From ministers and global platforms to AI experts and international media, the tenth edition of TOURISM 365 brings together voices from more than 30 countries
From 5 to 7 October, Zagreb will host TOURISM 365, welcoming speakers including Alessandra Priante, Ahmed AlOraij, Minister Tonči Glavina, representatives of Expedia Group Advertising, Rome2Rio and the US-based Signature Travel Network, international buyers, and editors and journalists from The Telegraph, BBC, The Independent and Krone Zeitung as part of a programme bringing together tourism leaders, companies and experts from more than 30 countries.
Who really decides where we travel today; the traveller, the media, global platforms, travel advisors, or increasingly, algorithms and artificial intelligence? And what do destinations need to do to move from being recognisable to actually being booked? These are some of the questions opening the tenth edition of the international TOURISM 365 conference.
AI and the Future of Marketing
Artificial intelligence will be one of the conference’s key topics. Raja Saggi, Davor Bruketa, Dario Marčac and Jasnoor Kaur will explore what happens to marketing when AI becomes both the tool brands use to create content and the place where consumers look for recommendations. How to approach social media in this new landscape? How do you stand out when everyone can create more content than ever before and what happens to a brand once an algorithm starts participating in the purchase decision?
Spotlight on the US Market
This year’s TOURISM 365 places special focus on the American market. Zagreb will welcome Chris Alestra, Vice President of Signature Travel Network, a major US network of premium-segment travel agencies, along with Peter E. Pincus of CCRA Travel Commerce Network.
Their perspective raises a very concrete question for Croatia and the region: What makes a destination, hotel or experience interesting and high-quality enough for a US travel advisor to recommend it to a client and ultimately sell it?
The conference is accompanied by the T365 B2B Marketplace, bringing selected international buyers into direct business meetings with destinations, hotels, DMCs and tourism companies from Croatia and the region.
Why Should Anyone Care About Your Destination?
TOURISM 365 also brings in the people who, on the other side of tourism PR, decide every day which destinations and stories deserve media space, and which don’t. Emilee Tombs, Travel Editor at The Independent, Martin Kallinger, editor at Kronen Zeitung, and Rajan Datar, a long-standing and recognisable BBC face associated with travel, will open discussions on international visibility and destination storytelling.