Under the leadership of John Dramani Mahama, President of the Republic of Ghana, the government’s renewed focus on building a new national airline and attracting majority private investment deserves recognition. It shows that Ghana is once again viewing aviation not only as transport, but as a tool for national development.

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Recent reports indicate that Ghana is seeking investors and strategic partners to help establish a new national airline. This is a timely and encouraging step. For a country with Ghana’s cultural depth, coastal assets, diaspora strength, business potential, and regional influence, air connectivity is not a secondary issue. It is the foundation of tourism growth.

In tourism, mobility is not just a technical detail. It is the first layer of infrastructure.

A destination may offer hotels, heritage, beaches, events, investment opportunities, and a strong national brand. But without direct access, reliable air routes, and a competitive aviation ecosystem, it cannot fully convert its potential into economic value. Tourism begins with the ability to arrive.

This is why Ghana’s renewed airline vision should be seen as a national development strategy, not merely an aviation project.

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Nearly a decade ago, we highlighted the importance of this issue. At the time, we emphasised that Ghana needed to strengthen its aviation capacity, expand international connectivity, and position itself as a regional hub for tourism, investment, and mobility. The idea was simple but strategic: if Ghana wants to become a stronger tourism economy, it must first become more accessible to the world.

Unfortunately, the political leadership of that period did not take sufficient ownership of this vision, and the opportunity remained unrealised.

Today, however, President John Dramani Mahama’s administration appears to be reopening this strategic chapter with a more investment-oriented and pragmatic approach. The decision to seek private-sector participation and strategic investors is particularly important. In the modern aviation economy, national airlines cannot be built on political ambition alone. They require capital discipline, experienced operators, commercial logic, route strategy, brand positioning, and strong public-private cooperation.

This is where Ghana has a real opportunity.

A new national carrier, if structured correctly, could support not only inbound tourism but also business travel, investment flows, regional trade, diaspora engagement, MICE tourism, and Ghana’s broader international visibility. It could connect Accra more effectively with key African capitals, Europe, the Middle East, and North America, while strengthening Ghana’s role as a gateway to West Africa.

Ghana takes steps toward reviving a national airline as Ambassador Victor Emmanuel Smith engages Boeing in Seattle on a strategic partnership. pic.twitter.com/PQ0am4iS28

— CDR AFRICA (@cdrafrica) April 30, 2026

For tourism, this would be transformative.

Ghana has already made meaningful progress in positioning itself as a destination with cultural identity, heritage value, and international relevance. But the next stage of growth requires stronger air access. Tourism promotion without mobility is incomplete. Investment promotion without connectivity is limited. Destination branding without aviation capacity is not enough.

The government of President John Dramani Mahama deserves credit for reopening this strategic discussion and inviting potential partners into the process. This is the right direction. It signals seriousness, openness to private investment, and an understanding that tourism infrastructure must include aviation as a central pillar.

As the World Tourism Forum Institute, we strongly welcome this direction.

We stand ready to support Ghana by providing strategic leads, introducing relevant investors, facilitating international tourism and aviation dialogue, and helping position the country’s renewed aviation vision before the global tourism and investment community. Our role has always been to connect governments, investors, tourism leaders, and strategic institutions around projects that can create long-term national value.

@amberstravels Paradise found in Ghana #fyp #ghana #ghanatiktok #vacationmode #wintersun #oceanlife #watersoblue #2024travelbucketlist #luxurytravel #traveldestinations #ghanatiktok ♬ Praise Jah In The Moonlight – YG Marley

Ghana’s airline ambition is exactly such a project.

This is not only about launching aircraft under a national flag. It is about creating a platform for economic movement. It is about making Ghana easier to reach, easier to invest in, and easier to promote as a serious tourism and business destination.

Tourism is not only about hotels, beaches, or campaigns. It is about transportation, infrastructure, trust, investment, and vision. Ghana has the opportunity to combine all these elements into a new growth story.

