Madrid all set for the 2004 FITUR tradeshow

The 24th edition of the International Tourism Fair (FITUR) –scheduled for Jan. 28 to Feb 1 next year at the Juan Carlos I Fairgrounds in Madrid- has turned out a reference event for those eager to be hipped on the ongoing situation of world tourism and travel.

For this year’s fair, planners are expecting a turnout of 11,000 exhibitors and some 100,000 delegates and invitees.

Beyond a merely commercial framework, FITUR is penciled in as some kind of barometer to gauge the evolution and specialization of the leisure industry where exhibitors show off their latest trends, products, travel destinations, training programs, consulting services and tourism-applied technological breakthroughs.

The fair is divided in four huge topics: FITUR ACTIVE (devoted to adventure tourism, culture and nature); the KNOW-HOW, specialized in technological advances, consulting and overall knowledge of the sector, MEETINGS & INCENTIVE TRAVEL, and RESIDENTIAL TOURISM, a trend that’s been increasingly catching on all around the globe.

All these sectors will showcase their finest products and services in ten pavilions set up at the Juan Carlos I Fairgrounds in the Spanish capital, the annual tradeshow’s traditional venue.

A good deal of exhibition samples will be devoted to Spain, the second-best tourist power on the face of the earth (trailing only behind France) whose offerings and earnings have been steadily on the rise regardless of a weakened world economy.

According to estimates disclosed by the World Tourism Organization, such unhelpful conditions as wars or economic crises won’t stop international travel from growing even further in coming years, as forecasts point to over one billion trippers worldwide by the year 2010.