ILTM Spa - second edition to be held in London from 30th September- 2nd October 2013

Reed Travel Exhibitions (RTE), organiser of International Luxury Travel Market (ILTM), will hold its second ILTM Spa, next year in London from 30th September – 2nd October 2013.

Following the successful launch event held in Austria this year, ILTM Spa will coincide with the annual Tatler Spa Awards seen as one of the world’s international annual spa events.

Alison Gilmore, ILTM Exhibition Director, commented: “ILTM Spa is a high end focused event dedicated to innovators of spa and wellness travel which includes destination spas and leaders in the medical tourism sector. The decision to hold the event in London next year alongside the Tatler Spa Awards, helps bring the whole industry together in one place.  Earlier this year a report by The Director Magazine said that the value of this industry is £39bn with over £5.2bn being spent on spa services in the UK alone, so it’s fitting we meet in London in 2013.”

Francisca Kellett, Travel editor at Tatler added "Tatler is thrilled to be associated with ILTM Spa. Spa breaks are hugely important to our readers (lucky us), and bringing the best of the industry all together in one place next October is an exciting prospect."

The focus of ILTM Spa is to deliver both business and education, so that the travel and leisure industry can keep up to date with the latest destination spas, resorts and personalised experiences offered alongside some of the very best treatments, programmes and therapies.

Up to 100 VIP international and UK Hosted Buyers representing the senior decision makers from specialist tour operators and individual planners of bespoke spa and travel itineraries will be pre-qualified and personally invited to do business with up to 100 exhibitors. There will be a conference on the afternoon of the opening day (30th September), which will focus on the latest spa and wellness issues and medical tourism trends. The following two days will comprise one-to-one pre-scheduled appointments between exhibitors and buyers, and will conclude with the annual Tatler Spa Awards.

Next Hearing On Tourism Ban On October 3

The tourism sector now has to wait until the 3rd of October to see whether or not the wildlife parks will open to the public. After hearing arguments on Thursday, by the MoEF, the Honourable Bench advised the States and all other petitioners to submit any and all objections to the new guidelines within 3 days. The Bench further stated that the counsels of all the petitioners will be given 10 minutes each on 3rd October to make an oral presentation of their objections. 

The Bench made it absolutely clear that it would only pass judgment once it was completely satisfied that the proposed guidelines were adequate and after the State Governments were notified to follow them. The Bench further indicated that it was inclined to modifying the ban on tourism in core areas as undue prejudice and harm was being inflicted on various parties as a result of their ban. 

With these directions from the Bench it is clear that both judges on the panel are positively inclined to open the parks but it would require them to hear out each and every petitioner. They also indicated that they may open the parks with the current proposed guidelines or with certain modifications to the guidelines. 

The nod that they have given the tourism sector is the understanding that a long drawn out court case hurts the livelihood of those involved and that they are determined to deal with this matter swiftly and without prejudice. 

Mr. Parvez Dewan, IAS, will take over from Rajen Habib (R H) Khwaja as Secretary - Tourism, Government of India. A 1977-batch IAS of Jammu & Kashmir (J&K) cadre, Dewan will assume office from first week of October 2012 in the Ministry of Tourism. Parvez Dewan has been Secretary in Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs before this. In his more than three decades of service, he has handled various res

ponsibilities, including in the Department of Tourism in both home cadre, J&K, as well as in the Centre cadre. He was Secretary - Tourism, J&K from 1992 to 1994 and Commissioner-cum-Secretary of J&K between 1998 and 2001. He was also the Chairman and Managing Director, India Tourism Development Corporation (ITDC), a public sector under the Ministry of Tourism, Government of India between 2006 and 2009. He was instrumental in preparing the groundwork for Commonwealth Games as Chairman and Managing Director of ITDC.

IMEX America Index of Optimism Shows Industry Glass Remains “Half Full” With 76% of Respondents Feeling Optimistic

Results from the latest IMEX America Index of Optimism suggest that North American buyers and suppliers remain firmly optimistic about future business prospects despite having to face up to continued economic challenges. Just over 312 buyers and suppliers responded to the survey which was undertaken by the IMEX Group in July. (Total respondents: 312. Buyers - 73%; Suppliers - 27%). When asked if they are currently feeling “more or less optimistic about the meetings industry than a year ago,” 76% agreed they are more optimistic. This compares to a slighter larger majority of 79% in February 2012 (albeit with fewer answering this specific question – Feb 2012: 146 compared to July 2012: 195).  Last year just 66% (155 respondents) felt more optimistic than 12 months before. Further survey data in the final quarter are likely to show whether this is a sound upward trend or a short-term reaction.

84% Report Uptick in New Business Sources in Last Six Months

A strong majority of 84% of respondents also revealed they had attracted new sources of business in the last six months, suggesting that signs of growth are starting to show through in a more reliable way, especially when compared to 12 months ago when just 73% felt that business was picking up. 11% said they hadn’t increased business levels and the remaining 5% declared “don’t know.”  Asked to compare their current situation with the previous six month period 46% felt it was “about the same” but a healthy 42% declared “it’s definitely getting better.” Almost half of those surveyed – 46.5% - have also seen an increase in the number of attendees taking part in their events, although for 28% there was no discernible rise.  In July last year 50% felt that numbers were growing, while in February 2012 it was 53%. However, given the relatively small sample size, this slight downturn is not thought to represent a significant trend but a reflection of normal business cycles. In turn, 35% felt there was good evidence to show that spending per participant at their events had grown, although a majority of 43% have yet to see this important measure start to rise. A further 22% were “not sure.”

