The concept reminded us of IBTM Events Barcelona, so it was easy to compare.

1. 𝗜𝗕𝗧𝗠 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗿𝗶𝘀𝗼𝗻

The format feels similar to IBTM, but the overall scale seemed slightly smaller.

2. 𝗪𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗜𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗰𝘁 𝗼𝗻 𝗙𝗼𝗼𝘁𝗳𝗮𝗹𝗹

Because of the bad weather, there were fewer visitors. For exhibitors, this is frustrating. They invest in their stand and time, but conversations depend on traffic.

3. 𝗢𝗻𝗲 𝗗𝗮𝘆 𝗪𝗮𝘀 𝗘𝗻𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵

We only attended one out of two days, and it worked well. Many exhibitors were available, so it was easy to connect without rushing.

4. 𝗗𝗶𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗔𝘂𝗱𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗠𝗶𝘅

IBTM felt clearly B2B focused. At Travel Trade Days, the audience was more mixed, with many independent visitors and a more mature travel audience. We noticed strong interest around the African destinations and suppliers section.

5. 𝗠𝗮𝗶𝗻 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝗧𝗼𝗽𝗶𝗰𝘀: 𝗔𝗜 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗦𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆

#AI and #sustainability were still key topics. The honest conclusion is that the industry is still figuring out how to make MICE events truly sustainable. Progress is happening, but we are not there yet. A special thank you to Thijs de Groot NBTC Netherlands Board of Tourism & Conventions, Booking.com, Melvin Mak TUI, Frank Radstake ANVR, and the host Lieke (Cornelia) Lamb for sharing their thoughts so openly and for managing to cover such a complex topic within a short time slot.

We would very much like to visit this event again next year. Hopefully with better weather and more opportunities to connect with even more colleagues across the industry. It was a valuable start to the year and a good reminder of how different formats and audiences shape the dynamics of each event.