Travel

CANCUN: More than 600 leaders from travel, government, the private sector and media are gathered in Cancun for the World Travel and Tourism Council’s Global Summit, the organization’s first in-person event since 2019. Thousands more are participating online.

Throughout the first day of sessions with speakers ranging from outgoing WTTC Chair and Hilton CEO and President Chris Nassetta to incoming Chair and Carnival Corporation CEO Arnold Donald and Airbnb founder and CEO Brian Chesky, common themes emerged about what it will take for the industry to emerge from the devasting effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to the WTTC, in 2020 the global travel and tourism sector lost almost $4.5 trillion with more than 62 million jobs lost.

In his opening remarks, Nassetta urged fellow travel leaders to collaborate to “propel the industry forward.”

Calling the fast developing of vaccines a “modern miracle,” Nassetta says now the industry must push for re-opening, aided by technology.

“Our sector needs to lead the way in advocating internationally for the opening of borders and common sense approaches to ensure safety and consistency at every step of the traveler journey as we progress through this recovery. We can do this. We can open borders. We can get people moving. We just have to be intelligent and coordinated in how we do it,” he said.

Later in the day, in a taped interview, Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky echoed that need for collaboration and announced the company now has agreements with more than 100 destination marketing organizations across more than two dozen countries. The partnerships are part of an initiative Airbnb launched in June 2020 to support local economic recovery efforts with a focus on rural communities.

But many speakers expressed concern that lack of consistency and clarity in messaging is hampering the recovery in markets around the world.

During a panel discussion, Carnival’s Donald called for a “science-based, uniform approach” in policies from stakeholders within each country, such as health ministries, transportation departments and tourism sectors, and from one country to create the consistency that is needed for travelers to feel secure.

Rita Marques, Portugal’s tourism secretary, says the travel and tourism industry must push global health leaders to provide clarity.

“We still have a huge barrier to overcome – it’s the perception of the risk,” Marques says.

“Health authorities are in the pilot seat. We have to have a clear message from the World Health Organization saying that traveling doesn’t bring any extra risk as long as you comply with the rules,” he said.

During a panel on rebuilding traveler confidence, Fernando Valdes Verelst, Spain’s tourism secretary, says in May the country will do a pilot program of a digital certificate in all 46 of its airports and expects to open its borders to international visitors in June.

And Marian Muro, DG Turisme de Barcelona, says her city is working to develop new marketing content and new digital tools so it will be ready to welcome visitors.

“We had been more concerned about promotion than promotion and management. Now we are in the stage of promotion and management and digital tools will help us. So whenever a visitor comes to Barcelona, the visitor will be automatically be connected to tools to help them know how many people are there in any attraction or the safety measures or whether there is a queue and offer alternatives or will tell the tourist to visit later,” she says.

“The city will accomplish two things, first to give a better service to those visitors and second to give a better quality of life to residents.”

LONDON: The World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) has launched a new initiative to support women in the travel and tourism industries.

The Cancun Declaration has been adopted by more than 100 countries, industry associations and destinations. It takes its name from the location of WTTC’s 2021 Global Summit, currently taking place in Mexico.

Its aim is to promote diversity and drive inclusivity. Signatories committed themselves to providing equal opportunities for women by removing barriers, ensuring fair treatment, and encouraging greater financial, professional, and social independence.

The initiative is supported by women’s tennis champion Martina Navratilova, who spoke live during WTTC. She commented: “Women have always had to outperform men, and whilst things are changing for the better, it is still a fight and a constant battle.

“Change happens much quicker when it comes from the top. Companies would be more profitable if more women were in positions of power and boardrooms were less homogenous, reflecting the diversity of their customers.”

The initiative was unveiled by Gloria Guevara, WTTC president & CEO, who said: “As the first female president and CEO of WTTC, it is an honour to champion this important initiative.

“Globally, women have been disproportionately affected by the pandemic which has exacerbated the pay gap, the opportunity gap and the shocking lack of senior positions and leadership roles across the travel & tourism sector.

“This needs to be changed. WTTC research shows women play a vital role and represented 54% of Travel & Tourism’s employment worldwide. Yet while more than half the sector is accounted for by women, all too few occupy any senior or strategic roles.”

DUBAI: Arabian Travel Market (ATM) has reconfirmed that the 2021 edition of its annual showcase will go ahead in person at the Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC).

The event is currently scheduled to start on Sunday, May 16th, with final preparations currently being put in place.

The show will strictly adhere to the health and safety guidelines set by the Dubai government and followed by the venue.

Danielle Curtis, exhibition director, Middle East, Arabian Travel Market, said:  “Dubai is one of the safest cities in the world to visit with a wide range of precautionary measures in place to ensure the safety of tourists at every stage and touchpoint of their travel journey, from arrival to departure.

“More than nine million doses have already been administered in the UAE, which is also a major achievement.”

The theme of this year’s show is ‘A new dawn for travel and tourism and the spotlight will be focused on the very latest Covid-19 news from around the world – vaccine rollouts, social and travel restrictions and as consequence, the current state of the industry and more importantly, what the future holds.