If the country builds the right aviation model, commercially sound, privately supported, internationally connected, and strategically aligned with tourism, Ghana can become one of Africa’s most important tourism and mobility hubs.

The opportunity is clear. The timing is right. And the leadership shown by President John Dramani Mahama’s government deserves recognition.

For Ghana, aviation can become more than transport. It can become the engine of a new tourism economy.

L’article Ghana’s new aviation ambition could become a turning point for African tourism est apparu en premier sur Travel Tomorrow.

For decades, Nepal has occupied a rare place in the global imagination. It is a country synonymous with Mount Everest, spiritual depth, Himalayan majesty, and a sense of wonder that few destinations can replicate. But in a global tourism economy now shaped as much by long term value as by natural appeal, Nepal deserves to be viewed through a far more serious lens: not simply as an extraordinary place to visit, but as one of Asia’s most intriguing tourism investment frontiers.

What gives Nepal this edge is not only its iconic geography. It is the country’s unusual ability to combine adventure, spirituality, culture, heritage, wildlife and community based hospitality within a single national identity. Very few destinations can credibly serve so many travel motivations at once. Nepal can appeal to the trekker, the pilgrim, the wellness traveller, the cultural explorer and the investor looking beyond saturated tourism markets. That breadth is not just a branding advantage. It is an economic one.

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Lumbini and Mount Everest alone would already give Nepal a powerful position in world tourism. One is among the most spiritually significant places on earth, recognised as the birthplace of Lord Buddha. The other remains the ultimate global symbol of exploration, endurance and human ambition. Together, they form a rare duality: a destination grounded both in transcendence and aspiration. That kind of symbolism matters in tourism because the strongest destinations do not merely attract travellers. They command emotional meaning.

Yet Nepal’s real depth goes beyond landmarks. Nepal Tourism Board describes the country as home to about 101 ethnic groups speaking over 92 languages, an extraordinary degree of diversity for a nation of its size. This is one of Nepal’s most underappreciated tourism assets. Diversity here is not a slogan; it is embedded in festivals, architecture, cuisine, ritual life, crafts, music and local hospitality traditions. For modern tourism, that creates something immensely valuable: authenticity with layers.

Its geography adds another strategic dimension. Within a relatively compact national footprint, Nepal stretches from lowland environments to some of the most dramatic alpine terrain in the world. This physical range helps explain why Nepal can support such a wide tourism spectrum, from nature and wildlife to trekking, pilgrimage and mountain wellness. In an age when travellers increasingly seek multidimensional experiences rather than single purpose holidays, Nepal’s geographic diversity becomes a business advantage as much as a scenic one.

@breterlop One of those places I never stop thinking about From trekking in the Himalayas to completing a silent retreat, seeing wild rhinos on a walking safari, & exploring Kathmandu- Nepal was one for the books • #travel #traveltok #traveltiktok #nepal #nepalitiktok #nepaltravel #trek #mardihimaltrek #himalayas #annapurna #silentretreat #backpacking #solotravel #solofemaletravel ♬ original sound –

Crucially, momentum is no longer hypothetical. Nepal Tourism Board reported that April 2025 was the strongest April on record for international arrivals, with 116,490 visitors, while the first four months of 2025 brought total arrivals to 415,048. Just as notably, April 2025 surpassed the pre-pandemic April 2019 benchmark. These figures suggest that Nepal is no longer simply recovering. It is reasserting itself.

That matters because investment stories become compelling when narrative meets timing. Nepal already possesses global recognition, emotional brand equity and clear differentiation. What it still has, and what many mature destinations no longer do, is room to build. In much of the world, premium tourism investment now means entering crowded, expensive, highly competitive markets. Nepal offers a rarer proposition: global fascination paired with underdeveloped upside.

