Most of our readers will be staying and working here in Berlin for the next few days, with the most important trade show of global tourism, ITB, about to open its gates.

In order to facilitate your work here, we will be offering you, dear readers, our first ever ITB support.

Germany’s largest poker tournament, EPT, hosted by Grand Hyatt Hotel and visited by international guests, was robbed by unknown suspects. The perpetrators were reportedly heavily armed with machine guns, machetes and hand grenades. They were going after the jackpot.

by Dennis Hanneke

Indonesia – the country comprising over 17,000 tropical islands – will again be present at the prestigious Internationale Tourismus Bourse, ITB, to be held in Berlin, Germany, from 10-13 March 2010.

Represented by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, Indonesian tourism industry members, Regional Governments and private sector associations, Indonesia’s pavilion covers 800 sq meters located at Hall 26C no. 308 at Messegelande Berlin.

Bright Blooms and Fantastical Oversized Ants Celebrate Beauty and Whimsy of Mother Nature’s Busiest Season

In celebration of spring, Bellagio’s Conservatory & Botanical Gardens in Las Vegas will feature a spectacular floral exhibition filled with vivid blooms and a magnificent one-of-a-kind series of large-scale bronze sculptural ants.  Inspired by the social nature of these industrious creatures, American artist Susan P. Cochran created a seven-member colony that represents the ideals of cooperation and teamwork.

From 24th to 27th February 2010, European Cities Marketing had the honour of being hosted by the city of Turku (Finland) on the occasion of the ECM Spring Meeting. Delegates had the opportunity to attend a one-day seminar, learn from numerous case studies and participate in various workshops on sustainability.

Preliminary figures released by the Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) indicate that the numbers of international visitors to the Asia Pacific region* fell by an estimated three percent year-on-year for calendar year 2009, a much improved result considering the fact that the rate of decline was six percent for the first half of the year.