & Business Head, WAY2GO and GM, Global Travel Services- WIPRO Limited; Arif Patel, Regional VP, Sales & Marketing, Hyatt India; and Sandeep Nagpal, VP & Head of Marketing, Cvent India. To register write to jaspreet, kaur@ddppl.com or call +91 96501 96532.

Rakesh Verma, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Tourism, has revealed that in order to strengthen the MICE sector, they are looking at state level and city level MICE bureaus. “We are planning to offer MICE advantage programmes, because most of the cities internationally provide various incentives for international events. Thus, we have also advocated a similar programme to the states, and we are hopeful that it will have a positive impact,” he suggested.  

In building back better of our industry, SITE India invites the global incentive industry to collaborate to SITE India Incentive Summit 2021- (Virtual) on 29th -30th July 2021. The incentive travel industry is now more attuned to new realities through its relentless efforts in adapting to change. SITE India leans itself into this shift in mindset and behaviour to embark on this Incentive Summit. SITE India Incentive Summit – Virtual is the flagship event for us which showcases the pivotal elements of Incentive Travel through Education and the most essential element to do business – Networking. The objective of the event is to kickstart preparation for the upcoming reopening in India and overseas along with meeting with leading brands to rekindle relationships. This 1st edition of the Incentive summit will have the following: Education: Power-packed educational session with the leading speakers from the Incentive Travel Industry. Meet with Leading Brands: You can also meet with the leading industry brands consisting of Hotels, Venues, DMC’s and other industry stakeholders from India and Overseas. Speed Networking: Enjoy speed networking at the lounge and meet with new connections. “The Society for Incentive Travel Excellence (SITE) is the only Business Events association dedicated exclusively to the global incentive travel industry. This summit will help the Indian Incentive Travel industry professional with global speaker line up, networking with peers from across India and an opportunity to meet with exhibitors who will present their offerings”, said Nitin Sachdeva, President, SITE India. Register for SITE India Incentive Summit 2021 – Virtual at https://bit.ly/AttendIncentiveSummit

Singapore Tourism Board, Professional Convention Management Association and UFI have launched a White Paper on reimagining the future of business events. It reveals that there is a stronger appetite for digital or hybrid events from respondents in Asia, and that the number of events they are planning to exhibit at has recovered to its pre-pandemic levels.