Political influences

Finally, when questioned regarding the impact the US presidential election campaign might have on their businesses in the next six months, mixed opinions were generated. While some felt that the pre-election period had not, and would not, impact their business, others felt that it had slowed down decision-making within the sector. Obama’s possible re-election also produced varied viewpoints. Comments ranged from “if Obama gets elected it will get better”, to another respondent who said his re-election would cause “the economy to slow down and business to retreat”.  Other comments included “the logjam needs to break” while one respondent reflected the views of several others with: “We are looking for new, effective leadership and I’m not sure that either candidate applies.” IMEX America kicks off at the Sands Expo in Las Vegas with Smart Monday – Powered by MPI – on Oct.08, followed by a three day trade show set to welcome in excess of 2000 hosted buyers, thousands more buyer attendees and around 2000 exhibiting companies from all over the world. Registration is free and online

Link to this story online.

About IMEX America IMEX America is America’s worldwide exhibition for incentive travel, meetings and events and is already the largest trade show for the industry in the USA. The second edition will take place at the Sands Expo, Las Vegas, (which is connected to the show's Headquarters Hotel, The Venetian®|The Palazzo®), Oct 9 – 11, 2012. The show's strategic partner and premier educational provider is MPI, who power “Smart Monday” - Oct. 08 – a full day of education on the day prior to the tradeshow. Smart Monday also includes a range of high level education delivered by other partners and associations; including Association Focus – a conference within a conference for association meeting planners – delivered by ASAE, ICCA and PCMA. IMEX also has an exclusive partnership with the US Travel Association and is endorsed by DMAI and Site, has an Industry Partnership with PCMA and is an ICCA Business Partner. Other supporting associations include: ACTE Global, ADME, AIPC, AMCI, ASAE: The Center for Association Leadership, Association Forum of Chicagoland, CIC, CSAE, ECM, FICP, GMIC, IACC, IAEE, IAPCO, ISES, JMIC, PATA, SKAL, Spin. A list of industry and media partners can be found here. Follow us on Twitter Facebook LinkedIn and (German) XING Use #imex12 to follow both shows.  http://www.imexamerica.com/social.html

Last night’s Winners provide inspiration for the future of the Indian Wildlife Tourism industry

 TOFTigers, India’s leading advocate for responsible wildlife tourism held its 2^nd Wildlife Tourism Awards last night at the Ambassador hotel in New Delhi.

“What we have always said is that India does have many inspiration people and businesses involved in the nature tourism sector, changing lives, saving forest and wildlife and supporting people, often overlooked in the heated debate of the present tourism ban,” says the TOFT awards founder, Julian Matthews. “If all nature tourism was like this, India’s wildlife tourism would not be in its present impasse.”

Winners include superb naturalists, NGO’s funded by tourism, now treating 90,000 patients on the borders of a tiger reserve, park guides that spend their spare time training and educating, private sanctuaries that have restored fabulous waterfalls and stitched back two parks on its boundaries, beautiful tiger reserves with blooming tiger populations and lodges that now have resident wildlife and even tigers in their restored landscapes.

This is the future of nature tourism.

It is already here and we all need to ensure such inspirational examples are replicated across India in the future.

Full details below.

Contact Julian Matthews on 09717528977 or admin@toftindia.org for further details or photos

LODGE NATURALIST OF THE YEAR 2012

Winner:   Rajesh Bhatt - Jim's Jungle Lodge- Corbett, Uttarakhand

At 40 Rajesh Bhatt is an extraordinary guide and conservationist who is almost entirely self-taught and is presently taking a Masters course in environment and ecology from Manipal University.  He has great botanical knowledge, is a good birder and his passion for conservation sees him teaching and training forest guards and panchayat heads. He runs ecotourism courses across India. He set up his own NGO that help train fellow guides and school kids called ‘Rainbow’. 

Contact:  rajeshbhatt0@rediffmail.com

WILDLIFE PROMOTION COMPANY OF THE 2012

Winner:    &Beyond India   

& Beyond is run by naturalists and experts who had their roots in wildlife and guiding with a real sensitivity to Eco Tourism.  They have had the benefit of a large organisation to promote them, but have used this to help put India on the map as a wildlife destination, across the globe.

Media contact:   reinee.ghosh@andbeyondindia.com   website www.andbeyondindia.com  

WILDLIFE TOURISM COMMUNITY INITIATIVE OF THE YEAR 2012  

Winner:     Prakratik Society- Ranthambore

The Prakratik Society was founded by Goverdhan Singh Rathore . For the past 20 years the society has been working with local communities living around the Ranthambhore National Park providing health care with two hospitals serving over 90,000 patients a year, a top school with 250 pupils  dairy development and alternate energy all aimed to encourage sustainable co-existence of people with the wilderness environment on their doorstep. All of it supported and often funded by tourism. 

Contact:  info@prakratiksociety.org

WILDLIFE AND TOURISM INITIATIVE OF THE YEAR 2012

Winner:  Wildernest  - Goa

Wildernest have created a large 450 acre private sanctuary, a vital Tiger corridor between Mahdei Wildlife in Goa and the Bhimgad Wildlife sanctuary in Karnataka, and now they are trying to get their Swapnagandha Valley designated as part of these Tiger Reserves. Originally saved from mining interests, these areas have become tiger corridors and Wildernest presence has helped stitch back this area and curbed poaching threat over a long period of time.

