Travel Trends

This unique conference will provide you with up-to-date information on various travel segments, including luxury, adventure, youth and cruise. Get the latest insights from ABTA and senior industry representatives on the sentiment, requests and bookings they are seeing from their customers and how they are adapting.  

Hear how the cost-of-living crisis, high inflation and prices have impacted customer behaviour, including changes to holiday habits, buying behaviours, and online interaction with brands. Understand the importance of agility in your communications to ensure you react to changing consumer sentiment.

This conference will provide both expert advice and industry examples on how your business can adapt to capitalise on the new opportunities and continue to build consumer trust to keep your clients booking and travelling.

• Economic update, customer sentiment towards travel and the impact on bookings
• Understanding consumer intentions and buying habits
• Latest ABTA insights into the main trends and developments that will shape holidays in 2024
• An update on key product trends including luxury, adventure, youth and cruise
• Building awareness and communicating sustainability credentials 
• Digital marketing strategies and embracing AI
• Destination focus and advice for selling new destinations.

Moderator: Emma Brennan, Head of Media and Communications, ABTA

Emma is responsible for developing and delivering PR and communication strategies to support ABTA’s work on behalf of its members – from lobbying on policy matters to encouraging customers to book with an ABTA member. Her role also oversees ABTA’s busy press office, which is often the first port of call for journalists about a travel-related story or crisis. Prior to working at ABTA Emma has led the PR teams in national organisations including Citizens Advice and Keep Britain Tidy.

Graeme Buck, Director of Communications, ABTA

Graeme leads ABTA’s external and internal communications, including PR and media relations, marketing communications and brand stewardship.  Joining ABTA in 2020, he was previously Head of Communications for Waitrose & Partners.  He brings to the role more than 25 years’ experience of working with major organisations.

• Neil Swanson, Chief Marketing Officer, TUI UK & Ireland
• Kate McWilliams, Managing Director, Lotus
• Tom Dunn, Strategy & Development Director, Wild Dog Design
• Anne Williams, Marketing Director, Hotelplan
• Trudi Beggs, Director, 8020 Communications
• John Milburn, Chief Marketing Officer, Holiday Best
• Sally Cope, Regional General Manager UK, Tourism Australia
• Eleni Skarveli, Director, Greek National Tourism Organisation UK and Ireland
• Neil Sealy, Managing Director – UK & Ireland, Exoticca
• Craig Cartwright, SEO Lead, Go City
• Suzanne Korff, Director, Marketing & Communications, Princess Cruises
• Christian Sutton, Product Leader, Topdeck Travel
• Erin Johnson, Marketing Director, Travelopia
• Andy Headington, Chief Executive Officer, Adido
• Karen Musgrave, Head of PR & Communications, Barrhead Travel
• Pippa Jacks, Editorial Director, TTG Media
• Maggie Wong, Lead Specialist, Client Communications, South Pole
• Andrew Mirzai, Senior Digital Strategist, Connective3
• Alex Hermann, Director UK & Ireland, Switzerland Tourism
• James Treacy, Senior PR & Communications Manager, Abercrombie & Kent
• Carolyn Addison, Head of Product, Black Tomato
• Chris Roche, CEO, The Adventure People

Additional speakers will include travel marketing experts and customer insights bodies.

• Hear insights from ABTA and industry experts into key travel trends, market outlook and industry prospects for 2024
• Inform your product planning with actionable insights on the future of travel
• Learn how to adapt your marketing strategies to capitalise on changing consumer behaviours
• Hear sector specific updates including cruise, luxury, gen-z and adventure
• Get an update on digital trends, AI and technology developments
• Gain insights and advice into selling new destinations
• Network and share knowledge with industry colleagues including press, agents, and operators.

• Directors, CEOs and senior managers
• Marketing, PR, sales and product teams
• Communications and customer support teams.

ABTA Member/ABTA Partner* rate – £289 plus VAT 
Non-Member rate – £459 plus VAT 

This includes lunch and refreshments throughout the day, all delegate materials, presentations and an attendee certificate. 

Make payment by credit or debit card. 

View our booking terms and conditions here.

Discounts

• Book three places and get 50% off the third place.
  ^{(This discount will be automatically applied when you book online.)}
• If you are looking to book for a larger group please contact events@abta.co.uk for a bespoke discount.

*To qualify for the ABTA Member/Partner discount you must have a current ABTA Member/Partner number or your application must be in progress when the event takes place.

Non-Members are welcome to attend. For information about becoming a Member click here.

Event partners

Adido are experts in the travel and tourism sector having worked with travel brands since 2003. The Adido team continually research all the latest news and information about travel & digital marketing to ensure our clients keep at the forefront of the industry. We're committed to inspiring commercially-focused companies to evolve their digital experiences, and to achieve more from their marketing spend. We challenge briefs, explore alternatives and offer candid advice; all with the aim of advancing digital performance for our clients. We look for the ‘why’ and establish the ‘so what’ when assessing performance. We push to deliver efficiencies, delivering sustainable profitable growth and proving value. We obsess over meaningful commercial metrics and are not sidetracked by vanity KPIs. We embrace technology and always objectively use data to inform decision making. This ensures our digital platforms and digital marketing campaigns achieve success. We hypothesise, test, learn and evolve in order to be proactive and progressive. By combining skills across design, development, digital marketing and analytics our team offers an informed, collaborative and honest approach to digital solutions, and thrive on partnerships with clients.

