World Travel Essential

Over 55 Tourism Ministers from all around the world attended the WTTC summit – marking the evolution of the event into being one that represents both the private and public sectors. A number of them were in Riyadh for the first time, taking advantage of the fact of being here in order to forge links with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. One of them was Lennox Andrews – Tourism Minister for the tiny island state of Grenada...

In post-pandemic times, it seems travellers are more and more searching open spaces … and unique experiences. Speaking at the “Cities of Tomorrow” conference at the WTTC Summit, the head of Western Australia’s highly dynamic DMO, Carolyn Turnbull, touted the fact that in Perth and its environs one can find both. We spoke to her at the summit.

A key session of the WTTC Global Summit centered on sustainability - with an extraordinary gathering of leaders discussing the topic, none the least of whom was the former President of Indonesia. Richard Barnes met with him after the conference.

Holidays in Iraq may seem like a strange idea for most people today. But Baghdad-based DMC  Ali Al Makhzomy wants to change that, and he was at the WTTC Global Summit to spread the word. Richard Barnes asked him how he sees the sector developing in coming years.

Saudi Arabia is evolving … very quickly… The world renowned American travel business “guru”, Edie Rodriguez talks about how the Kingdom is facing the challenges of the coming years when it comes to reaching its 2030 tourism goals.

Many people have now heard of projects such as NEOM, Diriyah Gate or AlUla… but did you know about Sharqia? Richard Barnes speaks to the VP of Implementation and Projects for the region, which accounts for a very large percentage of Saudi’s eastern territory.

The man at the helm of the biggest online group booking platform is in Riyadh for the first time. Richard Barnes talks to him about his thoughts concerning the Kingdom and the future of mega-events here.

In Riyadh for the WTTC Summit, we ran into the man at the helm of the organisation running the highly successful Saudi Hospitality Investment Conference (amongst others). Richard Barnes spoke to him about the event… and his sentiment towards the tourism market per se in the Kingdom.

How does Europe fit into the amazing transformative regenerating process that’s rocking the tourism industry today? Richard Barnes talks to Eduardo Santander about this and other key factors affecting the market as we head into 2023.

The World Tourism Organisation’s mission to make the world a better place thanks to tourism is stronger than ever. We spoke with Mr Pololikashvili at the WTTC summit about the growing importance of Saudi Arabia as a destination.