Its medium term direction reinforces that promise. Public facing sources point not to a formal “Tourism 2040” doctrine, but to the Nepal Tourism Decade 2023–2032 vision, under which the country aims to attract 3.5 million annual visitors by 2032. That target is significant not because it signals scale alone, but because it reflects intent. Nepal is positioning tourism not as a passive byproduct of beauty, but as a structured national growth engine. For investors, 2040 is therefore best seen not as an official policy label, but as a strategic horizon built on the country’s current trajectory.

For foreign investors, the attraction is clear. Investment Board Nepal explicitly identifies tourism as a priority opportunity area, particularly across adventure, cultural, religious and MICE tourism. It also stresses the need for private sector participation in closing infrastructure and service gaps. That is the language investors pay attention to. It signals that Nepal’s next tourism chapter will not be built by promotion alone. It will be built through capital, design, execution and confidence.

This is where the real opportunity lies. Nepal is not simply looking for more visitors. It is implicitly making the case for better products, stronger infrastructure and higher value experiences. Premium hospitality, wellness and spiritual tourism concepts, pilgrimage linked infrastructure, destination mobility, resort led development and upgraded visitor services all sit naturally within that opportunity set. That is an inference from official priorities rather than a quoted government checklist, but it is a commercially logical reading of where value can be created.

The institutional story also matters. Nepal’s Department of Industries states that foreign investment is governed by FITTA 2019 and the Industrial Enterprises Act 2020, while Investment Board Nepal presents itself as a high-level body chaired by the prime minister and tasked with creating an investment-friendly environment. No emerging market is without friction, of course. But serious investors are more likely to engage when opportunity is anchored in institutional architecture rather than promotional rhetoric alone. Nepal appears increasingly aware of that distinction.

Political leadership may add further momentum. Nepal’s current prime minister, Balendra Shah, took office on 27 March 2026, amid a broader atmosphere of reform expectations and generational change. It would be too early to claim that he has already articulated a fully developed tourism doctrine. But youth in leadership can matter, particularly in emerging economies where symbolism and speed often move together. A younger prime minister can project dynamism, urgency and stronger alignment with the aspirations of a rising generation. If that energy is matched by policy execution, Nepal’s tourism and investment narrative could gain an added layer of confidence and credibility.

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That reformist tone is already visible in tourism sector messaging. On 6 April 2026, Nepal Tourism Board reported Tourism Minister Khadak Raj Paudel calling for a new working style centred on quality, innovation, long term planning and results oriented strategy. These are not abstract buzzwords. They are signals that Nepal understands an increasingly competitive truth: tourism success today cannot rest on image alone. It must be supported by delivery.

This is why Nepal now deserves more serious attention from the global investment community. It is globally recognised, culturally layered, emotionally resonant and institutionally engaged, yet still early enough for investors to help shape the market. That combination is rare. In many destinations, the brand is strong but the upside is already priced in. In Nepal, the brand is global, but the investment story is still being written.

The most compelling tourism opportunities of the next decade may not come from places the world has overlooked. They may come from places the world has admired for years, but not yet fully built around. Nepal fits that description perfectly. Its next great ascent may not be on its mountains alone, but in its ability to transform extraordinary identity into investable scale.

L’article Nepal’s next ascent lies in tourism investment, not just its peaks est apparu en premier sur Travel Tomorrow.

What the Kingdom has built under Vision 2030 is not a conventional tourism expansion, nor a promotional exercise dressed in the language of reform. It is something far more consequential: the deliberate construction of a new economic pillar, designed to generate growth, influence, confidence and global relevance at scale.

That distinction matters. Many countries aspire to become tourism powers. Saudi Arabia has chosen to become something more ambitious — a nation that uses tourism as a strategic instrument of transformation.

And the numbers now speak with unusual authority. Saudi Arabia surpassed its original target of 100 million annual tourists seven years ahead of schedule. In 2024 alone, the Kingdom recorded approximately 116 million domestic and inbound tourists, a 6% increase over the previous year, while total tourism spending reached SAR 284 billion. Those figures do not merely suggest momentum. They confirm structural arrival.  

This is why Saudi tourism deserves to be understood not as a sectoral success, but as a national masterstroke.

