MITT Welcomes Cuba as 2013 Partner Country

The Moscow International Travel and Tourism Exhibition (MITT) is pleased to announce that Cuba will be the 2013 Partner Country for Russia and Eastern Europe’s largest travel exhibition.

As Partner Country, Cuba will be able to raise the profile their destination to the Russian outbound market, and raise the awareness of what Cuba can offer as a holiday destination. As part of their stand, Cuba will host a range of exhibitors that wish to draw more tourists from the lucrative Russian tourism industry.

Estefania R. Escobar Diaz. Ministry of Cuba, Moscow office Director, commented, “Russian arrivals to Cuba have increased significantly in the past few years. This undoubtedly is the result of close cooperation with tour operators, who love our destination and the airlines: Aeroflot, Transaero, Air France, Cubana de Aviacion, our media partners and our friends.
Russian arrivals to Cuba have increased significantly in the past few years. In 2009, there were 37,000 Russian tourists and in 2011 there was an increase to 78,000. We are very keen to continue this growth and thus decided to become a Partner Country at MITT exhibition in its 20th anniversary year, as MITT`s position on the international markets gives us great potential.”

Maria Badakh, Head of Sales, ITE Group plc commented, “We are delighted to welcome Cuba as our Partner Country for the 20th annual edition of MITT. Cuba will enjoy a range of promotion, before, during and after the show, which will draw a high level of attention to the country. The Association of Tour Operators of Russia states that Russia is ahead of other BRICS countries such as Brazil, India, and China in terms of the number of travellers spending vacations abroad. The flow of Russians vacationing internationally has grown by 50 percent over the past five years to 43.7 million trips abroad, meaning the Russian market is a prime market to target for tourist destinations.”

MITT 2012 had an attendance of 82,933, with 3,000 companies from 197 countries and regions exhibiting. The first three days of the exhibition, 20, 21 and 22 March, are exclusively for professionals of the tourism industry.

ITE Group Plc, a leading organizer of international exhibitions and conferences in fast-developing and emerging markets. The Group comprises 27 offices worldwide and organizes over 200 events every year in 15 countries.