The first edition of the international travel trade event will take place in London this September
Jacobs Media Group has announced that it will host an annual international travel trade hybrid event to connect suppliers from around the world with leading industry buyers and decision-makers.
The inaugural Global Travel Week will take place at London’s Kia Oval from 27-30 September. The event has been created to support the recovery and resurgence of the travel industry and will cover a range of travel segments, including luxury, meetings and incentives, wellbeing, adventure, weddings, mainstream travel and travel technology.
Global Travel Week will utilise the Connections format of developing business relationships through shared experiences and will host a number of initiatives including highly-targeted one-to-one meetings conducted in the ‘Connections Way’ for the luxury and mainstream sectors, as well as insightful panel discussions, networking receptions, working lunches and a conference on travel technology.
In addition, content sessions will be led by other brands within the Jacobs Media Group portfolio, namely: Travel Weekly, Aspire, Unity Through Tourism, the Global Travel & Tourism Resilience Council and the Association of Touring and Adventure Suppliers (ATAS).
The event will also cater to specific sectors with Connections Luxury hosting a dedicated programme for its global luxury travel membership, and Jacobs Media Group’s travel technology brand Travolution hosting a one-day Travolution European Summit.
Organisers will offer flexibility for delegates who are unable to attend in-person. As a hybrid event, Global Travel Week will host a separate virtual programme, which will run 4-5 October.
Jacobs Media Group chief executive Duncan Horton said: “As the global voice for the travel and hospitality industries and the recipient of the Queen’s Award for Enterprise in International Trade, Jacobs Media Group offers an unrivalled multimedia portfolio which connects, informs and inspires these dynamic and evolving sectors.
“We look forward to using the market-leading power of our brands to bring the travel industry together and help drive the recovery process for travel buyers and suppliers alike.”
Connections managing director Micaela Giacobbe said: “The last year has been an incredibly challenging one for our industry. In response, we shifted the Connections Way of doing business online and successfully held six events for Connections Luxury members and tourist boards. More than 1,600 suppliers and buyers met through almost 14,000 one-to-one virtual meetings, with 75 experiences delivered live from around the world; each event achieved a 98-100% satisfaction rate.
“The Connections Luxury private community also welcomed 188 new members from over 42 different countries, proving that there continues to be a positive appetite for doing business. We look forward to our international network coming together at the inaugural Global Travel Week later this year.”
Participating tourist boards already confirmed include the Italian National Tourist Board, Visit Portugal, Malta Tourism Authority, Slovenia Tourist Board, Tourism Council of Bhutan and Turks & Caicos Tourism Board.
Global Travel Week is supported by partners including McKenzie Gayle Limited, New Deal Europe and Nordic Tourism Collective.
For more information and to register, visit globaltravelweek.com