(SEATTLE) – February 12, 2009 – In an invitation only, highly specialized travel trade gathering, 300 targeted suppliers and 300 targeted private travel designers representing the adventure and experiential travel segments will assemble in Marrakech, November 16-19, 2009, at PURE, the industry’s first travel trade exhibition and conference dedicated to the “Experiential Travel” sector.
Launched by Serge Dive, the original founder and former CEO of International Luxury Travel Market (ILTM) in Cannes, and supported by the Adventure Travel Trade Association (ATTA), PURE arrives as ‘experiential travel’ gains ground within the leisure and hospitality market. PURE defines experiential travel as ‘a journey away from home, involving a truly memorable and powerful experience (active, cultural, natural, social or spiritual) that will enrich a person's life and improve the way they connect with both loved ones and with the world'.
“As wealthy customers move away from the simple indulgence of bling holidays poolside towards more active and more experiential mini adventures abroad (what we call 'Survivor Chic' customers), the adventure travel sector will rapidly play a key role in the morphing DNA of an ever reinventing high-end travel market,” said Dive. “Our decision to partner with the ATTA, came from a willingness to combine our expertise in the high end market, acquired after many years of working with the leading partners in the active and adventure travel sector, creating a team capable of facilitating the organization of the newest and most exciting segment of the travel market, the experiential travel market.”
Signaling strategic sector alignment, the ‘adventure travel’ segment, represented by the ATTA, will assist PURE in attracting and qualifying conference participants and exhibitors from within the global adventure travel community. The ATTA and adventure travel sector businesses also will have a presence through an Adventure Travel Exhibit. ‘Adventure travel’, as defined by the ATTA, is as strong match for PURE as the trade association views ‘adventure travel’, at its core, as a ‘blend of physical, cultural and nature-based travel. For both adventure and experiential travel, ethical, responsible and sustainable are shared, core tenets.
“We are supporting this new concept as we believe it will help move the travel market to new levels,” said ATTA President Mr. Shannon Stowell. “Truly conducive to business, PURE brings together leaders who can get business done within the right environment, within an innovative marketing context, and where each participant knows the other person they’re meeting with is the right fit, a senior travel buyer and ready to make business happen.”
Only buyers who have demonstrated a proven track record in producing for this very specific and specialized segment of the market will be qualified for the clearly focused, tailored business-to-business PURE networking event. The event is exclusively reserved for FIT buyers representing travel agencies and tour operators. Only the genuine ‘Travel Designers’ of each agency, those who are influencing purchases, may attend.
With one day of conference and three days of meetings, a computerized pre-scheduled meetings system, PURE provides the setting for tightly managed one-on-one appointment setting and networking periods. Restricted in the first year to 300 exhibitors and 300 buyers, PURE offers an intimate forum with an exclusive invitation forum and the right format to foster the creation of in-depth and long lasting business relationships with travel buyers. Buyers will represent key strategic markets whose clients are high-volume consumers of experiential travel. Only companies that represent the following categories will participate: lodges and retreats, discovery journeys, wilderness experiences, soft and extreme adventures, gastronomic and cultural escapes, events and festivals.
# # #
Media Contact:
Chris Doyle, VP ATTA [email protected]
Sarah Ball, Director & Co-Founder, PURE Life Experiences, [email protected]