Largest international meeting of the tourism industry: Pow Wow Berlin Brandenburg from 31.1.–2.2.2014. A weekend for Germany’s capital region: from 31 January to 2 February 2014, international tour operators will be gathering in Berlin for the Pow Wow incoming event. This is already the third Pow Wow to be organised by visitBerlin and TMB (Tourismus-Marketing Brandenburg GmbH).

The 18th edition of MITM Euromed, Meetings and Incentive Travel Market, will be held in the city of Cadiz, Spain, from June 11th to 13th, 2014, sponsored by Cadiz Provincial Council. MITM Euromed is an interactive international fair, pioneer in the MICE tourism in Europe.

ITB World Travel Trends Report confirms Asia’s key role in global tourism – China the undisputed leader in a booming market
This year Asia is once again among the major forces driving the international tourism market. This is one of the findings of the annual ITB World Travel Trends Report, conducted by IPK International and commissioned by the world’s leading travel trade show. According to its figures Asia posted impressive growth. The Chinese were particularly frequent travellers while the usually strong Japanese market experienced difficulties.

Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, today announced the launch of a four times per week service from Abu Dhabi to Yerevan, the capital of the Republic of Armenia, from 2 July 2014. The UAE flag carrier will operate a two-class Airbus A320 aircraft with 16 Pearl Business Class and 120 Coral Economy Class seats, offering a total of 1,088 seats per week.

Addressing the Royal Aeronautical Society at the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) headquarters, UNWTO Secretary-General Taleb Rifai called for increased visa facilitation and the liberalization of air transport (Montreal, 5 December 2013).

International tourism an engine for the economic recovery
In the first nine months of 2013, international tourism grew by 5% according to the latest UNWTO World Tourism Barometer. The number of international tourist arrivals reported by destinations around the world increased by some 41 million between January and September, growing above UNWTO’s initial forecast and creating an important stimulus to the receiving economies.