Contact:   ophidian_nirmal@yahoo.co.in   website www.wildernest-goa.com  

VISITOR FRIENDLY WILDLIFE DESTINATION OF THE YEAR 2012  

Winner:   Ranthambhore Tiger Reserve - Rajasthan

Ranthambhore is now an excellent wildlife experience, and has a blooming tiger population.    Visitor  numbers are close to 150,000 but the tourism is managed by opening up more areas with fewer vehicles, greater sensitivity, better cooperation between tourism, guides and park management and good use of NGO’s to support park management and communities. Thanks to converting 10 cattle herders to guides, a whole new part of the park has seen a new generation of tigers arrive after 25 years.

Contact:  gvreddy.rajforests@gmail.com  

THE BILLY ARJAN SINGH MEMORIAL AWARD FOR BEST WILDLIFE GUIDE OF THE YEAR 2012

Joint Winner:      Yadvendra Singh Rajawat  -  Ranthambhore  

Yadvendra has worked in Ranthambhore for 20 years and been the President of the Guide Association for ten of these years. He is dedicated to Ranthambhore, and a preferred guide to a number of well-known operators.  He is a regular volunteer on Census operations and works closely with the management team to root out bad practices.  He runs many training programmes for new guides and takes part in anti-poaching patrols and fire service when necessary.

Contact:  yadtiger@gmail.com

Joint Winner:  Vipal Jain - Ranthambhore

Vipal has worked in park since 1993 and has been involved with a number of travel companies and their NGO’s that run projects in and around the area the Tiger Awareness charity.

Contact:  vipultiger2001@gmail.com

THE JOHN WAKEFIELD MEMORIAL AWARD FOR MOST INSPIRATIONAL ECO LODGE OF THE YEAR 2012

Joint Winner: Mahua Kothi - Bandhavgarh  

Run by &Beyond (Tajsafaris) since 2006, it’s 26 acres have a small and aesthetically well placed building footprint that borders an important corridor between the Tala and the Khitauli range of the park, and allows the remainder free range for wildlife. It is run by an Ex WII wildlife biologist Neel Gogate and his team.  The lodge involves the local community in its work, provided world class training to all staff, and also supports many projects including helping reintroduce the wild Gaur back into Bandhavgarh.

Contact:  neel.gogate@tajsafaris.com    Website www.tajsafaris.com

Joint Winner: Tiger Trails Jungle Lodge Tadoba      

Started in 1996 this lodge is an really good example of how tourism can transform life, turning barren land and dried up stream beds back to life to create a haven for wildlife. It’s based on 30 acres of land, of which the building footprint is kept to a small area with a further 9 restored to wildlife. Its effect has been the transformation of the park area too, with decreasing in poaching, restoration of rivers and trees and bountiful wildlife has returned and new and stable livelihoods for bordering communities.

Contact:   info@tigertrails.in   website www.tigertrails.in

 

TOFTIGERS are delighted to announce the shortlist for the TOFT Wildlife Tourism Awards 2012

TOFTIGERS are delighted to announce the shortlist for the TOFT Wildlife Tourism Awards 2012

The response to the TOFT Awards has been fantastic with a large number of nominations for 8 separate award categories. It has been a difficult job compiling the shortlist below from such excellent companies, NGO’s, individuals and organisations.      

MOST INSPIRATIONAL ECO LODGE 2012

Dholes Den                                  Bandipur                             

Chitvan Jungle Lodge                   Kanha

Tiger Trails Jungle Lodge             Tadoba

Singinawa Jungle Lodge              Kanha

Reni Pani Jungle Lodge               Satpura

The Oberoi Vanyavilas                Rajasthan                              

Orange County Resort                 Nagarhole

Forsyth’s Lodge                           Satpura

Mahua Kothi                                Bandhavgarh

BEST WILDLIFE TOURISM INITIATIVE 2012

Pugdundee Safaris and Ken River Lodge      Madhya Pradesh

The Great Himalayan Bird Count (ARCH)     Utterakhand

Wildernest                                                            Goa

BEST LODGE NATURALIST 2012

Shukra Kumal                                    Ken River Lodge   Pench

Ratna Singh                                        Taj Safaris    Madhya Pradesh

David Raju                                           Forsyth Lodge   Satpura

Rajesh Bhatt                                      Jim’s Jungle Lodge   Corbett

BEST PARK GUIDE 2012

Yadvendra Singh                              Ranthambhore

Vipal Jain                                             Ranthambhore

Guru Prasad Yadav                          Kanha

Ajay Marskole                                   Pench

BEST TOURIST RELATED COMMUNITY INITIATIVE 2012

Prakratik Society                              Ranthambhore

Shakti Himalayas                              Utterakhand, Sikkim and Ladakh

BEST WILDLIFE PARK FOR TOURISM 2012

Ranthambhore Tiger Reserve     Rajasthan

Pench Tiger Reserve                       Madhya Pradesh

BEST WILDLIFE PROMOTION COMPANY 2012

Travel Inn

Royal Expeditions

Eastbound Tours

&Beyond India

BEST INTERNATIONAL TOUR OPERATOR FOR WILDLIFE PROMOTION 2012

Sawadee                                             Netherlands

Cox and Kings UK                             UK

Natural World Safaris                     UK

Winners and Runners Up will be announced at the Awards Ceremony which will be held on 14 September at Vivanta by Taj - Ambassador Hotel, Subramania Bharti Marg. New Delhi

TOFT Wildlife Tourism Awards 2012 To Go Ahead As Planned

TOFT Wildlife Tourism Awards 2012 To Go Ahead As Planned

TOFT has announced that the 2^nd TOFT Wildlife Tourism Awards scheduled for 14^th September, 2012 are still going ahead, in spite of the Government ban on Tourism.  TOFT has had over 80 nominations for 8 separate award categories and the shortlist of each award will be published shortly. This year’s awards are being held at the India Habitat Centre on Lodhi Road.

