Bath & Bristol make a welcome return to ITB

ITB Berlin was back with a bang in 2023 - the first time the event has been held in-person since 2019, being one of the first industry events to cancel due to the global pandemic in early 2020. Head of Marketing Jon Chamberlain and Managing Director Kathryn Davis attended on behalf of Visit West.

Image - the networking event at British Embassy, Berlin

As is traditional, Visit Britain hosted a networking event at the British Embassy in Berlin for the UK suppliers attending along with large numbers of German trade buyers. Destination presentations were given by Visit England, Visit Scotland and Visit Wales. The England presentation included mentions of new developments in Bath and Bristol, giving reasons to visit our destinations now.

Image - Gary Robson from Visit Britain presents the updates for England

Visit West (Bath & Bristol) had a pod on the Visit Britain stand in Hall 20. This was a busy position, being the first hall delegates entered when arriving at the north entrance to Messe Berlin. The pod played the new travel trade video produced to showcase the region to international buyers.

Image - a buyer visiting the Bath & Bristol pod on the Visit Britain stand at ITB 2023

Kathryn and Jon met with many buyers in pre-arranged meetings and had many more very good walk-up conversations. ITB is a huge event, this year it attracted over 90,000 attendees. The show is only for travel trade, with no public access. Regular enquiries were about access routes to the region, availability of accommodation and reasons to stay in the area. We were able to help the buyers by showcasing our services, such as Destination Triage, and feed inspiration for new itineraries through ideas like "The England You Already Know....But Better".

Image - crowds in Hall 20 at ITB Berlin 2023

Jon Chamberlain, who leads on travel trade work for Visit West, commented: "It was so good to be back at ITB in-person again, meeting with contacts old and new. There is a real appetite from tour operators and wholesalers for 'new' destinations and itineraries for 2024 and beyond as they emerge from the survival mode of 2022 into developing new product to inspire their customers."

Follow our work on Twitter:

It was so good to be back at @itbberlin representing our destinations to the German market (and beyond). There is great appetite for the region in 2024 and beyond #BathBristolTravelTrade pic.twitter.com/BnhD5PRxee

— Bath & Bristol - Travel Trade (@VisitWestTrade) March 16, 2023

^{(All images copyright Visit West)}