The razzamatazz of the big European trade fair season is pretty much over for the year. Here’s a series of 3 snapshots on how 2016 looks like shaping up, based on observations and recent conversations with a range of NTOs, tour operators, hoteliers, and other travel industry operators.

Snapshot 1:    Winners, Losers and the Big Question

Talk to the Ringmaster, not the Clowns, when the Circus Comes to Town

Trade fairs are a maelstrom of curtailed meetings, snatched conversations on the hoof, cocktail parties, and near collisions with surreal characters from the deep recesses of some PR agent’s chemically-influenced mind. If you can dodge the ubiquitous ethnic dancers, glorious garudas, and assorted cast of crazily costumed characters promoting everything from responsible tourism to all-inclusive resorts, beaches to ‘business solutions’, and holidays to health (yes, even Bangkok Hospital had a stand at ITB Berlin), trade fairs can yield interesting insights into market trends and a range of views on how the world will, and won’t, travel in 2016.

Talking to senior representatives from a number of destinations, some interesting trends emerged. In some ways these are to be expected. But there is also a different spin from past years with regard to safety fears and how this might affect people’s willingness to travel and which destinations they will consider……. and which they won’t.