Another thing I dig about being a travel writer is the opportunity of being invited to various conferences about the travel industry. In the last couple of years, I have covered some of the biggest travel-related symposiums and talks, such as the 2017 World Travel and Tourism Global Council, the 2017 ASEAN-INDIA Summit—both of which were held in Bangkok, Thailand—and this year’s Mekong Tourism Forum held in Nakhon Phanom, Thailand.
On Travel Assignment: 2018 Madhya Pradesh Travel Mart
Still reeling from the new set of knowledge I learned from the last conference I attended, good karma went my way again when I got selected to officially cover this year’s Madhya Pradesh Travel Mart.
2018 marks the 5th edition of the Madhya Travel Mart, which will be held in the historic city of Bhopal from October 5 to 7. According to the organizers, “over 200 national and international buyers and about 100 representatives of distinct Indian markets are expected to participate in it.”
I have been to the fascinating country of India twice before—the first time when I went on a personal month-long backpacking journey, and the second time as a chosen participant of the Kerala Blog Express, a two-week media journey across the southern state of Kerala with 29 other travel bloggers from all over the world.
This shall mark my third time visiting India, and what better way than to become an active part of an event that will further promote international tourism to this incredible country, especially in the province of Madhya Pradesh—a place I’ve always genuinely wanted to explore.
The organizers further added, “The primary objective of this mart is to market and promote Madhya Pradesh as a destination throughout the entire year. The concept is a B2B platform which will securely bring tourism stakeholders onto a unified platform where they can openly interact to explore opportunities of mutual trade. The prestigious event is being strongly supported by eminent institutions of the tourism and hospitality industry, including IATO, ATOAI, ADTOI, TAAI, ITTA, PATA, ICPB, TOFT, IHHA, and TAFI.”
Expected to significantly exceed last year’s successful edition, the organizers are actively expecting more international participants to fly in from many countries, such as: Singapore, Spain, United Kingdom, United States of America, Netherlands, Germany, Norway, Thailand, Poland, Australia, Bulgaria, Canada, Finland, South Africa, Mexico, Fiji, Italy, Russia, Argentina, Belgium, Ukraine, and France.
This year’s intense focus will be to beautifully highlight Madhya Pradesh as a year-round travel destination.
Post-Event FamTours
As an invited member of the media, I will also happily join the post-event familiarity tours, and I have specifically chosen the one that uniquely includes Gwalior Fort. Proudly perched atop a massive hill, this stunning 10th-century stone fortress is arguably one of the most spectacular historical structures in all of India. I am feeling extremely high with anticipation about finally seeing it up close and personally learning more about its rich history.
Just being in India again is making me double up with excitement. Aside from looking heavily forward to a highly successful 2018 Madhya Travel Mart, and professionally meeting many powerful personalities from the global travel industry, I also desperately can’t wait to feast endlessly on traditional Indian food once again.
See you all at the 2018 Madhya Travel Mart!
About the Travel Mart
The Madhya Pradesh Tourism Board (MPTB) is officially organizing the fifth edition of the Madhya Pradesh Travel Mart at Hotel Lake View Ashok, in Bhopal, from October 5th to 7th, 2018. The Mart is explicitly designed for an exclusive focus on boosting domestic and inbound tourism into Madhya Pradesh, and to properly reassure the solid position of the State as a highly preferred tourist destination to the world.
The mega-show promises to continuously provide an unmissable opportunity to quickly tap into this ever-growing market by proactively bringing a robust forum of exceptional one-to-one business meetings. The two-day B2B and B2C exhibition will be actively attended by top representatives from heritage hotels, conference venues, tour operators, and wildlife parks, as well as by top-tier international buyers from Europe, Southeast Asia, the Middle East, US, Australia, South Africa, and Canada.
The ultimate goal is to practically ensure each registered participant—whether it’s the exhibitor, buyer, or visitor—gets maximum value for their financial investment and time spent. There will be highly curated post-event FAM Tours exclusively for the buyers and media to famous places of interest such as Mandu, Sanchi, Kanha, and Pench, which will be safely organized by the Madhya Pradesh Tourism Board.
