Featuring around 600 exhibitors from 50 participating countries and regions in some 14,000 SQM of space, ITE and ITE MICE, Hong Kong’s annual travel expo will this year be held from 11 to 14 June 2015. The Expo maintains a highly international profile of exhibitors, with some 85% coming from abroad. Besides destinations and attractions, it also highlights trendy travel themes such as Overseas Wedding, Wellness, Sport Tourism, Cruise and Travel Photography etc through seminars and special displays jointly with related associations.
ITE & MICE 2015, which is a co-location of leisure focused 29th ITE and the 10th ITE MICE, open only to trade visitors in the first two days, and to public in the last two days.
In its trade days are Business Matching; around 15 seminars for the travel trade and 10 seminars on MICE and Corporate Travel with some of interest to both; and Industry Award Presentation etc. In public days are around 90 seminars, cultural performances, special offers from exhibitors and grand lucky draw etc.
ITE & ITE MICE this year is expected to draw around 12,000 buyers and trade visitors with 70% from Hong Kong and 20% from mainland China in the trade days, and around 75000 public visitors majority prefer traveling in FIT.
ITE & MICE is therefore a treasure trove of up market travel ideas and products particularly suitable for affluent / seasoned travelers including MICE and FIT, and the travel trade serving them.
Organized by TKS Exhibition Services Ltd, ITE & MICE is supported by China National Tourism Administration, Hong Kong Tourism Board, Macau Government Tourist Office, Travel Industry Council of Hong Kong, trade and MICE associations in the region. MTR is Official Rail.
Opening Ceremony
Miss Cathy Chu, JP, Commissioner for Tourism of the Government of the HKSAR will be officiating the opening of ITE & MICE this year. The Opening Ceremony will start at 10.30AM on June 11 at Grand Stage of the exhibition halls.
Other attending VIPs include H.E. Mr. Mara So, Vice Tourism Minister of Cambodia; Mr. Li Jianping, Head of the China (mainland) Delegation; Legislative Councilors of Hong Kong, representatives of tourism boards and trade associations from abroad, neighboring areas and Hong Kong etc.
Exhibitors
The travel expo this year features a comprehensive spectrum of travel products and related suppliers; over 80 tourism boards or offices at various levels, and over 150 exhibitors target corporate or MICE travels. With over 60 stands each, China (mainland) and Japan remain the two largest official pavilions.
Some repeating official pavilions, such as Finland, Indonesia, Mexico, Japan and in particular Okinawa, Sabah of Malaysia, Thailand and Zagreb of Croatia etc, are expanding substantially this year the largest of which doubling in size.
There is a new official participation from Tunisia, while newly exhibiting destinations of Ireland, Lithuania, and Spain from Europe, Maldives and Sri Lanka from Asia, Samoa from South Pacific and Uzbekistan from Central Asia etc have individual exhibitors.
Repeating pavilions, particularly those expanding, are another major source of new exhibitors. Repeated exhibitors may add new travel products and continue many of their popular products.
More travel technology companies’ exhibit this year. They include, for examples, SIM cards for WIFI access in Japan; international data services providing tourists with mobile internet; travel sites for online booking via computer, mobile and tablet, of hotels in Europe and China and for various types of activities in destinations etc, In an online survey earlier this year with over 1500 replies, some 70.7% respondents have booked air + hotel packages online.
A special welcome to Nepal Pavilion and its co-exhibitors, who re-confirmed after the earthquake their presence in the Travel Expo this year! We invite all visitors to show supports in one’s own way, for examples, by attending Nepal’s function or visiting their pavilion as likely some where there may be less affected.
Travel Themes
Trade and public visitors of ITE & ITE MICE, who surveys found majority are affluent travelers and FIT, are both interest in theme travels.
Travelers often go to different destinations for the same travel theme, and they welcome the great choices available in ITE & MICE! For example, visitors can choose hiking or cycling trips in Switzerland or Taiwan, or walking or cycling holidays along Europe’s famous pilgrimage route of Camino de Santiago that spans France, Portugal and Spain.
Among the exhibitors are destinations along major international cruise routes, which facilitate visitors’ choice. For examples, Italy, Zagreb of Croatia, Turkey, Egypt and Tunisia adjacent to the Mediterranean; Mexico and USA adjacent to the Caribbean; Finland adjacent the Baltic; island paradises in the Indian and Pacific oceans; and plenty of choices in Asia.
MICE & Corporate Travel Seminars
Seminars in trade days are free unless stated otherwise, and say those for the travel trade are meant to help agents planning travel routes and products. Trade Day visitors can reserve online seats for particular seminars.
MICE and Corporate Travel seminars cover topics like effective organizing, tools and services for travelers, incentive destination / venue, and technologies for event and MICE.
Topic of the seminar by ACTE, the Association of Corporate Travel Executives, is on improving ROI of corporate travel. The seminar “Services MICE Clients are Willing to Pay For”, is new and looks at core competence of event managers from perspectives of client, organizer and agent/client with speakers from different organizations including the Institute of HR.
Popular MICE destinations such as Macau explains in its seminar of “How to Capitalize Macau as Your Next Staff Incentive Destination” facilities and incentives to attract inbound groups. Technologies seminars cover cases on how social Media and apps help training, improving services quality and marketing a city successfully etc. One seminar introduces an international membership program which offers access to some 700 airport lounges worldwide.
Business Matching, Seminars for Travel Trade
Seminars cover topics like destination updates, theme travels, services / tools for travelers, and technologies for travel trade, with some interesting also to MICE.
Hosted by the Wedding Management Association, the seminar of “Attractive Services / Products for Overseas Wedding” covers trend, spending pattern, co-operation and Partnering, case study and networking with its wedding planner members. Started since last year, the International Destination Update Series of seminars include some popular destinations in different continents.
New this year is the Forum “Competitive Interactions between online travel trade and travel agents”, which will be hosted by James Hong, well known travel writer and ITE Ambassador 2015, with panelists from airline and travel agent.
Public Days
Public travel seminars, which are mainly about how and where to enjoy overseas holidays and different from those in trade days, often have travel writers or celebrities as speakers. Public seminars are all on first come first serve, and the more popular ones can draw over 200 audiences with queues before them.
In fact, public day programs are different! For examples, there are round the clock cultural performance, retails sales of travel products often with special offers from some exhibitors, and grand lucky draw etc.
For further info and program on our trade days, please visit our trade website of www.itehk.com, while public visitors please visit www.travelexpo.com.hk
