ITB Asia, Messe Berlin's annual travel show in Singapore, closed on Friday with the 2018 edition hailed as a record-breaker with 25,000 business appointments and substantial increases in the numbers of buyers and exhibitors.
The three-day show at Sands Expo and Convention, in Marina Bay Sands, Singapore, recorded an increase of 8.9 per cent of total visitors from more than 127 countries from the 2017 10-year anniversary event.
The thousand-plus buyers at the October 17-19, 2018, event also represented a 49 per cent increase in MICE and corporate buyers from last year's event, with the number of exhibitors rising by 7.9 per cent.
“Having surpassed last year’s impressive milestone, we have yet again achieved record-breaking numbers as we continue to see the show flourish,” said Katrina Leung, managing director of Messe Berlin (Singapore), the organiser of ITB Asia.
“As we look forward to next year’s ITB Asia, we continue to build and strengthen our efforts in maintaining ITB Asia as the premier event of the year and the go-to hub for remarkable travel content and inspiring experiences,” Leung said.
In the show’s largest number of exhibitors to date, countries and regions making a debut included Abu Dhabi, Botswana, Canton Sarajevo, Croatia, Fukuoka, Kansai, Mauritius, Mexico, Papua New Guinea, Poland, Rovaniemi, Slovakia and Ukraine.
Under the overarching theme of “Travel Reimagined”, the conference programme featured more than 260 speakers with industry experts delivering insights at keynote sessions, as well as topics focused on the MICE and Corporate segment, travel and tech, and Muslim travel.
