Few From U.S. at Arabian Travel Market
Staff -- Tradeshow Week, 6/4/2007
Reed Travel Exhibitions reported that its May 1–4 Arabian Travel Market at the Dubai Intl. Convention and Exhibition Centre attracted the highest visitor turnout in the show's 14-year history: 12,859 professional buyers, up 5.1 percent from 2006.
Reed added that the show attracted 115 new exhibiting companies to a showfloor of 24,600 square meters (264,800 square feet), a 10-percent increase over last year.
Missing from the exhibitor lineup, however, was any sizable American presence, with only a handful of U.S. companies represented.
Michelle Kearney, a Reed Exhibitions regional account manager, said there had been a marked increase in U.S. companies interested in attracting visitors from the Middle East, even if few exhibited in the show this year.
Representatives from the U.S. Dept. of Homeland Security's US-Visit Program were there, primarily to reassure travelers from the pan-Arab region about security procedures they would encounter when entering the United States.
"Such positive steps by the U.S.A. to address the concerns of travelers from the Middle East will undoubtedly help fuel tourism between the two regions," Kearney said.
Those Americans who did exhibit said they were happy with the leads they developed.
Katy Horne, director of sales and marketing for the Hotel on Rivington in New York, said although she couldn't disclose the number of leads she picked up, she had a "fantastic" show.
Tiana Kartadinata, e-commerce and public relations manager for the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in New York, also said she considered the show a success.
"ATM presented us with a valuable opportunity to develop and enhance our brand awareness in the region," she added. "Whether or not we will exhibit again next year has yet to be confirmed. We will certainly consider it as part of our strategy for increasing brand exposure in the Middle East going forward."
