2024 ITB BERLIN NEWS - REVIEW Edition

I EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW
I
“Deep and trusting business relationships can
only develop when we meet in real life”
ITB Berlin News spoke with Dr Mario Tobias, CEO of Messe Berlin,
in an exclusive interview following this year's show
From the ITB Opening Ceremony hosted by this year's
partner country Oman to the partnership with Albania for
2025, Dr Mario Tobias reflected on ITB Berlin 2024's triumphs
and the pivotal role of face-to-face interactions in fostering
authentic connections. With sustainability and innovations
taking centre stage, ITB Berlin is working towards a more
inclusive and responsible travel industry for the future.
This was your first ITB Berlin in the
role of CEO of Messe Berlin, can you
share how the experience has been
for you personally?
The show was a very exciting and
emotional experience for me. It's an
absolute honour to welcome nearly
the entire world to Berlin, and I'm
extremely proud of our team. As the
new CEO of Messe Berlin, it was
fantastic to meet so many new people
– simultaneously, I could personally
draw inspiration for my next vacation.
Our host country, Oman, sparked a lot
of interest, and the new one for 2025
– Albania – is a hot candidate for one
of my upcoming journeys, too.
What were some of the standout
moments or innovations at ITB Berlin
this year?
Among the highlights was
undoubtedly our grand opening
gala, hosted by this year's Official
Host Country Oman on the eve
of the show. Guests experienced
a spectacular show, providing
insights into the diverse landscapes
and culture awaiting visitors in the
country. Equally touching for me
was the signing ceremony where I,
together with the Tourism Minister
of Albania, signed the partnership
agreement for 2025. Professionally, I
was impressed by the line-up of topspeakers
at the ITB Berlin Convention
and our Innovation Radar, which
we conducted for the second time
this year. We presented a total of 16
innovations, predominantly focusing
on the opportunities presented by
Artificial Intelligence. AI was indeed
one of THE themes in 2024 – including
in the convention programme.
PEOPLE'S
DESIRE TO
TRAVEL MUST
NOT COME AT
THE EXPENSE
OF THE
EARTH
Sustainability is a growing focus
within the travel and tourism
industry. How was this reflected at
ITB Berlin?
With the Sustainability Track, we
even dedicated a specific track
to the topic, which was exciting
and inspiring for all attendees. ITB
Berlin actively campaigns for social
equality and ecological responsibility
in tourism and once again provided
a comprehensive platform and
inspiration for promoting a dialogue
between actors in the tourism
value chain on a more diverse and
inclusive industry. In addition to AI
and digitalisation, climate justice was
one of the main topics at ITB Berlin
and the ITB Berlin Convention. We
all know there is only one planet.
Accordingly, people's desire to travel
must not come at the expense of the
Earth and so many experts at the
convention appealed to the industry
to aim for net zero by 2030.
Why are face-to-face events so
important within the industry?
Teams and Zoom have made business
life easier in many ways – but they
do not replace the human exchange
face to face. In our opinion, deep and
trusting business relationships can
only develop when we meet in real
life. This is also confirmed by the top
buyers from the ITB Buyers Circle,
who made significant deals this year,
and the many business meetings
during ITB Berlin. Achieving such
results is simply not possible through
video-calls alone.
Looking ahead to next year, what
are some of your main goals for ITB
Berlin 2025?
Firstly, we want to further advance
our 360-degree approach throughout
the entire year. Secondly, we are all
very excited about the partnership
with our upcoming Official Host
Country Albania. This comparatively
small nation has so much to offer
and is still a hidden gem waiting to
be discovered. The hospitality is
sincere and warm – I am confident
that, similar to Oman this year, their
presence at the world’s leading travel
trade show will motivate many people
to travel there
ITB BERLIN 2024
A RINGING SUCCESS
Dr Mario Tobias highlighted
that ITB Berlin exceeded
expectations this year with a
slight increase in attendees
at nearly 100,000, and this
despite challenging strike
circumstances. He stated that
this triumph "clearly showcases
the strength of our brand" and
once again "mirrored industry
developments." Beyond figures,
he noted that the mood among
exhibitors, visitors and speakers
was "very positive throughout"
and that there was a general
consensus that the return to
travel went beyond pent-up
demand after the pandemic
and was "basically stable" with
neither inflation nor high energy
prices curbing demand
THE ITB FAMILY:
YEAR-ROUND, ALL
OVER THE WORLD
Dr Mario Tobias called the ITB
brand "a global family of 4 trade
shows". ITB China is up next
in Shanghai in May, then in
September, ITB India follows in
Mumbai. ITB Asia in Singapore
will conclude this year's series
of ITB editions in October. He
stressed that while each show
is unique, and the markets are
highly diverse, "nevertheless,
there are themes and aspects
that concern all of us: Climate
justice is, of course, one of them
– as well as labour shortages
and Artificial Intelligence"
ITB BERLIN NEWS • THURSDAY 14 TH MARCH 2024 17