At the center of that masterstroke stands Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, whose leadership has given Saudi Arabia one of the clearest transformation narratives of the modern era. Vision 2030 did not simply identify tourism as a growth opportunity. It elevated tourism into a core instrument of national redesign — economically, institutionally and internationally.

That is what visionary leadership looks like in practice: not the announcement of ambition, but the engineering of alignment.

In most countries, tourism evolves gradually, often in fragments. A hotel strategy emerges here, an aviation plan there, a cultural initiative somewhere else. Saudi Arabia has taken a different route. It has aligned tourism with infrastructure, sovereign capital, mobility, investment, quality of life, heritage, entertainment, pilgrimage and destination development within a single strategic architecture. The result is not just growth. It is coherence.

And in economics, coherence is power.

The Kingdom’s National Tourism Strategy makes that power legible. Saudi Arabia is targeting tourism to contribute more than 10% of GDP and create up to 1.6 million jobs by 2030. These are not decorative targets. They indicate that tourism is being treated as a serious engine of national productivity, employment and non-oil expansion. Few countries in the world have positioned tourism with this degree of institutional seriousness.  

The most decisive validation of this approach arrived on 15 April 2026, when the Public Investment Fund Board, chaired by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, approved PIF’s 2026–2030 strategy. The language of that strategy is telling. Saudi Arabia is moving from the Growth phase of 2021–2025 into what it defines as a Value Realization phase. That is more than a policy update. It is a declaration of maturity. Scale, in other words, is no longer enough. Performance, ecosystem depth and long-term value now define the next chapter.  

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This matters enormously for tourism.

Under the new strategy, PIF organizes its investments through Vision, Strategic and Financial portfolios, with the Vision Portfolio anchored around six competitive domestic ecosystems. Tourism, travel and entertainment is explicitly named as one of them. That single fact says almost everything the market needs to know. Tourism is not adjacent to Saudi Arabia’s future. It is one of the systems through which the future is being built.  

And because this is Saudi Arabia, that strategic designation is backed by financial force.

PIF’s assets under management have risen from $150 billion in 2015 to more than $900 billion. Between 2021 and 2025, the fund invested over $199 billion into new Saudi projects, while contributing more than $243 billion to real non-oil GDP between 2021 and 2024, equivalent to roughly 10% of the Kingdom’s total. In that context, tourism’s formal place inside the value-realization architecture is not symbolic praise. It is a capital-backed priority.  

This is where many outside observers still underestimate Saudi Arabia.

They see destinations, projects, and headlines. What they should be seeing is operating logic.

Saudi Arabia is not simply building hotels, resorts, or attractions. It is building an interconnected visitor economy in which access, spending, infrastructure, experience, and investor confidence reinforce one another. The Kingdom’s expansion of e-visa access to 66 countries is one example. On the surface, it is an administrative reform. In strategic terms, it is friction removal — a critical ingredient in tourism competitiveness.  

The global performance indicators reinforce the point. Saudi Arabia ranked third worldwide in the growth rate of international tourist arrivals in the first eight to nine months of 2024 versus 2019, exceeding 61%. That is not the profile of a market simply participating in recovery. It is the profile of a market outperforming the field.  

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Yet the Kingdom’s greatest advantage may not be its speed, its capital, or even its scale. It may be the consistency of intent behind all three.

For investors, operators, and international stakeholders, continuity is one of the rarest and most valuable assets in any transformation story. Saudi Arabia today offers something that global capital notices immediately: a clear national direction, reinforced by sovereign capability and sustained by leadership conviction. That combination reduces ambiguity. And when ambiguity declines, confidence compounds.

This is why Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s role is so central to the tourism story. His significance is not merely that he endorsed tourism. It is that he repositioned it. He understood earlier than most that tourism could become more than a leisure industry; it could become a platform for economic diversification, global rebranding and long-horizon value creation. Under his leadership, tourism has become one of the clearest expressions of Saudi Arabia’s confidence in its own next chapter.

