BANGKOK, 4 August 2020: The Pacific Asia Travel Association will host its first-ever Virtual PATA Travel Mart (PTM) 2020 23 to 27 September.
In the announcement released Monday the trade association describes the Virtual PTM is a business-to-business travel contracting and virtual networking event that both mirrors and enhances the features of the long-standing PTM.
The physical PTM took place for four decades but has faced stiff competition in recent years, and travel restrictions linked to the Covid-19 pandemic convinced organisers to introduce a Virtual PTM offering seller booth fees at significantly below market rates.
“As some destinations have slowly restarted tourism through domestic travel… Virtual PTM allows businesses to explore new opportunities, particularly as travel behaviour will be dramatically different post-COVID-19.,” said PATA CEO Mario Hardy.
The event is being organised in conjunction with the Sichuan International Travel Expo with the support of the Leshan Culture, Radio, Television and Tourism Bureau and is powered by official virtual partner Dragon Trail Interactive.
It will offer two full business days with a possibility of up to 50 appointments across all time zones from 24 to 25 September. There will also be two trade visitor days 26 to 27 September. Event delegates can also enjoy a 360° view of the Sichuan International Travel Expo through the Virtual PTM 2020 platform.
Dragon Trail Interactive Co-founder & CEO, George Cao, said: “We are excited to enter a new phase of cooperation with our old friend PATA by delivering the first PTM Online. In addition to delivering a full-scale virtual trade show, through PATA’s partnership with the Leshan Government, we will live-stream forum sessions and other activities from the Sichuan International Travel Expo on the PTM Online platform. We believe this hybrid online-offline model for travel trade shows is the way of the future and are thrilled to be involved in such an innovative project.”
Sellers can enjoy an early bird rate for a standard booth space at USD499 for PATA Members, USD599 for PATA Chapter Members, USD799 for non-members bookable by 15 August 2020.
