‘Can the Balkans sustain its tourism boom?’ Speakers announced to discuss this and other topics at New Deal Europe Marketplace & Forum 2024
The greatest selection of South East Europe tourism professionals ever assembled will be taking part in the New Deal Europe Marketplace and Forum in London on 16th April.
The sold out event, covering destinations ‘from the Alps to the Aegean,’ has attracted a record number of tourism professionals, with over 90 buyer and 65 supplier companies registered to participate in the B2B marketplace, a 30% increase on the previous year.
‘We’re thrilled to see such a strong turnout this year and are looking forward to a productive and insightful event’ said Tine Murn, New Deal Europe’s co-founder and director. ‘South East Europe is one of the fastest growing tourism destinations in the world right now, and the New Deal Europe Marketplace and Forum is the perfect platform for businesses to meet and explore new opportunities here,’ added NDE’s co-director Robert Dee.
The Forum element of the event will focus on the incredible growth in tourism to the Balkan region, with a keynote panel discussing whether this is good for the destination and if the growth is sustainable in the long term. It will be chaired by ETOA’s Director of Insight, Rachel Read, and panellists including UK tour operator, Melissa Tilling, CEO of Sustainable Journeys by Charitable Travel, and Dritan Xhengo, Managing Director and founder of Past & Present Journeys, a DMC from Albania, a country which last year welcomed over 10 million tourists for the first time. They will be joined by Krassimir Kiriakov, Head of the Commercial and Economic Section at the Bulgarian Embassy and a former Government Minister, who will be bringing his extensive public sector experience to the debate.
The Forum will begin with a presentation by Nejc Jus, Director of Research at the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC), who will delve into their recently published data on tourism in the region.
‘New Deal Europe are highlighting an important subject at the Forum, and I’m honoured to be taking part’ said Melissa Tilling, adding ‘there is much to debate, with significant implications for other destinations, so I’m really looking forward to the discussion.’
In addition to the forum, the marketplace aims to deliver over 1,200 B2B meetings all focused on generating tourism to the region extending from the Adriatic to the Black Sea covering 12 destinations. ‘We are really looking forward to this year’s event; not only do we have a intriguing panel with enormous expertise in the subject, but we also managed to sell out the event again, with all participating suppliers having full diary.’ concluded Robert Dee.
New Deal Europe is the only travel market platform dedicated to generating business to the South-East Europe and Balkan regions of Europe, www.newdealeurope.com.
Follow us on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/newdealeurope.
