Pointing The Way To The Future
Market research firms will reveal their insights and forecasts about the future of travel in a post-pandemic world during WTM London and Travel Forward.
As borders around the world reopen for international tourism, professionals from across the global travel industry will reunite physically once more at ExCeL London from Nov. 1 to Nov. 3, 2021.
As well as WTM’s own annual Industry Report — which looks at key consumer and trade trends — there will be wide-ranging, in-depth market research presented by leading specialists such as Euromonitor, ForwardKeys and Oxford Economics.
The WTM London Industry Report 2021 will be unveiled during the opening conference at the event.
Taking place on the WTM Global Stage on Nov. 1, the report will set the agenda for conversations and negotiations that will be taking place on the exhibition floor.
Using comprehensive surveys carried out among UK holidaymakers and trade professionals, it gauges sentiment in the market about attitudes to travel, plans for 2022, sustainability and technology.
Also on Nov. 1, ForwardKeys will present ‘New Markets, New Opportunities – The new paradigm to post-Covid travel’.
ForwardKeys crunches and analyses airline booking transactions every day in order to share the latest industry trends and insights to build a picture of who is travelling where, when and for how long.
Taking place on the Travel Forward Stage, the session will showcase positive examples of destinations that are forging ahead with their recovery.
Further insights will be revealed on the second day of WTM, thanks to Oxford Economics – a leader in global forecasting and quantitative analysis.
entitled ‘Fixing travel’s broken business model for 2022’.
Another traditional highlight for WTM London is the annual Euromonitor International report.
Simon Press, WTM London & Travel Forward Exhibition Director, said: “With the substantial pent-up demand for travel in 2022, it’s crucial for delegates to gain a competitive advantage by learning about the opinions and intentions of consumers and trade professionals.”
Press noted that: “The scale of the challenge is shown by stats from the World Travel and Tourism Council – it says the travel and tourism sector generated nearly $9.2 trillion around the world in 2019 but that fell by 49% in 2020 as the pandemic struck.”
He said that: “The sector’s contribution to the world economy has recovered by 31% this year but that was mainly driven by domestic spending. Next year could see another year-on-year rise of about 32% as the recovery continues – but travellers still face restrictions and uneven vaccine rollouts.”
And Press concluded: “Our own research, along with studies from Euromonitor, ForwardKeys and Oxford Economics, will help delegates formulate their strategies for that recovery and discuss the best ways to rebuild and innovate, as they reconnect with fellow professionals on the exhibition floor.”