In 2010 TOFT launched the TOFT Wildlife Tourism Awards to honour and acknowledge the contribution of the women and men who work tirelessly towards the preservation of our forests and their inhabitants. These people not only attempt to preserve our natural heritage but also strive to strike a balance between the natural world and the local population around our parks. They educate and employ local youth thus converting those that once saw the forests as a meal ticket to people who now care for and protect it.

The tourism ban has obviously hit hard all those involved with the industry; however, their contribution has to be acknowledged. There is a ban, there are people out of work and their future is murky at best. Keeping all this is mind TOFT awards 2012 is striving to give these men and women what is their due. The future may be uncertain but the past is not and all that has been achieved is written in stone. On the 14^th of September we will stand up and salute the many ordinary citizens of our country who have dared to dream, who have dared to make a difference.

IMEX-MPI-MCI Future Leader Forum comes to India for the first time!!

“Children are the world's most valuable resource and its best hope for the future” – JF Kennedy

Our children are our greatest legacy; we nurture, teach and groom them to be the future leaders of our countries and the world. We pass on to them the lifetime of experience we accumulate for they alone will be the pillars of humanity.

The Future Leaders Forum program that is jointly run by IMEX, MPI (Meeting Professionals International) and MCI, has been developed to encourage the best and brightest students to develop successful careers in meetings industry. Approximately 5,500 students have attended one of over 80 forums that have taken place globally since 2003. Over 90% of participants have said they are more likely to enter the industry as a result of the Future Leaders Forum.

The focus of FLF programmes is on providing the students with opportunities that are not available in regular academic education. It provides students with current industry perspectives from active meeting professionals and also provides the students with knowledge and tools that will help them in their transition from academic education to professional life.

Seeing the potential of the market The Future Leaders Forum was brought to India this year by the IT&CM India in collaboration with and under the guidance of Priti Khanna, Managing Director, MCI Management India. Some of the mentors at the round tables were Miguel Neves- IMEX, Deepika Chowdhry, founder of Candid India and the IMEX sales representative for India, Chander Mansharamani- Vice Chairman- ICPB & Managing Director- Alpcord Network, Deepali Bhatia of Taj Hotels, Resorts & Palaces, Naveen Chhiber – Orient Express Travel Pvt. Ltd.

Since its inception in 2003 nearly 5,100 students have gone through the programme and 2011 alone saw 900 students pass through its hands. The India 2012 IMEX-MPI-MCI Future Leaders Forum is the 12^th such event to take place this year. A series of lectures and presentations from various leading meetings industry professionals were attended by over 60 students from a varied number of educational institutes in the Delhi National Capital Region.

The future leaders were also able to capitalise on the opportunity to interact with senior professionals from the industry in round-table discussions on the different career opportunities open to them including association management, hotels, conference centres and corporate events.

Darren Ng, Managing Director of TTG Asia Media said: “We are passionate about being part of initiatives that hone the future of the MICE industry. The IMEX-MPI-MCI Future Leaders Forum is an excellent platform that achieves just that by engaging bright, young, local minds who are pursuing an education in this domain.”

Carina Bauer, CEO of the IMEX Group, further added: “The Future Leaders Forum is a key initiative within the IMEX calendar. In collaboration with MPI and MCI, our goal is to support the overall development of future talent by delivering valuble information and education.”

The IMEX-MPI-MCI Future Leaders Forum was held on the 22^nd of August and hosted by the IT&CM India event. The IT&CM India event came on the heels of the seventh edition of the India Convention Promotion Bureau’s (ICPB) Convention India Conclave. The two events were held as a series of MICE and corporate travel events organised by TTG events, part of the TTG Asia Media. These events offered international and Indian buyers and exhibitors a chance to exclusively interact, showcase and procure business from each other for mutual benefit.

Vice Chairman, ICPB, Chander Mansharamani put the Future Leaders Forum into perspective and said: “The Indian MICE sector is showing significant growth and looks poised to expand even further. ICPB understands the future manpower requirements in MICE and would like to get the best of students in the fast growing sector.”

Candid India to handle ICPB's 7th Conventions India Conclave in Greater Noida

India Convention Promotion Bureau - Conventions India Conclave

India Convention Promotion Bureau - Conventions India Conclave (CIC)

20 - 21 August 2012 | India Exposition Mart Ltd, Greater NOIDA 
Held In Conjunction With IT&CM India (21 to 23 August 2012), Organised By TTG Events

Meetings, Incentives, Conventions & Exhibitions (MICE) market is a fast growing one and has exhibited a huge potential worldwide. It is a recognized fact that international and regional conferences contribute greatly towards building up of mutual goodwill and understanding, encourage interaction between nations, bring tremendous amount of knowledge and frontier technologies particularly for the developing countries.

