WTM Vision Conference Florence
May 18 ■ Fortezza de Basso ■ Florence WEAK EURO OUTLOOK
Despite gloom, WTM speakers find some hope
THE SKY will remain cloudy for economies across Europe, adding to an uncertain travel industry, delegates at WTM Vision in Florence were told. Angelo Rossini, an analyst from
REPORT CONFERENCE
‘Italy needs to offer UK tourists more’
Stefano Gianuario, TTG Italia
ITALY SHOULD do more to compete with other destinations across the Mediterranean when attracting tourists from the UK and other countries, the latest WTM Vision conference heard last week. The event, which took place in
Tuscany’s capital, Florence, marked the final of WTM’s global series of conferences this year, which have been held in London, Moscow, Dubai and Shanghai.
Opening the conference, chairman
of World Travel Market Fiona Jeffery said WTM had opted to run the event in Florence because of its position as the heart of Italian culture, after last year’s event was held in Milan, Italy’s capital of business. The conference also took place during a new event by TTG’s Italian sister title TTGItalia, designed to unite the two greatest aspects of the country: art and tourism, which saw
10 24.05.2012 “Many other
destinations in the Med region offer more economical solutions, while Italian taxes don’t help us” SUSANNA SCIACOVELLI, AIR BERLIN
trade buyers and sellers from across Italy come together. A number of the biggest players in Italian tourism joined a debate at the conference, where they agreed that while the country still has a huge universal appeal, it was not without its issues when it comes to tourism. Susanna Sciacovelli, the director-
general Italia of budget airline Air Berlin, said: “The quality of the experience is often not the first driver
when picking a holiday destination, and many other destinations in the Mediterranean offer more economical solutions. Italian taxes don’t help us, and often tourists are not informed about them until they arrive.” Other speakers said travel businesses in Italy were not moving fast enough with the times, and were suffering as a result. Tommaso Vincenzetti, commercial
director of Amadeus Italia, said: “In private, Italians make great use of technology – but at work we are still very far from the European model. The travel industry in Italy cannot move forward unless technology does.” However, Angelo Cartelli, commercial director of Italian tour operator Eden Viaggi, confessed that he felt the problems in the country’s travel industry ran deeper. “The business model of many tour
operators has been overtaken, and many of us have understood this too late. We are in a time of great difficulty but we also have a great opportunity. Technology must be an ally for all of us, just as it has been for the no-frills airlines,” he said.
■THE EVENT:WTM Vision Conference – Florence ■AUDIENCE: 110 delegates ■THEMES COVERED: The long-term prospects of the travel industry, particularly in Italy – and the unique challenges that inbound and outbound tourism in the country faces ■CONCLUSION: Global travel can expect a strong future thanks to the growing influence of the middle classes in emerging countries, who have more money and a hunger for travel – if countries can ride out the ongoing economic storm
Euromonitor, left attendees in no doubt that between the Greek crisis, tight credit and consumers’ continued reluctance to spend, the slowdown would continue. But it wasn’t all bad news he said, pointing out that “European arrivals from across the globe are growing – already up 3.5% in 2011, with this trend likely to continue this year”. Rossini added that the real growth was in tourists from the BRIC countries in Asia and Latin America, and destinations across Europe should be ready to take more advantage of these visitors. “A curious middle class with a huge desire to travel is being created in the emerging countries. At the moment many of them are tied to their own regions, but the desire to see Europe is definitely there, despite the cost of flying and the competitive environment.” Rossini said the busiest destination
city in the world was currently Hong Kong, which received 22 million arrivals in 2011, up 9% on the previous year. London was the first of the European cities to appear on the list, coming in third.
Rossini: BRIC visitors are growing
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