ITB Berlin 2024 Tourism Expo Opens with Positive Outlook

ITB Berlin 2024 ribbon-cutting ceremony. Photo source: ITB Berlin

The 2024 edition of the ITB Berlin travel trade show opened in Germany with a highly positive outlook for the future.

At the official opening ceremony in Berlin on Monday evening, all speakers presented optimistic figures for the period immediately after the Covid pandemic.

“We are back,” said Dr. Mario Tobias, CEO of Messe Berlin, in front of 2,500 international representatives of politics and business.

Dr. Mario Tobias, CEO Messe Berlin. Photo source: ITB Berlin

Tobias appeared optimistic that in the wake of the pandemic and following the release of the latest figures, the industry was on course for stable growth.

Zurab Pololikashvili, Secretary-General of UN Tourism, said that in 2023 global tourist numbers had reached 1.3 billion, 34 percent more than in 2022, and equal to 88 percent of the volume in 2019. According to the tourism market research company Phocuswright, at close to two trillion dollars, turnover last year had returned to pre-pandemic levels.

Zurab Pololikashvili, Secretary General, World Tourism Organization. Photo source: ITB Berlin

Berlin’s Governing Mayor quoted the slogan of the 2006 World Cup – “A time to make friends” – noting that it applied to ITB Berlin. “We believe in tourism and ITB,” he said. Julia Simpson, CEO and president of the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC), remarked that without a significant increase in the use of sustainable fuels, tourism could not achieve its net zero goals.

Dieter Janecek, the Federal Government’s Coordinator for Tourism, said it was encouraging to see that net zero had gained top priority in many countries. “Tourism can be part of the solution” for confronting climate change, he said.

Framed by a spectacular multimedia show, speakers during the opening ceremony appealed for tourism to exploit its bridge-building potential in a world that was becoming increasingly unstable.

H.E. Salim bin Mohammed Al Mahrouqi, Minister of Cultural Heritage and Tourism of the Sultanate of Oman. Photo source: ITB Berlin

H.E. Salim Al Mahrouqi, Minister of Heritage and Tourism of Oman, the host country of ITB Berlin, urged a greater effort to end the war between Russia and Ukraine and the suffering of millions of civilians in the Gaza Strip following Israel’s response to the terrorist attacks by Hamas. The qualities of the Middle East, including tourism there, could only come to the fore once the violence had ended.

The event was framed by a show featuring impressive images of Oman’s landscapes and cultural attractions, to the musical accompaniment of the Sultanate’s Royal Symphony Orchestra, which had flown in for the occasion.

Artists on stage, in front of them the Royal Symphony Orchestra from the guest country Oman: the opening gala of ITB Berlin 2024 was a colourful celebration. Photo source: ITB Berlin

5,500 exhibitors from 170 countries

Hosting over 5,500 exhibitors from 170 countries, ITB Berlin 2024 has maintained a “360-degree approach”, according to Dr. Mario Tobias, CEO of Messe Berlin. ITB Berlin’s 360-degree approach includes the other ITB brand family members in Shanghai, Singapore and India, which showcased both new trends and the use of AI while also maintaining the tradition of face-to-face meetings for example, which had become almost impossible during the Covid pandemic.

Photo source: ITB Berlin

Major countries including China were back at ITB Berlin. Among the newcomers was Air India. Dr. Tobias remarked that for the first time the German-speaking countries Austria, Switzerland and Germany were represented under one roof in hub27. Other countries, such as Greece and Turkey as well as the Arab states were represented with larger stands, reflecting the growth of their tourism industries. The Travel Technology segment had significantly expanded too, he added.

ITB Berlin 2024 is running until March 5 on the Berliner Exhibition Grounds

GTP is attending ITB Berlin 2024. Updates can be found through our special ITB Berlin 2024 section.