There is a growing interest amongst tourists to experience the rich culture and heritage of India. With increasing opportunities for holidays and leisure, India is now becoming one of the leading venues for MICE in the region. The MICE infrastructure in the country has been developing rapidly and convention hotels and conference venues of international standards are being set up in cities across the country. With the corresponding expansion in the network of airline operations, and other infrastructure support, India is ready to position and market itself as an important MICE destination.

As mentioned, the prime focus of the Bureau is to disseminate information regarding the infrastructural facilities and related services available in India for organising Meetings, Incentives and Conventions and also to assist tourism industry to effectively market the MICE potential of India in the international markets.

Over the years, India Convention Promotion Bureau (ICPB) has been organizing Conventions India Conclave as an educational and business promotion event. Conventions India Conclave (CIC) is not a traditional association convention, but is regarded to be South Asia’s premier networking event for buyers and sellers in the Indian meetings industry, organized on the patterns of EIBTM Barcelona and IMEX Frankfurt.

The Conclave of 2012 is of special importance, as this is being held in the background of a historic cooperation agreement with TTG Events, a business group of TTG Asia Media as of September 2011, to bring their flagship show IT&CMA and CTW to India as IT&CM India in 2012. To get the maximum advantage to MICE Industry segment, IT&CM India and CIC will run concurrently. This will be a super initiative for Indian MICE and give ICPB and India tremendous visibility and coverage as a destination as well as a key selling tool.

---

About ICPB
India Convention Promotion Bureau was sponsored by the Ministry of Tourism in close co-ordination and consultation with the tourism and conference industry with the main objective to propagate India’s ability to hold conventions and conferences of all shapes and sizes. Additionally, ICPB is meant to be a catalyst to provide support to conference planners organizations, associations and other trade bodies, during bidding process for international conferences as well as to undertake marketing activities overseas. It provides a strong platform for bringing together buyers and sellers to generate knowledge and commercial opportunity to all concerned. Today, ICPB is the only MICE Industry grouping that can truly boast of participation from the entire industry, with members from hotels, airlines, tour operators, travel agents, professional conference organizers, event managers, educational institutions, central and state governments, media and more. ICPB is chaired by Mr. Devesh Chaturvedi, Additional Director General of Tourism, Ministry of Tourism, Government of India. The management and operations are managed by a Governing Body having members from different segments of MICE Industry.

About TTG Events
Delivering The World’s Business To One Marketplace.
TTG Asia Media’s Events group promotes business opportunities by staging international trade events that bring industry suppliers and buyers to one marketplace. The group is the founder and organiser of the Incentive Travel & Conventions, Meetings (IT&CM) series of MICE and Corporate Travel events in Thailand (IT&CMA and CTW), China (IT&CM China) and India (IT&CM India). It is also the longest-running secretariat appointed to manage the ASEAN Tourism Forum (ATF) Travel Exchange (TRAVEX). Other core trade events include Singapore Gifts & Stationery Show (SGSS) and International Feng Shui Convention (IFSC).

About TTG Asia Media
The Leading Travel and Tourism Publisher and Events Organiser In The Asia-Pacific.
Established in 1974, TTG Asia Media is at the forefront of the Asia-Pacific travel and tourism industry. Its authority encompasses the leisure trade, corporate travel and MICE domains. Through its three business groups, the company publishes leading regional trade titles for the travel industry, Singapore maps and guides for inbound tourists and organises international trade events.
www.ttgasiamedia.com

About the Conventions India Conclave and IT & CM India 2012
CIC 2012 scheduled on 20-21 August 2012 and IT & CM India scheduled on 21-23 August 2012, at India Exposition Mart Ltd, Greater NOIDA, is a highly focused marketing event that targets the conference planner with the objective of encouraging associations and corporate to hold more meeting type events and to encourage Indian associations to invite their international counterparts to bring in their international conventions to India. The event offers international and leading Indian exhibitors and buyers in the industry a dedicated avenue to showcase and procure business.

ICPB Members will show case their products for the benefit of both the Buyers and Sellers, national and international.

The Event would provide an opportunity to interact with the Bureau’s members who are specialists in the organization of meetings and conventions, with the aim of strengthening the brand positioning of `Incredible India’ as a MICE destination, buyers from overseas have also been invited to meet with suppliers from India’s MICE industry and experience the product for themselves. Also, to be included are corporate and large multi-national and trans-national corporations, who have an interest in improving their meeting related purchasing. During the Conclave, they would have opportunities to explore the possibilities of furthering their business opportunities in this emerging segment of the economy.

Another benefit of the event is the range of informal discussions which take place outside the formal program often setting the basis for future long-term relationships.

The participants from overseas would also have an opportunity to join the post tour being organized to give them an opportunity to inspect the infrastructural facilities and also view the diversity of India, its colours, tastes and the unique aromas.

About The Venue
The 2012 event will show case not only what is one of India’s top meeting – exposition venue but also Delhi NCR as a prominent position in regional and global events, with the dominance of advance technology, skilled workforce, improved infrastructure, logistic support and allied know-how. It would also showcase NCR that have understood what the business of convention is all about. The participants will also experience one of the newest and finer airport in South Asia.

India Expo Centre at Greater NOIDA, is the host venue for the Conclave 2012. It is the finest exposition and business center ever to take shape in India. Everything in this state–of-the-art complex has been created to make it the preferred destination for international business exhibitions, trade fairs, conferences and business meets in India.