8020 Communications is an award-winning strategic communications consultancy for the travel, aviation and mobility industries. Through PR, digital marketing and deep sector knowledge, 8020 helps its clients outperform – their targets, their competitors, their expectations. 8020’s experience includes every link in the travel supply chain: from tour operators, hospitality and travel services to travel management companies, travel tech vendors and city marketing. 8020’s strategies integrate creative media relations, engaging social media, valued content and digital marketing techniques to target the right customers and generate excitement that builds bookings and sales, with measurable gains in business performance.

connective3 is a digital marketing agency, and we create market leaders. We do this through the application of SEO, Content Strategy, Digital PR, PPC, Display, Social Media and CRO. We were founded in October 2019 by CEO Tim Grice, and in just three years have grown to a team of over 90 marketers across Leeds, London and Manchester. We work with clients globally and deliver transformational results to help them dominate in their sectors, taking market share from competitors and achieving true ROI from their digital channels.

The Greek National Tourism Organisation UK & Ireland Office is responsible for the promotion of tourism in Greece. Its main mission is to develop and promote the Greek tourism product through the implementation of marketing and PR campaigns in the UK and Ireland. By participating in trade shows, exhibitions, webinars and workshops, spanning across the country, alongside organizing press and fam trips, GNTO’s goal is to increase awareness and visibility of the country's diverse tourism portfolio. Every year, the GNTO office is running joint marketing campaigns with trade partners and educating initiatives in order to keep all our partners up to date with all the relevant developments in Greece. Finally, with sustainability being a central pillar of our strategy, the GNTO UK & Ireland Office will introduce the Sustainable Greece online platform in order to give our trade partners the opportunity to learn and engage with all the Greek projects and initiatives that target the "green" traveller.

Founded by an all-female board in 2007, LOTUS is a formidable agency with a business-focused approach. 

Rooted in insight, LOTUS launches, positions and defines travel, tourism and food brands and raises client revenue through integrated communications, MICE and trade representation.

Representing the leading names in the sector LOTUS has a portfolio of clients ranging from national and regional tourist boards, theme parks, transport providers and flagship brands.

Working with specialist partners globally, offering in-market knowledge and delivering cross-market campaigns the agency can deliver local, regional and global solutions for the post-COVID travel sector.

LOTUS is part of the award-winning W Communications family, providing seamless access to creative consumer marketing expertise and big-brand and celebrity partnerships. 

Website: http://www.wearelotus.co.uk/

South Pole is the world's leading climate project developer and solutions provider. 

Since its founding in 2006, South Pole has developed and provided climate finance to over 850 projects in more than 50 countries. Together, they have helped reduce over 200 million metric tonnes of CO2 emissions, and provided measurable benefits to communities vulnerable to climate change. South Pole’s projects accelerate the transformation across all sectors, including across sustainable land-use, ecosystem conservation, circular economy, and renewable energy.

South Pole also advises governments and thousands of leading companies on their climate journeys to achieve net zero emissions. With its global Climate Solutions platform, it implements comprehensive strategies that help organisations across the world build resilience and turn climate action into long-term business opportunities. Our global team of over 1,200 experts is trusted by many FT500 businesses and world-class investors around the world.

South Pole is a social enterprise recognised by the World Economic Forum's Schwab Foundation. South Pole is also committed to becoming a B Corp globally across all of its local entities, building on its existing B Corp certification in Australia, the U.S, and Germany. 

For more information, visit www.southpole.com or follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter, and Facebook

Switzerland Tourism is the National Tourism Office of Switzerland with the aim to promote Switzerland as a travel, holiday and meetings destination. To develop travel and tourism in a more balanced and sustainable way, Switzerland Tourism is working closely with the travel trade in the UK. The Switzerland Tourism office is based in London Holborn. For more information: www.myswitzerland.com and www.stnet.ch/trade-uk 

Tourism Australia is the Australian Government agency responsible for attracting international visitors to Australia, both for leisure and business events. Our activities include advertising, PR and media programs, trade shows and industry programs, consumer promotions, online communications, and consumer research.

The United Kingdom is a key source market for leisure tourism to Australia and has driven recovery in recent years thanks to the strong ties between the UK and Australia. Plus the extraordinary success of our new global brand campaign, Come and Say G’day. 

Australia’s stunning natural landscapes, warm and welcoming citizens, and world class food and wine, offer visitors a diverse range of exceptional experiences to choose from. This year major events, such as the FIFA Women’s World Cup have also driven demand. We look forward to more coming up, including the British and Irish Lions Rugby Tour and the next Ashes Test Series in 2025.

Wild Dog has been working for the specialist travel industry for more than 20 years, creating brands, brochures, websites and digital products for some of the UK’s most prestigious and respected Tour Operators. Based in Brighton, Wild Dog has always strived to offer a careful balance of creativity and technology, with considered and beautiful designs combined with state-of-the-art tech. Meanwhile, strategy is the bedrock of our work; and we base our approach for clients on solid consumer insight and evidence, making sure our designs work for our clients and their customers equally. This is supported by proprietary research into consumer behaviour and the role of digital across the purchase journey. 

Media partner

TTG was established as Travel Trade Gazette in 1953, as the world’s first weekly travel trade newspaper. Today, TTG Media exists to promote a smarter, better, fairer travel industry through delivering authoritative news and educational features, a news-led website, training events, annual awards ceremonies and creative marketing campaigns. Register for free at ttgmedia.com and sign up for daily news bulletins and event updates.

For information on how to promote your company at this event, please contact Sara Dolan on 07766 517 611 or email sdolan@abta.co.uk.