That is what gives the Saudi model its unusual prestige.

It is modern without being detached from identity. It is globally ambitious without appearing imitative. It is investment-led, yet strategically national in character. Religious tourism remains foundational, but the Kingdom is also broadening its proposition across culture, entertainment, coastal development, urban lifestyle, sports, and premium hospitality. This is not diversification for its own sake. It is portfolio thinking applied to destination-building.

And the next milestone is already in view. Vision 2030 communications now point to an ambition of more than 150 million visitors by 2030. If the present trajectory continues, Saudi Arabia will not simply join the front rank of global tourism markets. It will become one of the clearest modern case studies of how national vision, sovereign capital, and disciplined execution can transform tourism into a pillar of economic statecraft.  

For the world of travel, investment, and destination strategy, the message is now unmistakable.

Saudi Arabia is no longer a market to watch from a distance. It is a market being built with strategic precision, financial depth, and historic confidence. And with tourism now formally embedded within PIF’s value-realization framework, the Kingdom has moved beyond signalling ambition. It is institutionalizing it.

That is why Saudi tourism matters.

Not because it is growing fast.
Not because it is investing heavily.
Not because it is attracting attention.

It matters because Saudi Arabia has understood something many nations still have not: tourism, when led with vision and executed with discipline, is not merely an industry.

It is a statement of national intent.

L’article Saudi Arabia’s tourism ambition is a calculated global play est apparu en premier sur Travel Tomorrow.

In fact, once the conflict de escalates, the UAE may not simply recover. It may consolidate its position as the region’s undisputed tourism powerhouse. That is not a romantic assumption. It is a structural one.

A structural advantage in times of crisis

The countries that emerge strongest after geopolitical shocks are usually not those untouched by disruption, but those with the deepest infrastructure, the strongest institutional credibility and the clearest global market positioning. On all three fronts, the UAE stands apart. Dubai and Abu Dhabi are no longer competing merely as regional destinations; they are operating as global platforms for tourism, aviation, investment, hospitality and events.

When uncertainty reshapes traveller behaviour, demand typically flows towards destinations that feel safest, most organised and most reliable. In the post-conflict phase, international travellers, airlines, investors and event organisers are unlikely to reward ambiguity. They will reward continuity. The UAE has spent years building exactly that brand.

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A global tourism ecosystem

Dubai, in particular, has become more than a leisure city. It is a logistics hub, a premium stopover market, a global retail destination, a cruise gateway and one of the world’s most recognisable tourism brands. Abu Dhabi, meanwhile, has matured into a complementary force, combining culture, luxury, sports, entertainment and institutional tourism strategy under a more diversified visitor economy. Together, they create a tourism ecosystem few regional competitors can match. This is why the UAE’s post-war advantage could become more pronounced, not less.

Hamdan bin Mohammed announces the citywide introduction of contactless hotel check-in technology. pic.twitter.com/hKC10Gxgn0

— Dubai Media Office (@DXBMediaOffice) December 9, 2025

Trust as a competitive currency

In moments of regional instability, perception becomes currency. Travellers who may once have considered several Middle Eastern destinations often narrow their choices quickly. Airlines do the same. So do conference organisers, luxury tour operators and global hospitality investors. In that environment, the UAE benefits from a powerful competitive edge: it is already familiar, already connected and already trusted by international markets. That trust is one of the most undervalued assets in tourism economics.

A destination can build hotels, airports and attractions. Building confidence is far harder. The UAE has done both. Its tourism model is supported by world-class aviation, streamlined visitor services, high-capacity accommodation, diversified source markets and a government apparatus that understands the strategic value of tourism not as a side industry, but as a pillar of national competitiveness. That last point is essential.