About the Participants
Around 300 Representatives from National and International Associations, Conference Planners, Specialists from different disciplines, Hotels and Convention Venues, Government Departments, Professional Conference Organizers, Domestic and International Airlines, Professional Institutions for higher learning, Service Providers, Travel Agents organizing Meetings and Conferences, Indian Corporate, MNCS would be participating.

For More Details

• About ICPB: Please visit site at www.icpb.org
• About TTG Asia Media: Please visit site at www.ttgasiamedia.com
• About IT&CM India 2012: Please visit site at www.itcmindia.com

For participation as a hosted buyer get in touch with Candid India team at conclave2012@icpb.org 

ILTM Cannes 2012- Hosted Buyer Program to open from 16th July

ILTM is the leading event for luxury travel where over 1,300 of the very finest high-end properties, most secluded destinations and desired experiences come to showcase what makes them the best in the industry. 

Like our VIP Buyers, our exhibitors go through a qualification process. Exhibitors must meet our luxury travel criteria before they are invited to exhibit at the show. Operating in this way ensures we can deliver you a first-class international selection of luxury travel products and services.


Being an ILTM VIP Buyer brings you face-to-face with those who can make your clients' experiences magical and unlike no other. Whether you're searching for culinary delights to awaken the senses, cultural discoveries to challenge the body and mind or a secret hideaway for ultimate relaxation, ILTM will give you the opportunity to meet one-to-one with 1,300 of the best providers in luxury travel from across the globe.

VIP BUYER QUALIFICATION

As a 'by invitation only' event, strict qualification processes are in place for all VIP Buyers. There is a  high demand on VIP Buyer places and it is only those applications who meet our luxury travel criteria that will be invited to attend the event.

ILTM VIP Buyers are required to fit the following:

• Operate on an outbound basis
• Operate in multiple markets (across 2 or more continents)
• Show evidence of past and future business placed in luxury travel
• Be an established player in the market place
• Demonstrate that you regularly operate with suppliers of luxury travel products and services
• Be a senior decision maker with the authority to procure luxury travel products and services
• ILTM reserves all rights to refuse applications which do not meet the set criteria. VIP Buyer places are also limited per country therefore meeting the minimum criteria will not guarantee acceptance. 

THE VIP BUYER PROGRAMME

All VIP Hosted Buyers at ILTM are obliged to participate in the Pre-Scheduled Appointment Programme as outlined in our Terms and Conditions.

ILTM VIP Hosted Buyers benefit from:

• Four day event programme
• Personal appointment diary of up to 52 appointments with preferred suppliers
• Expert educational content 
• Luxury travel forums and debate
• Exclusive evening networking events
• Additional onsite networking features including; Spotlight on Luxury and Open Networking sessions
• Opportunity to attend a Pre-event Familiarisation Tour
• Up to a maximum of 4 nights luxury accommodation and airport transfers*
• A limited number of hosted flights are available on a first come, first approved basis(buyers who attend ILTM for the full duration)*

Candid India will be shortlisting the names for this year's program from the Indian region. The objective is to introduce new companies to the show and give them an opportunity to get first hand product information from the suppliers at ILTM. There will be some key buyers from top outbound companies as well.

There will be 30-35 buyers from India at ILTM Cannes. ILTM will provide FULL hosting to only 10 Indian buyers, rest will be given SEMI hosting (accommodation and transfers only). 

For further information, please feel free to write to deepika@candidindia.com

REAL LUXURY TRAVEL GROWTH CELEBRATED AT ILTM ASIA 2012

ILTM Asia (International Luxury Travel Market Asia) 2012, the ‘invitation only’ exclusive event for planners and designers of bespoke luxury travel experiences, closed its sixth edition in Shanghai today, announcing that over 21,000 business appointments had taken place during the three day event.

Dedicated to delivering a business environment where VIP hosted buyers meet luxury travel suppliers on an exclusive one-to-one basis, this year’s event saw 440 buyers - an increase of 20% on last year’s event - and suppliers attend the show from 20 countries across the Asia Pacific.

“Returning to ILTM Asia for the third consecutive year we recognise the benefit of attending this show. Everyone is aware of the changing face of business and as we target Chinese and Indian consumers for growth, ILTM Asia has ensured the quality and calibre of buyers reflects this,” said Kozue Murakami, Head of Far East Sales, Maybourne Hotel Group.vws

“Great calibre of buyers, inspirational panel discussions and extremely beneficial networking events; there is no question we will be returning next year. With all eyes set on doing business with China, no other event offers the same range and level of opportunity to build relationships with top tier buyers from the Asia Pacific region,” added Mark Beverlo, International Sales Manager of The Ritz London.

As well as the established classics of luxury travel, ILTM Asia celebrates the independent and innovative experiences for the benefit of the Asia Pacific region’s most discerning luxury travel buyers.

“This was our first experience of an ILTM event. The quality of buyers is incredible and has opened up a host of new markets for us in the Asia Pacific region. It was a wonderful opportunity to meet the media from such a range of diverse countries and allow me the opportunity to introduce Zambezi Queen to this region,”said Tony Stern, CEO, Owner and Designer of Africa’s luxury river safari Zambezi Queen.

