Basque Country Welcomes Travel Agency Unions to Talk Tourism in November

The Basque Country will host the 3rd Summit of Travel Agencies Associations in Euskadi, on November 4-6 with the opening ceremony to kick off at the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao.

Archive photo of 1st Summit of Presidents of Travel Agencies Associations in Cordoba.

Organized by the Spanish Confederation of Travel Agencies (CEAV) in collaboration with the Basque Tourism Agency (BASQUETOUR), the three-day industry event brings together the heads of over 175 trade bodies representing travel agencies from 60 countries to discuss the challenges and increasing demands of the sector and will provide a ground for exchange of ideas, experiences, best practices, knowhow and innovation projects.

“It will address controversial but fundamental issues, because these will indicate new ways of understanding the tourism industry and the role of agencies in propelling innovation and integrating different parties who are, at the same time, partners and also competitors, while seeking alliances and lines of business,” CEAV President Rafael Gallego said of the event.

CEAV President Rafael Gallego Nadal.

More specifically, the forum will focus on models of collaborative economies and travel agencies, the future of the IATA agencies program and world market trends. Parallel initiatives include a “panel of experiences”, roundtables and conferences.

To date, over 46 international associations have confirmed their attendance, among them the WTAAA (World Travel Agents Associations Alliance), ECTAA (European Travel Agents’ and Tour Operators Association), as well as national bodies including Germany’s DRV, the UK’s ABTA and Greece’s HATTA.

“One of the goals that is upheld throughout all these meetings is to make this an open forum for the exchange of experiences and views between the presidents and CEOs in attendance,” ECTAA VP Eva Blasco said.

The summit is actively supported by ECTAA, which represents the national associations of over 30 countries in Europe, as well as by the WTAAA (World Travel Agents’ Associations Alliance).

The Greek Travel Pages (GTP) is a media sponsor.