It will also look at the emerging trends and how innovation can drive the industry forward.

The health of the travel and tourism industry is key to the region.

In-person on the show floor, 62 countries represented by main stand holders and sharers will be participating this year.

They include Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Germany, Cyprus, Turkey, Egypt, Jordan, Italy, Greece, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, South Korea, Maldives, the Philippines, Thailand, Mexico, and the USA to name but a few.

Features this year will include Travel Forward at ATM, which will highlight keynote speakers and world-class technology experts, that will provide industry-leading insights about the latest technologies and trends that will undoubtedly shape the future of travel and tourism.

The ATM 2021 conference programme includes the Global Stage which will feature the Hotel Industry Summit and Buyer Forums dedicated to key source markets such as Saudi Arabia, India, and China.

LONDON: The World Travel & Tourism Council’s annual Economic Impact Report today reveals that the dramatic collapse of the UK’s Travel & Tourism sector has wiped out a staggering £148 billion from the UK economy.

The annual EIR from the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC), which represents the global Travel & Tourism private sector, shows the sector’s contribution to GDP, dropped by a precipitous 62.3%.

Travel & Tourism GDP fell from £238 billion (10.1%) in 2019 before the pandemic struck, to just £90 billion (4.2%), a mere 12 months later, in 2020.

The year of crippling travel restrictions, and ineffective quarantines, which have brought international travel to a grinding halt, has resulted in the loss of 307,000 Travel & Tourism jobs across the country.

However, WTTC believes the true picture could be significantly worse, if not for government fiscal and liquidity incentives, as well as furlough and job protection schemes which across all sectors is currently protecting more than 11 million jobs, hiding the true extent of the losses and the devastating social impact they could bring.

These job losses were felt across the entire UK Travel & Tourism ecosystem. The number of those employed in the UK Travel & Tourism sector tumbled from 4.27 million in 2019, to 3.96 million in 2020 – a fall of 7.2%.

The report also revealed domestic visitor spending declined by 63.2% due to nationwide lockdowns, while international spending fared even worse, because of stringent travel restrictions, ineffective quarantines and constantly changing government policies, causing a fall of 71.6%.

Gloria Guevara, President & CEO WTTC, said: “The loss of more than 300,000 Travel & Tourism jobs across the UK has had a devastating socio-economic impact, leaving huge numbers of people fearing for their future.

“But the situation could have been far worse if it were not for the government’s prompt action, which introduced job retention schemes to save millions of jobs under threat and helped to halt the total collapse of the Travel & Tourism sector.

“WTTC believes that another year of terrible losses can be avoided if the government supports the swift resumption of international travel, which will be vital to powering the turnaround of the UK economy.

“Our research shows that if  mobility and international travel resumes by June this year, the sector’s contribution to global GDP could rise sharply in 2021, by 48.5%, year-on-year.”

BANGKOK: Ms. Surayyal Hizmi, Lecturer Advisor of the PATA Lombok Tourism Polytechnic Student Chapter, is today named as the 2021 PATA Face of the Future. This is the most prestigious honor open to young tourism professionals in the Asia Pacific region.

PATA Face of the Future is the most prestigious honor open to young tourism professionals in the Asia Pacific region

“This year we received a fantastic list of applicants who could all be worthy of this recognition, and it makes me hopeful not just for the future of the industry but for the future of the world,” said PATA CEO Dr. Mario Hardy.

“On behalf of everyone at the Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA), I would like to congratulate Surayyal Hizmi on winning the 2021 PATA Face of the Future award. It was inspiring to learn about her passion for sustainability and how she engages with the local community towards this goal. This award will provide her greater exposure in Indonesia and throughout the industry, and I look forward to seeing her career develop as she works in line with PATA for the responsible development of travel and tourism in the region.”

“I am very grateful to receive such a prestigious honor. It is something that I never expected, so thank you so much for this recognition. The real winner of this award is not me but the many people who encouraged me, such as my family and my students who work hard to always support me. This achievement is for them and the many people who have contributed their lives and effort towards sustainable tourism and making this world a better place,” said Ms. Hizmi.

Ms. Surayyal Hizmi is a lecturer at Lombok Tourism Polytechnic, having completed her Master’s Degree in 2017 in Applied Science with a major in Natural Resources Management. Possessing prior knowledge of environmental and natural resource management, and social sciences, Ms. Hizmi’s passion is to apply her knowledge and skills to help local communities and the responsible and sustainable development of travel and tourism in West Nusa Tenggara. Being a lecturer at Lombok Tourism Polytechnic, she was appointed as the Assistant to Vice Director focusing on the National and International Partnership Program.  The concept, skills, and knowledge she has gained will be used for the PATA Lombok Tourism Polytechnic Student Chapter programs such as eco-enzyme and the gallon corner. She is also currently active in several other projects collaborating with LIPI (The Indonesian Institute of Sciences) and the Australian university alumni through the Culinary Festival in Speaker and Bamboo Ecotourism in Sembalun to expand the application of sustainability.