Greetings to the ATTA community in Europe!
Welcome to the first issue of the European newsletter. It aims to bring us, the European team closer to you. Who are we? We are:
- Miya Liu, Global Community Lead,
- Thibaut van’t Hof, Production Specialist and Product Coordinator,
- Nenna Salokangas, Global Partner Manager,
- Tereza Georgieva, Partner Manager, Europe,
- Céline Fortin, Regional Manager and key business development lead for Europe,
- and I am Gergana Nikolova, Regional Director, Europe & Central Asia.
Please, know that we are here for you - reach out with questions and requests - we are available to you and want to make sure we serve your business needs.
This newsletter is part of ATTA’s continued effort to better serve you - the ATTA community. It is intended to bring to your attention interesting and insightful information and updates. This issue will focus on ATTA’s benefits, meaning the opportunities that we bring to you as members of the ATTA community. We hope it will also serve as a reminder to let us know what your needs and expectations are from us, the ATTA in Europe.
A couple of weeks ago I returned from Eugene, Oregon, participating at AdventureELEVATE. Being in-person, spending time with the ATTA team and hearing first-hand how the reopening is taking place by the destinations and businesses was an incredible experience. It reminded me once again about the importance of making the effort to be together and not to take it for granted!
Updates from ATTA in Europe
- On 30 May we held a virtual ATWS Meetup - we talked about the upcoming Adventure Travel World Summit - content, participants, audience, how to make most of it - for the businesses and for the destinations. We responded to various questions as well. Click here to access the recording and slides, if you missed it
- We have a new member benefit from a European gear brand and partner, Tenson – click here to access it.
- We launched the Ambassadors program during COVID-19 who serve as ATTA “extended” team”. Most of them have been part of the ATTA for a long time and are available to answer questions and can represent us at some events and locations. Find your closest ambassador here.
- Adventure Champions are the veterans of the ATTA – they have been a member for over 15 years. Reach out to them if you have any questions about the membership experience and what this relationship means for them. You can also follow along in the AdventureTravelNews series, Spotlight on Adventure Champions to learn more from these leading adventure travel companies.
- The ATTA signed an association partnership with the European Confederation of Outdoor Employers (EC-OE) - the partnership underlines that “The Outdoors” belong to the economic sector of tourism and the more global travel community and enables both organizations’ members to benefit from networking, learning and collaboration.
- We restarted the ATTA internship program and the European team is excited to be supported by two incredible young talents - Armin Alijaj from Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Franziska Janke from Germany.
- ATTA Business and Professional members are invited to join us for a Member Connect on 8 June, 9 am PT/ 16:00 UTC. Learn more and register in the HUB.
- ATWS 2022 Scholarship was just announced; applications will be accepted until 17 June 2022.
Find ATTA in Europe; Upcoming Events
ATTA Europe on the road and where we can meet in Europe later this year:
- ATTA will be present at Outdoor by ISPO in June in Munich. We are hosting an AdventureConnect networking event on 12 June. Join us by registering here. We will be speaking also at the conference earlier that day. To access your free tickets for Outdoor by ISPO, click on the AdventureConnect link; note that this event is relevant for any travel-related business and destinations
- Before the ATWS in Switzerland (3-6 October), Celine Fortin will be at IFTM Top Resa (20-22 September) and in November, we plan on being present also at WTM London. There are other potential events and locations that we may attend, but we are still prioritizing and working on them.
We would like to hear from you!
We look forward to being close to you – the ATTA European community– and welcome your ideas and recommendations. Please let us know where you would like to see us more active and how to continue supporting your needs and expectations. You can complete this short form or reach out to me directly using my contact information to share your ideas and recommendations.
With today’s letter, I am also using the opportunity to remind you that our global community wants to hear more from you –from Europe. Please share your news with AdventureTravelNews! If you are an ATTA business member (valid for all types of business membership - destinations, suppliers, buyers, accommodations, industry partners, etc.), keep sharing your press releases and inspiring news with us. Publishing your news on AdventureTravelNews of the several member-benefits that business members can utilize. .
As I close this letter, I could not resist not including the hot off the press 2021 Travel & Tourism Development Index by World Economic Forum: Rebuilding for a Sustainable and Resilient Future. The fact that the Forum that brings the global decision-makers together highlights the importance and priority of “a more inclusive, sustainable and resilient sector” (and Europe leads in most rankings) gives me further hope in these challenging times with COVID-19 and the war in Ukraine and I look forward to higher recognition of the travel sector and further prioritization on the active and sustainable form of tourism.
With this, we wish you all a successful summer season with hopes that the recovery will continue in its best possible way and I hope to see you, the latest, in October in Lugano, Switzerland for the return of Adventure Travel World Summit.
Stay in touch!
Best regards,
Gergana