In this episode of Focus, we attended ITB Berlin 2025 and met tourism leaders who highlighted sustainability, technology, and new travel experiences shaping the future of global tourism.
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00:00There are more than 6,000 exhibitors from 170 countries and 100,000 visitors.
00:08It is the largest tourism show in the world, which has just taken place in Berlin.
00:16Travel abroad has increased by 13% in 2024, thus rediscovering its pre-Covid level.
00:21This 2025 edition of ITV Berlin starts with the best augurs,
00:26with real trends, new technologies, sustainable travel, responsible tourism,
00:32but also, of course, simply the desire to travel, the desire to escape,
00:36and this despite the international context.
00:40New experiences to attract new visitors.
00:43This is what, for example, Great Britain offers,
00:46which has just produced a film to reveal the filming locations
00:49of some of the greatest hits in the history of cinema.
00:56Where Captain America was filmed.
00:58If you go to the beaches of North Wales, you'll see where House of the Dragons was filmed.
01:05Those amazing landscapes.
01:07And of course, up to Scotland and following the footsteps of James Bond.
01:12So take a driving tour up into the highlands of Scotland.
01:18For other countries, it is above all a more responsible and inclusive tourism
01:22that must attract increasingly sensitive tourists to these themes.
01:27So what we do here is we empower and train our indigenous communities
01:33to work towards the transition into making their destinations,
01:40their homes, immersive and cultural experiences.
01:43We have 7,641 islands.
01:46There are so many stories and so many experiences in the Philippines
01:51that we would like to share to the world, one island at a time.
02:00We have more than 6,000 villages in Indonesia that are ready to welcome tourists.
02:07This is part of the inclusiveness.
02:09We want to make sure that tourism is not only for big corporations,
02:13but also the people that live their life in the village.
02:17So the economic benefit is for them.
02:20They preserve the environment at the same time and culture are preserving as well.
02:34In Japan, we want to encourage tourists to return to areas that have been affected by natural disasters,
02:40such as the Okuriku region, hit by a strong earthquake in January 2024.
02:46This region offers a lot of local authentic experiences,
02:51a lot of nature, a lot of old generation crafts and arts.
02:56Another point to note is that in Japan, there are a lot of local festivals.
03:01And festivals are a local asset.
03:06It's a very well way for travelers to also join and take part,
03:12which will encourage the local community in terms of giving them hope or purpose.
03:20Other destinations already very common, such as Thailand or the Dominican Republic,
03:24also have the desire to attract new travelers.
03:28In the Dominican Republic, we are more than sun and beach and pina colada.
03:33We offer in the different destinations a proposal of value and experience
03:39with beautiful mountains, rivers, and of course the beaches.
03:44And above all, the cultural heritage that the Dominican Republic has.
03:51We have beautiful beaches, good food, but the most important thing is we have good people.
03:58We have people that have the service mind.
04:02We try to make it more convenient for people to come to Thailand for the first time
04:08to have the first impression that we are safe, we are colorful.
04:22And of course, there are all the new destinations,
04:25these countries that intend to highlight their potential.
04:28This is the case, for example, of the South of Tannadoman, Kazakhstan, or even Azerbaijan,
04:33which bets on its many sites classified as UNESCO World Heritage Sites
04:36and which also offers culinary adventures in the north of the country, the Slow Food Travel.
04:42And it also gives the opportunity for travelers to become kind of co-producers
04:47and it brings benefit again to local people, to local producers,
04:52and brings also this, at the same time, gastronomic variety on the plate of travelers.
04:59There is a lot of other projects I could talk about,
05:02but Azerbaijan is really easy to reach, easy to travel,
05:06and all these different elements are within just like 2-3 hours' reach from the capital city of Baku.
05:17Last year, Kazakhstan welcomed more than 10 million foreign visitors.
05:20But, you know, numbers is not just a goal.
05:24Our primary goal is to enhance the quality of experience.
05:29And thus, we started maintaining the sustainable tourism development in our national parks, for instance.
05:37Today, visitors can find there eco-friendly infrastructure,
05:42and this kind of tourism now becoming a strong tool for empowering local communities.
05:51Oman has a lot of important and beautiful sites for adventure tourism,
05:58whether they are sea sites, diving, or kitesurfing,
06:07and other sea resorts related to adventure.
06:15There are also many other adventure sites that visitors can enjoy in Oman,
06:24such as hiking, trekking, and hiking.
06:30Saudi Arabia, which opened to tourism in 2019,
06:33has a target of 150 million visitors per year by 2030,
06:38based on its cultural heritage, the vast Red Sea project,
06:42and the multiplication of international sporting events.
07:09There is also a huge potential for investors.
07:12Cecilia Pueyo has created a business that supports those who want to develop their activities in the country.
07:39Tourism is an economic engine, of course,
07:42but in the current context, many are those who have insisted on peace and security,
07:48vital conditions to attract these investments.