Washington DC to Host WTTC 2006 Summit

The World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) has picked Washington DC as the venue for its 2006 Global Summit, which for some people in the industry is a universal first choice.

The USA does not have a good image abroad, especially in some regions of the world where tourism is emerging as a strong factor in economic growth.

Vincent Wolfington, WTTC chairman, attended the World Travel Market in London last week and he was asked why Washington had been chosen for the WTTC´s big event.

“We have chosen the US for our meeting because it represents 25 percent of the world tourist economy. Although travel to the US is down since 2000, the US remains an important source market for tourism in other countries around the world,” he noted.

Last year, the WTTC Summit was in Qatar, one of Arabian Gulf states where tourism is booming. This year it was in India, a fast-growing tourist market. By contrast, tourism in the US has taken a knock with recent hurricane devastation, yet Washington is the location of the next WTTC Summit.

The WTTC Summit is an annual platform for industry leaders and senior government officials from around the world to meet and discuss key issues that affect the long-term development and success of the global travel and tourism industry, under the watchful eye of the world press.