Brigitte Lammle of boutique cruises Antarctica XX1 commented, “This is our second ILTM Asia and we have been so busy we ran out of our material! We have seen repeat customers who are now active clients, and also met many new ones. The quality is good and the Asian market is booming. Thanks to ILTM Asia, 1/5^th of our maximum capacity is now sold to the Chinese, despite people thinking that the Chinese market is taking time to access.”

With 231 buyers new to ILTM Asia Mr. Brent Wallace of Fairflights Australia, summed up the agent experience:

“ILTM Asia has been the source of my business success over the last five years. I never thought there would be more to thrill me in luxury travel, but there is and it’s all here at this year’s event,” he said.

Jenny Shabudin of TravCheq Travel, Malaysia added:

“This is the best – I have met many new business opportunities – new ideas that have really excited and inspired me.”

Mr Oliver Yang, Xiao Chun of Yoo Elite Travel commented:

“ILTM Asia just gets better and better and it’s not just the industry leaders like Aman Resorts, XO Private and Silversea, but the smaller experiences in which my clients are increasingly interested.  In fact, my clients are often the first Chinese visitors to many of these destinations.”

And Frank Lin of Shanghai’s Affordable Luxury Network said:

“ILTM Asia is the most productive conference in premier and luxury travel as it’s here that we are really seeing that the industry is increasingly tailoring their offers to Chinese consumers.”

One of the many highlights of this year’s event was the Opening Forum where figureheads from the luxury travel industry, including Ho Kwon Ping of Banyan Tree Hotels and Resorts, shared their insights into Chinese consumer preferences.

“This year’s Opening Forum guest speaker was the most refreshing I can remember. In this industry, honesty is much appreciated. As a native from this market, I feel Ho Kwon Ping gave the qualified perspective we all needed,” said Mr. Vajravon Tasukon, Director of Marketing and Communications for Chiva-Som.

First time exhibitor Richard Schilling, General Manager of the Hotel Martinez in Cannes, France added:

“ILTM Asia has allowed us to visit 20 countries in 3 days – better than an intensive 3 week dedicated roadshow. We have met key new buyers from Australia, Korea and Taiwan including one who wanted to book 20 rooms a week from August to October for VIP clients – we are delighted.”

ILTM Asia also confirmed the growth in demand for adventure, culture and authenticity for the leisure travel itineraries of high net worth individuals across the Asia Pacific. 

Alison Gilmore, ILTM Asia Exhibition Director concluded “ILTM Asia 2012 has revealed a real demand for curated elite travel experiences from the emerging affluent youth in the Asia Pacific region. The results of this year’s show prove once more that ILTM Asia is the leading luxury travel forum to generate new business across this exciting region, as well as confirm long-standing relationships.”

ILTM Asia 2013 will take place 3^rd – 6^th June 2013, again in Shanghai.  ILTM’s focus will now turn to the launch of ILTM Americas taking place from 1^st – 3^rd October 2012 in Mayakoba, Mexico, and the continued success of ILTM, 3^rd – 6^th December 2012 in Cannes, France.  ILTM events are organised by Reed Travel Exhibitions a business unit of Reed Exhibitions. 

IMEX America Announces Sustainability Results From Inaugural 2011 Show

In line with its principles of consistently reducing environmental impact, organizers of IMEX America, the IMEX Group, have announced key results from the inaugural Las Vegas show’s first sustainability program. The report was conducted by IMEX America’s sustainability consultants, MeetGreen^®. 

During the debut of IMEX America in October 2011 in Las Vegas, the IMEX Group set out to collect extensive baseline data against which it could set sustainable benchmarks and report environmental achievements and progress over future years.  The measures included creating programs and partnerships with all major constituents of the trade show including sponsors, exhibitors, attendees, and vendors/service providers. They also incorporated a range of other business activities such as back-office functions.

Green Best Practices Are Where the Rubber Meets the Road

As promised, the IMEX America show featured a number of meetings sustainabilty best practices at the Sands Expo and in various partner hotels. They included the use of show badges and hosted buyer luggage tags made from recycled paper, badge lanyards made from plant silk and sustainable badge holders.  Show bags were reusable and made of recyclable polypropylene, exhibitor waste baskets were reused or recycled,  signage was sourced within 100 miles of the event  and 99% of those signs are now being stored locally for re-use next year.  Additionally, a three-minute anti-idling policy was put in place for all hosted buyer transfer buses. The audio visual company also agreed to source the most efficient lighting and presentation projectors available as well as participating in a lamp-recycling program.

Green  and CSR Meetings Programs Extend Reach Through Innovation

To expand the reach of IMEX America’s green and CSR efforts to the local community, and around the globe, IMEX partnered closely with the IMEX America headquarters hotel and convention center The Venetian®|The Palazzo® and Sands Expo. The company also worked with local non-profits, additional hotels and global non-profit organizations in Las Vegas.

For example, while IMEX America attendees were staying in town they were also helping to provide 563 needy children with enough soap and 280 children with enough bottled amenities for a month’s worth of basic hygiene needs. This was made possible through IMEX’s partnership with Clean the World, a non-profit organization based in Florida that collects gently-used soap and used bottled toiletries from hotel rooms and then recycles, sanitizes and donates them to children in over 42 countries. Las Vegas hotels participating in the IMEX America Clean the World Program included headquarters hotel The Venetian®|The Palazzo®, Wynn, Encore, Caesars Palace, Paris, Planet Hollywood, Cosmopolitan, Bellagio, Hard Rock, MGM Grand Las Vegas, the Mirage Resort and Casino, Mandalay Bay, Mandarin Oriental, ARIA Resort and Casino, and Vdara Hotel and Spa.

