Success at Mediterranean Travel Fair. The industry shows resilience

Mediterranean Travel Fair closed its doors on success for the second time. Following the recent events in America, the response from visitors and exhibitors was extremely positive and helped illustrate the resilience of the travel industry.

Opened by His Excellency Dr Atef Abeid, Prime Minster of Egypt, and His Excellency Dr Mamdouh El Beltagui, Minster of Tourism, both expressed their appreciation to all delegates for coming to Egypt in spite of the attacks on the US and said that the presence was an expression of strong solidarity with the Egyptian travel industry. Tom Nutley, Managing Director, Reed Travel Exhibitions added “it is at industry meeting places such as this event that we can demonstrate our belief in the industry’s future and the importance it plays in terms of one of the world’s largest industries”.

Initial figures are extremely encouraging and show massive support for the travel industry, particularly within the Mediterranean and Middle East region. “People are understanding of the fact that the current situation will affect the number of buyers attending”, commented Matt Thompson, Group Exhibition Director, Reed Travel Exhibitions. Unaudited figures show attendance from nearly 3000 delegates of which over 500 were international from 49 countries. It was clearly evident that everyone at MTF was feeling positive. “We have been extremely busy and have done lots of business for next year. Of course the incident in America has had an effect but that is even more reason to be seen. The visitors have matched our desired profile perfectly”, said Gurcan Kosar, Operations Director, Voyager Touristic Service, Turkey.

“I had 18 appointments on the first day. As Argentina is a new, up and coming destination, it is important for me to meet new contacts and I have done this at MTF. I have met buyers here from a number of countries, Russia, Spain, Bulgaria, Slovakia, Hungary, Canada, Hong Kong to name but a few”, said Julian Videla, Vice President, TC Tango Endless Emotions, Argentina. Likewise, Millennium Hotels from the UK, were at the show to obtain new contacts and to promote brand awareness in the region. “I have written a lot of business here. The Egyptian market in particular is very interested in our brand but other prime interest has come from Europe, America and the UK”, commented Diana Banks, Director of Sales - Europe.

Trade and Meridian Club members also expressed their enthusiasm for the event. “To be present at MTF has been important for us, and the opportunity to meet specific tour operators extremely worth while”, Norman Pressy, Integrity Travel, Australia. “The networking has been very good – the people have been fantastic. This is great for building relationships and business development”, Ashraf Anwar, Odysseus, Sweden.

The seminars that took place at MTF were well attended especially that of the Egyptian Hotel Association – Experience of Safaga in which Dr Mamdouh El Beltagui headed the discussion. In addition, at the spectacular Gala Dinner, held at the Mena House overlooked by the Great Pyramids, MTF delegates enjoyed an evening of networking and fine dining.

Although attendance figures were not as high as pre-registration would have previously indicated it was clear that those who did attend MTF had come to do business and that the industry certainly remains positive. The firm message was ‘business as usual’. “We believe in the show, we believe in the region and that’s why we continued with the event. There have been a lot of people here doing business, our pre-registration figures were up and stands are already being booked for next year”, said Matt Thompson.