Travel Companies from around the Globe to Meet in Azerbaijan
In April, Azerbaijan’s International Travel and Tourism Exhibition (AITF) will welcome travel companies and associations from around the world. In its 13th edition, the event will take place at the Baku Expocentre from the 3rd to 5th of April 2014.
National groups from Morocco, Hungary, Montenegro, Indonesia, Egypt, Malaysia, Georgia, Bulgaria, Turkey, Greece, Slovenia, India and the Czech Republic will all congregate.
Newcomers to the event include the Dominican Republic Ministry of Tourism, the Embassy of Argentina in Baku, Ethos Maldives, Splendid Asia, Gartour, Resort Life Maldives, TourAsia, Camelot, Wild Trek Safaris and Greatdays UK.
Also taking place in Baku from the 3rd to 4th of April 2014, is the World Tourism Organization’s (UNWTO) 57th Meeting of the Commission for Europe, and also the Seminar on Developing Effective Tourism Clusters. UNWTO will be promoting their organization at AITF whilst organizing the seminars in Azerbaijan’s capital city.
Sales and Event Manager, Jitka Massolini states: “Azerbaijan’s outbound tourism potential has been increasing year-on-year with annual departures exceeding 3.5 million. Not only is Azerbaijan the largest country in the Caucasus region, its GDP is expected to grow by 6.7% in 2014. AITF enables international destinations to promote their offers to this transient population that is both demographically young and eager to experience new cultures, food and traditions.”
In 2013, the travel fair welcomed over 5,000 travel industry attendees and 250 exhibitors.
The Ministry of Culture and Tourism of the Republic of Azerbaijan has actively supported AITF since the event was launched. It is also supported by the UN World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), the International Tourism Trade Fairs Organization, AzPromo and the National Confederation of Entrepreneurs’ (Employers’) Organizations of the Republic of Azerbaijan. The exhibition has held UFI ‘Approved Event’ status since 2012, confirmation that it meets international standards.
The first two days of AITF will be trade-only – allowing professionals to find out about new destinations, make contacts, and share information. The exhibition will be open to the public on the 5th April 2014. Exhibitors will hold seminars, presentations, lotteries and holiday prize draws at their stands.
Organizers, ITE Group plc, hold over 230 events annually and are one of the world’s leading organizations of business-to-business exhibitions and conferences. The Travel Division annually organizes 10 travel and tourism exhibitions in 6 countries.