Working closely with the show’s exhibition venue, the Sands Expo, the IMEX America team also opted to use compostable rather than disposable service-ware wherever possible. After use it was taken - along with food waste - to a local compost facility to help reduce landfill. In an effort to repurpose any original disposable service-ware that couldn’t be used, IMEX and the Sands also donated items to the Teacher Exchange, a Las Vegas non-proft that collects supplies for resource-deprived teachers.

Unique badge-back idea

IMEX America attendees were also encouraged to recycle their badges on their way out of the show by placing them in a box designated to one of two local non-profit organizations: Opportunity Village, which employs people with intellectual disabilities in Las Vegas, and Shade Tree who provide safe shelter to homeless and abused women and children in crisis. Each of them received a cash donation from IMEX America and the badge-back sponsors, Estoril (Portugal), based on how many badges were collected from their respective collection boxes placed at the show exits.

“Our mission going into the show was to reduce, reuse, recycle and respect,” said Carina Bauer CEO of the IMEX Group. “We think we made some very positive strides towards doing these things right out of the gate and are looking forward to making our performance even stronger at the 2012 show through more innovation, more partnerships and more knowledge about the best way to implement sustainable practices in Las Vegas. Being as green as possible is an important part of the IMEX culture and we extend this commitment into our professional education programs because we know that many others in the industry share the same desire to minimize environmental impact in systematic and measurable ways.”

The Bar is Set With Benchmarks

To establish green and CSR goals for the 2012 IMEX America show, IMEX and its Sustainability Partners, MeetGreen^®, now have some important benchmark data on which to measure success. For example, recycled material from The Venetian®|The Palazzo® and Sands was clocked at 66.4 tons and food donated to a Las Vegas food emergency service amounted to 156.5 lbs.  The carbon footprint avoided during the show amounted to 1.52 metric tonnes of Co2E. IMEX America’s decision to use 95% post-consumer recycled paper wherever possible also resulted in 39 trees, 15 million BTUs of energy and 16K+ gallons of water being saved.  Finally, by eliminating bottled water at show-sponsored events and in locations such as the hosted buyer lounge and press center, over 28k liters of water was saved, with a measurable saving also in the energy and oil that goes into plastic bottle manufacture.

Looking ahead, Bauer stated: “Given that the APEX/ASTM Environmentally Sustainable Event Standards have now been launched we are benchmarking the IMEX America show practices against Level 1 of the standards.  Fortunately, we have the enthusiastic support of our major suppliers to do what can be done to implement as much as possible for IMEX America 2012.  Realistically, we expect that achieving Level 1 will require a multi-year commitment from both our internal team and our vendor partners. We will be documenting our experiences throughout this process and intend to share that as our story unfolds.”

http://www.imexamerica.com/editorsnotes.html
About IMEX America
IMEX America is America’s worldwide exhibition for incentive travel, meetings and events and is already the largest trade show for the industry in the USA. The second edition will take place at the Sands Expo, Las Vegas, (which is connected to the show's Headquarters Hotel, The Venetian®|The Palazzo®), Oct 9 – 11, 2012.
The show's strategic partner and premier educational provider is MPI, who power “Smart Monday” - Oct. 08 – a full day of education on the day prior to the tradeshow. Smart Monday also includes a range of high level education delivered by other partners and associations; including Association Focus – a conference within a conference for association meeting planners – delivered by ASAE, ICCA and PCMA. 

Many centuries past a nameless man lovingly called his country Sone ki Chiriya (Golden Bird) and today when that man’s bones have long been interred to dust that term of endearment still holds true. A shining example of this was brought to light at the recently held International LuxuryTravel Market, Asia (ILTMA) held in Shanghai, China.

Candid India, representative of ILTM in India, guided 53 outbound luxury travel buyers to a successful rendezvous with various purveyors of inbound luxury travel from the Asia-Pacific region. The fact that India still holds all its charm and glory was further strengthened by the sheer number of players from the world’s travel market vying to get a stake in the Indian market.

Seeing the rapid growth of the Indian market it has become increasingly necessary for the industry at large to understand the varied cultures and mindsets in the country in order to be able to deliver the appropriate standard of service to all concerned. Towards this end an educational programme was held at ILTM Asia on 4 June.

This seminar titled What Motivates The Indian Traveller highlighted movements of the Indian luxury traveller and the driving force behind their choice of destinations. Speakers also focused on what can be done by the market to entice the Indian traveller and the incentives and services that the Indian traveller looks for. Panellists at this seminar were  Seemaa Makhija, MD, Travel Voyages; Ashwini Kakkar, EVP, Mercury Travel, Sushil Wadhwa, Chairman & Managing Director of Platinum World Group, all of whom have done ground breaking work in promoting the Indian luxury outbound market.

India’s outbound travel market is not just expected to boom but boom in style with experts predicting travellers from India alone to hit 50 million by 2020. The market has also got a boost from a new demographic that had previously been only a spot on the luxury market, the traveller in the 20s to 30s age bracket.

Thus, looking at the current market situation and planning for a bigger future Candid India will also be taking 40-45 luxury buyers to the International Luxury Travel Market, Cannes. ILTM Cannes has been a leader in promoting luxury travel for over a decade now and this year too will showcase the very best and brightest in the world of luxury travel.

By Guneet Puri

Candid India