Tourism as an integrated economic system

For the UAE, tourism has never been treated as seasonal demand generation alone. It has been positioned as part of a larger economic architecture tied to trade, aviation, real estate, global events, investment promotion and soft power. This integrated model gives the country unusual resilience. When one segment slows, others continue to support momentum. Business travel feeds hotels. Airlines feed stopovers. Events feed restaurants, retail and premium transport. Tourism in the UAE is not a silo; it is an ecosystem.

pic.twitter.com/X6coHbnYGk

— MoFA وزارة الخارجية (@mofauae) March 17, 2026

Ecosystems recover faster than isolated sectors

There is also a market share story embedded in this crisis. Post-war recovery across the Middle East is unlikely to be even. Some destinations may take longer to restore traveller confidence. Others may face slower airline normalisation or weaker international messaging. The UAE does not need every market in the region to recover at the same speed in order to win. It simply needs to recover faster than the alternatives.

That is a realistic scenario.

If the conflict subsides, Dubai and Abu Dhabi could capture redirected leisure demand, larger stopover volumes, premium travel seeking reassurance and a greater share of MICE and corporate mobility flows. Investors, too, may view the UAE even more favourably as a stable operating base in a region where stability itself has become a premium asset. In other words, a crisis may strengthen the UAE’s relative advantage.

Resilience in the face of disruption

This does not mean the country is immune to near-term pain. Aviation disruption, higher insurance costs, volatile fuel prices and shifts in booking sentiment are real pressures. No serious analysis should dismiss them. But long-term winners in tourism are often defined less by whether they face shocks and more by how convincingly they absorb them. 

The UAE has repeatedly shown an ability to do exactly that. Its brand has been built not only on luxury and spectacle, but also on predictability, speed and execution. In a post-war environment, those qualities will matter more than ever. Travellers will place greater value on seamless airports, dependable airlines, strong safety perception, digital convenience and destinations that signal normality from the moment they land. That is where the UAE’s true competitive power lies.

Dubai ranks first regionally and sixth globally in the Smart City Index 2026, issued by the International Institute for Management Development (IMD). pic.twitter.com/1RS4jcyK0x

— Dubai Media Office (@DXBMediaOffice) April 1, 2026

A shift towards global dominance

The bigger story, then, is not whether UAE tourism can rebound after the Iran-Israel-US war. It is whether the crisis will ultimately accelerate a trend already underway: the UAE’s rise from a leading regional tourism market to an even more dominant global travel and mobility hub.

Dubai’s Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) awards the contract for Phase I of Dubai Walk Master Plan in Al Ras. The phase covers the development of the Historic Al Ras Walkway, comprising 12 km of walkways and 5 km of cycling tracks, alongside the rehabilitation of 10 artistic… pic.twitter.com/Qdug4XKgs1

— Dubai Media Office (@DXBMediaOffice) March 22, 2026

That possibility should not be underestimated

Because when the region reopens psychologically, not just operationally, the destinations best positioned to win will be those that represent certainty in an uncertain geography. The UAE has spent years investing in that identity. And once the war ends, that investment may pay off at an even higher level.

L’article Why UAE tourism may emerge even stronger after the Iran-Israel-US war est apparu en premier sur Travel Tomorrow.

A global platform for collaboration

Since its inception 15 years ago, the Global Tourism Forum (GTF) has evolved into a premier international gathering where heads of state, ministers, CEOs, investors, and innovators engage in critical dialogue. From Istanbul to Angola, Uzbekistan to Dubai, the Forum has consistently convened leaders to tackle urgent challenges and explore opportunities in travel and tourism.

Brussels is a natural choice for the 2025 Annual Meeting. Known as the political heart of Europe, the city serves as a bridge between institutions, nations, and cultures. Hosting the Forum here is not only symbolic but also practical: Brussels offers a vantage point from which to align the tourism agenda with Europe’s wider priorities on sustainability, innovation, and global cooperation.

The Global Tourism Forum (GTF) is honored to announce that Shaikha Al Nowais, Secretary-General-elect of UN Tourism, will speak at the GTF Annual Meeting 2025 in Brussels.

