Mexico, Thailand and Great Britain won the prize in the Best Stand Category during the Madrid International Tourism Fair (FITUR 2005) that came to a close Sunday in the Spanish capital.
Mexico´s senior PR official in Madrid, Pelayo Alonso, said the jury paid close heed to communicational and promotional actions carried out by exhibitors during the Madrid tradeshow, especially in terms of business contacts and the job conducted by news organizations.
The 73 stands and booths used by North American, Caribbean and Latin American nations that attended FITUR 2005 in Madrid, showed off the finest travel destinations of the New World in which a varied scenery of jungles, tropical forests, beaches and gaudiness can take visitors thousands of miles away.
For Solange Garces, Ecuador´s Tourism Minister, human warmth is one of Latin America´s major assets, together with those cultural values that truly tell the region apart.
More buyers and more exhibitors will be the defining characteristics of the forthcoming Worldwide Exhibition for Incentive Travel, Meetings and Events, IMEX 2005, next April. Strong demand from both existing and new exhibitors has led to a forecast 15 percent increase in size.
Organizers of the event, to be held at Messe Frankfurt´s largest single floor hall, are expecting over 2,500 exhibitors representing 130 countries. The third IMEX is gearing up to be the biggest and busiest yet; with positive industry forecasts underpinning a show that delivers business, said Ray Bloom, IMEX Chairman.
The Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) will hold its 54 annual conference in Macau on April 17 through 21 to address the holistic approach of interconnectivity and its impact on the travel and tourism industry in a fickle global scene.
PATA believes that a stronger and more united global travel and tourism industry needs interconnectivity to thrive and survive the constantly changing economic, political and social conditions of the world.
Tour operators from Uruguay took advantage of FITUR 2005 to ink an agreement with European colleagues, especially from Spain, with a view to promote travel destinations in that South American nation through packages exclusively sold to European tourists.
Authorities in Uruguay estimate some 4,000 European vacationers could travel to Punta del Este, the premier beach destination, during the off-peak season (April through November).
Air France landed in the Madrid International Tourism Fair (FITUR 2005) to launch a new service -called Air France.biz- exclusively designed for travel agents.
The French air carrier made the presentation of its new product at the Maison de la France stand in Pavilion 4 of the Madrid fairgrounds, this time around packed with a record-breaking turnout of exhibitors from over 170 countries.