The 4th Tourism & Hospitality Conference Held within Welcome to Georgia! National Tourism Awards
On June 18, the Radisson Blu Iveria hotel hosted the 4th Tourism and Hospitality Conference, organized within the framework of the Welcome to Georgia! National Tourism Awards. It brought together nearly 400 representatives of the public and private sectors as participants and attendees.
Maryna Chayka, Founder of the Welcome to Georgia! National Tourism Awards, was the first to open the conference with a speech, followed by Genadi Arveladze, Deputy Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development of Georgia; Giorgi Danelia, Chief Investment Officer at Partnership Fund; and Anna Kekelia, Head of the Brand Development Department at the Georgian National Tourism Agency. All of the presenters spoke about the current situation in the tourism and hospitality industry in Georgia, outlined the challenges that are set to be overcome in the near future, and noted that holding this type of conference is vital in terms of bringing different companies and services together and giving an opportunity to the sector for the further development.
“The tourism sector is one of the fastest-growing industries in our economy, and contributes much to the country’s economic development,” stated Genadi Arveladze, adding, “This annual conference offers an important platform for discussion on issues related to the industry.”
The 4th Conference was divided into four panels: Governmental Presentations on Challenges and Perspectives / Statistics; Old and New rules of Hospitality; Responsible Tourism and Sustainability; Georgia and the World - Raising Awareness, seeing Georgian and foreign experts in the field and top market suppliers take to the stage to speak and participate in panel discussions about the challenges and perspectives of the hospitality industry in Georgia. Themes included safety and crisis management and relevant trainings for members of staff, strategies for sustainable and eco-friendly tourism, as well as problems related to over-tourism.
Each panel was rounded off with a Q&A session, while the lunch and coffee breaks provided ample chance for guests to intermingle and acquire new contacts.
Along with the vital issues of the tourism and hospitality industry, a detailed presentation about the 5th Anniversary Welcome to Georgia! National Tourism Awards 2019 competition was launched, seeing new nominations added to the list of awards.
The panels were followed by B2B meetings, giving all the major and minor companies operating in the industry a wonderful chance to present their businesses and obtain new contacts from among the key players of the field.
The 4th Tourism & Hospitality Conference represents a unique platform for information exchange, cooperating with potential partners and clientele and following the latest trends of the field.
The project is supported by: the Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Development of Georgia, Tbilisi City Hall and Partnership Fund, Co-organizers: Georgian National Tourism Administration and Bank of Georgia. Project’s Independent Auditor – “BDO in Georgia”, General Sponsor – Alliance Group.
By Ketevan Kvaratskheliya