At GTF Brussels, Shaikha Al Nowais will speak on the future of global tourism governance, the… pic.twitter.com/o3BJMou9V9

— Global Tourism Forum (@gtourismforum) September 26, 2025

Tourism beyond travel

The narrative of tourism has expanded beyond holidays and hospitality. In 2025, tourism is an engine for:

• Economic growth: Generating employment and fuelling infrastructure investment.
• Cultural diplomacy: Fostering understanding and cooperation across borders.
• Innovation: Driving the adoption of AI, data analytics, and new mobility solutions.
• Sustainability: Supporting the transition to greener aviation, eco-conscious hotels, and responsible travel.

This year’s Annual Meeting is designed to capture the complexity and opportunity of tourism’s new role in the global order.

Key themes of Brussels 2025

The programme will feature seven central themes, each responding to pressing issues that shape the industry:

• Tourism and Security – building confidence in safe, resilient travel.
• Women and Youth Empowerment – unlocking leadership and opportunity in tourism.
• Urbanisation and Destination Governance – creating liveable, thriving cities.
• AI and Data Privacy – balancing innovation with ethical responsibility.
• Sustainability in Aviation and Hospitality – from mandate to market reality.
• New Media Dynamics – the growing role of digital influence in destination branding.
• Tourism and the New World Order – exploring tourism’s role in shaping geopolitics and economic resilience.

Each theme underscores a simple truth: tourism is not peripheral but central to solving the most urgent questions of our time.

A bridge to investment

The Global Tourism Forum is not merely a conversation; it is a catalyst for investment and partnerships. In Brussels, attention will focus on attracting and facilitating projects across hospitality, aviation, green energy, and digital mobility. Tools such as the World Tourism Investment Index and initiatives like the Tourism CEO Club demonstrate GTF’s commitment to turning dialogue into concrete economic outcomes.

By bringing together governments and private investors, the Forum creates a pipeline for projects that generate jobs, enhance infrastructure, and position destinations as engines of prosperity.

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What awaits in Brussels

Over 1,000 delegates from more than 100 countries are expected to participate in this year’s Annual Meeting. The event will combine high-level panels, investor roundtables, and networking opportunities with cultural and diplomatic exchanges.

A highlight of the programme will be the World Tourism Awards – Top 100, held at the Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium. This gala evening will not only celebrate excellence in tourism but also shine a spotlight on the individuals and organisations driving change in the industry.

Global Tourism Forum Annual Meeting

Leading the Future of Tourism: Insights from the Top

This flagship session will bring together prominent CEOs, ministers, and visionary leaders shaping the global tourism agenda.

Expect bold insights and forward-looking strategies on:
… pic.twitter.com/nj1n2PbkXD

— Global Tourism Forum (@gtourismforum) August 13, 2025

A personal perspective

For me, as President of the World Tourism Forum Institute, this Annual Meeting is more than a professional milestone; it is a personal commitment. I believe tourism is a force that transcends boundaries. It creates jobs, fosters understanding, and builds the bridges of peace that the world urgently needs.

Brussels, with its unique position at the crossroads of diplomacy and commerce, is the ideal place to make this case. It is here that we can demonstrate how tourism, when guided by vision and collaboration, becomes an essential part of global development

The Global Tourism Forum Annual Meeting 2025 is not simply another date on the industry calendar. It is an invitation to leaders, policymakers, entrepreneurs, and travellers alike to participate in shaping the next chapter of tourism.

As we look toward Brussels this October, one message is clear: tourism is not only about where we travel but about the future we build together.

L’article Global Tourism Forum 2025: Shaping the future of travel in Brussels est apparu en premier sur Travel Tomorrow.

For a seamless tourism scheme, the trendy theme of this Summit “Connectivity – Investment and Hospitality” has brought tourism stakeholders together globally. Our honourable participants came from the public and private sectors. We brought various global policy maker leaders together to support a strong institution of the tourism industry of the EU and worldwide. 

