2009-11-07

Reflections on the Adventure Travel Expo, Sydney

As advertised earlier this week, I spent the day at the Adventure Travel Expo in Sydney today. This was my first year at the annual expo so I don’t have anything to benchmark, but the turnout from both suppliers and the public was impressive! The scene was wall to wall travel lovers hunting for their next destination, freebie or special deal only available at the expo. I have to give Tourism Malaysia, Incredible !ndia and Greyhound extra credit for their stands, they really stood out amongst the crowd (See pictures at the bottom of this page). For myself, it was a great opportunity to catch up with the industry regulars, some I had only met via twitter until today and it was really great to put some faces to names.

All the vendors were very professional, but there were a few that really stood out for me. DragonBus, a new company specializing in bus tours of China, was really impressive. They were professional and seemed to have really done their homework. China is a notoriously difficult market to get in to unless you’re based inside the country, so my hat goes off to these guys (Click here for a full brochure). I will be contacting them in the near future for a more in-depth post. Another supplier that really caught my eye was “Melbourne’s best flashpacker”, Vic Hall. I think the idea that backpacker accommodation doesn’t have to be a rough and cheap experience is a novel one. This approach has the potential to attract corporate travellers as well as young couples and caters to a niche market that may not want to spend huge amounts on accommodation, but still wants something modern and clean.

The Expo will be on for one more day (Sunday the 8^th of November) and I suggest anyone in the area makes an effort to drop in. Grab a beer with the guys from Cairns, listen to some travel stories, watch some Indian dancing or plan your next trip with Travel Managers- it’s up to you!

Don’t forget to check out the pictures from below.

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