Africa Travel WeekThe bumper Africa Travel Week Content Programme, featured over the three-day virtual event this week, will be available on demand for viewing on ATW virtual until 9 May, with selected sessions added to ATW Connect from mid-May.
Over 170 international and Africa speakers unpacked current cutting-edge topics on all aspects of tourism that affect the continent, from LGBTQ+ Travel to responsible tourism, source market demands to touchless technology and more.
Highlights included:
The changing landscape of hospitality
Held in conjunction with IGLTA, this webinar explored the impact that a proactive diversity, equity and inclusion strategy can have on travel and tourism. The session included case studies from The Travel Corporation delivered by Sherwin Banda, President African Travel Inc, and Hyatt Hotels Corporation shared by Tyronne Stoudemire, Global VP of Diversity Equity and Inclusion, ending with practical training session created by HospitableMe delivered by Co-founder Kenny Porpora.
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What does the future hold for group travel?
At the end of 2019, the group travel sector was flourishing. The formula was a winning one – provide travellers with the chance to meet likeminded people while experiencing new destinations. And then 2020 arrived and everything came to a grinding halt. A future that once seemed so bright was suddenly murky, with no clear path to navigate out of the gloom. But this is also a resilient industry – one that has managed to find ways to reinvent itself to resume operations – as was discussed during Africa Travel Week Virtual in a panel discussion tackling the important question: what does the future hold for group travel?
Exclusive-Use Travel – the real deal or hype?
The desire to travel within “bubbles” and limiting the risk involved when sharing aircrafts, vehicles and accommodation has given rise to renewed interest in exclusive-use offerings. But in Africa, the trend towards sole-use travel wasn’t a particularly new one, but rather something that had been gradually growing in popularity as an increasing number of families or groups of friends sought to travel together, having full run of the properties they chose to stay at. In an African Travel Week Virtual panel discussion, powered by ILTM Africa, a group of experts gathered to discuss their opinions on whether exclusive-use travel was a fleeting trend, or something we should expect to stick around long after pandemic.
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The changing landscape of Africa’s source markets
Which source markets will be among the first to resume regular long-haul travel to Africa? And how should you be adapting both your offering and marketing message in order to capture the interest of these travellers who will likely be embarking on journeys with a renewed post-Covid mindset? This was the topic of an Africa Travel Week Virtual conference session, focusing on the Changing Landscape of Africa’s Source Markets, moderated by tourism and hospitality advisor, Gillian Saunders.
The New Normal: Where to go from the pandemic?
The adverse effect that the COVID-19 global pandemic has had on the travel, tourism and hospitality sectors has been undeniable. So much so, that the pandemic has set global arrivals back 30 years in arrears. While much has been said about the ‘new normal’, do we really know what it means and where to go from the pandemic? Joining Africa Travel Week to unpack the way forward is Christele Chokossa, a consultant for Euromonitor International.
Domestic tourism to the rescue
With Covid-19 travel restrictions still in place and countries going in and out of various lockdown levels, the spotlight is firmly on domestic tourism. Domestic and regional tourism is the light at the end of the tunnel, that holy grail that governments, tourism industries and stakeholders hope will ensure the sector’s survival until international travel resumes.
Can Gen Z save the travel industry?
Gen Z, also called Generation C, is the world’s youngest generation, living through a time of pandemic and a time when, hopefully, the world hopes to welcome some significant positive changes. This talk unpacks how to appeal to this important current and future travel market. Watch Now
Responsible Tourism at WTM Africa has global relevance
We can learn much about tourism in Africa, celebrating diversity and inclusiveness, about growing the cake to create more value for neighbouring communities, living with and benefitting from biodiversity (some of it dangerous), and the importance of transparency. One of the few benefits of a virtual programme is that we can have speakers from around the world on the panels at WTM Africa and that they can be shared worldwide.
WANT MORE?
Enjoy a sneak preview of some of the presentations and panel discussions that will be available:
- The Future of Business Events: 2021 & Beyond
- Air Transport – the key to Africa’s tourism recovery
- The Opportunity of Domestic Travel
All the content sessions will be available on Africa Travel Week’s virtual portal until 9 May with selected sessions available from mid-May on ATW Connect. To access ATW Virtual, register here: https://atwconnect.com/register2021/.
The insights that the international panelists and presenters have shared with delegates provide a captivating lens on the challenges our industry faces during COVID, but more than this the opportunities that exist for tourism within the constraints, says Martin Hiller, Reed Exhibitions – South Africa Creative & Content Director: Travel, Tourism & Creative Industries.
“We have been delighted with the feedback we have received from attendees who have described the programme as ‘inspiring’ and ‘engaging’. There is just so much important content that we can all benefit from in the tourism industry in Africa and beyond, we are pleased to be able to share much of it on our ATW Connect platform. We recommend anyone interested in or engaged with tourism on the continent visits the site to see what insights have been shared this week,” concludes Hiller.
In addition to the virtual show in April, ATW has lined up a collection of additional events throughout the year, which include:
- Educational content webinars from May to August.
- Africa Travel Week: Connect in the City Live from 1-3 September, including on-site experiences in the official Host City of Cape Town.
- A series of virtual masterclasses from September to November.