Bulut Bağcı @bulutbagci , President of WTFI @WTourismForum said: “Together we are stronger to boost and support the start of a new era of growth for the Travel & Tourism sector for Europe and the world” pic.twitter.com/wkPMGxhrM3

— Global Tourism Forum (@gtourismforum) September 7, 2022

There are three main points that prove the Global Tourism Forum Leaders Summit Europe Brussels drives sustainable tourism development in the EU in a shortened approach.

1. First of all, topics were shared by leading speakers. Our focus was the roof policies on tourism – transportation and mobility. This is a root cause of sustainable development which is one of the key approaches to push for the travel industry after the recovery time.

Indeed, two years on, turbulent Covid-19 recovery continues. Mobility plays an important role to providing good travel and tourism experience. The challenges faced have had a major impact on the travel and tourism sector. In parallel, new Green Deal legislation (especially the Fit for 55 packages) and negotiations on key decarbonization policies are moving forward and these will have a massive impact on mobility, on which travel & tourism heavily depends in Europe. Also, Europe, as the leading and most competitive tourism destination in the world, is committed to becoming the most sustainable one. The goal of the green and digital transition will only be achieved if we succeed in attracting and retaining talent for this sector. The return of travel demand across Europe has been quicker than expected by many in the industry, however the staff shortages are particularly evident in the transport sector, which is currently a challenge.

2. Secondly, the hot topic of Digitalization and Blockchain for Tourism is an important cross-cutting issue to motivate action. WTFI and its partner Ariva have prepared available toolkits for tourists through blockchain, which is crypto payment for the entire journey. For example, tourists will pay for their journey with cryptocurrencies or travel coins in accepted countries.

Fascinating debate on using blockchain technology in travel! @gtourismforum moderated by @JeannetteCeja
With @ClaudiaTapardel and other tourism leaders. pic.twitter.com/NEMkQEjou1

— Maria Ramos (@MariaRamosUK) September 6, 2022

From digitalization to cryptocurrency, and from space travel to virtual reality, the Travel & Tourism sector continues to embrace new technologies to facilitate and enhance travel. In fact, with digital adoption being further accelerated as a result of Covid-19, significant opportunities lie ahead.

As technological interventions continue to reshape human life and business, pushing society into the future, what does the future look like and how are new technologies enhancing Travel & Tourism? Technology and its success have brought tourism beneficiaries going fast in their travel decision. We are on the way to leading the tourism industry in the fast technology growth era.

3. Last but not least, we are on the way to meeting the Agenda 2030 in tourism. The tourism captains and other industries’ top leaders, such as investment and foreign affairs of countries in Africa, Central Asia and ASEAN, also took part in the Summit. Their perspectives showed the priority of tourism development in investment and foreign policies. These indicators show that regional connectivity is very open. They are the key policies to push foreign direct investment in tourism.

Destinations globally continue to relax travel restrictions, enabling the release of strong (short- and mid-haul) demand. However, skyrocketing energy prices are pushing travel costs yet higher, prompting people to travel closer to home or consider cost-saving options.

There is a need to raise awareness of the devastating impact of the COVID-19 crisis on European and Global tourism and showcase how investment in sustainable tourism can be the driver of the recovery, not only in Europe or Africa and Asia but globally.

Growth in Travel & Tourism investment is forecasted over the next decade. Tourism investments are key for the recovery and growth of the Travel & Tourism sector. To achieve this, governments around the world must create a favorable enabling environment with favorable tax incentives, safety and security as prerequisites to attract investments in the sector.

The final goal of our expectation is living with peace. Tourism brings Peace to people all over the world. We, at WTFI and our partners of the world, are stepping on the shortened road of sustainability for the entire tourism sector and its sub-sectors. The policies and their practices are driving the EU to a sustainable road in the next five years and contribute to Agenda 2050 when we will meet zero carbon in tourism activities.

L’article Global Tourism Forum Leaders Summit drives sustainable tourism development in the EU in a shortened approach est apparu en premier sur Travel Tomorrow.