WTM London 2023 announces line-up for its next event

20-08-23

• It will be held at ExCeL London from 6-8 November 2023.

World Travel Market London 2023, the world's most influential travel and tourism conference, has announced details of its conference programme, featuring high-profile speakers and seminars.

More than 60 conference sessions are scheduled, empowering the global travel community and reminding them that they have the power to change travel.

The conference programme will include eight new themes across three stages over three days, taking place at ExCeL London, 6-8 November 2023.

In a departure from previous years, the 2023 conference stages will be called Discover, Elevate and Innovate, a reflection of its purpose.

In addition, in response to demand in 2022, which saw 9102 visitors attend WTM London Conference sessions, the size of the stages has been increased and, instead of one main stage, WTM will host three equally important stages across the event.

The eight conference themes will be titled Sustainability, Technology, Geoeconomics, Emerging Markets, Consumer Trends, Marketing, Diversity & Inclusion (D&I) and Experience and aim to help the global travel community succeed and thrive by informing, entertaining and influencing their business decisions.

In another first, Discover Stage will feature a new design designed to support networking. Table-based seating, rather than traditional conference-style chairs, will promote networking between sessions, which will also include icebreakers, storytellers and socialising during breaks.

Some of the key sessions taking place, listed by day, are:

Monday 6 November

• The Ministers' Summit at World Travel Market in partnership with UNWTO and WTTC

Now in its 17th year, this major event in London's WTM calendar brings together the largest gathering of dignitaries from around the world to discuss and ratify key tourism agreements. The Summit will take place on Day One of WTM London 2023. This is a change from previous years when it took place on Day Two and signifies the growing importance of the Summit to the global travel and tourism industry.

Also on Monday 6 November, attendees can look forward to the launch of WTM's new research, WTM Presents...A Global Travel Outlook. Delegates will gain valuable insights into the trends shaping the future of travel with a presentation of the new WTM Global Travel Report, backed by the renowned researchers at Oxford Economics.

This session will give voice to the changing needs of travellers, emerging and growing destinations, and uncover behaviours and trends for 2024 and beyond.

Tuesday 7 November

• Diversity & Inclusion (D&I) Summit

This major Summit launch will address why a travel business can work best with diverse workforces and the importance of inclusion in developing leisure travel strategy. Fostering a sense of belonging by considering under-represented groups will ensure that travel is accessible to all, regardless of gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation or socio-economic status.

Between sessions, Darren Edwards , a record-breaking disabled adventurer, will examine the stigma surrounding disability and explore ways in which businesses can overcome subconscious bias.

• Technology Summit 

The Technology Summit will cover sessions such as Building Cities for Smart Tourism; the Future of Technology; and AI - Unlimited Opportunities for Change in the Travel Industry.

In addition, on Tuesday 7 November, on the Innovate Stage, the travel community will hear from Tom Hall , Vice President of Lonely Planet, who will review how changes in traveller behaviour and priorities have changed the travel landscape.

Wednesday 8 November

• Marketing Summit

Marketing sessions will cover data-driven marketing; storytelling and engaging with influencers. Wednesday's sessions will also cover the future of marketing and digital tools in travel marketing.

• Sustainability Summit

Sustainability still faces many barriers in the travel industry and the summit uncovers how education, socio-economic benefits and effective funding can drive positive change and encourage the adoption of sustainable practices across the sector.

Among the must-attend sessions: Where next? Reimagining Tourism in a Changing Climate uncovers what good tourism looks like as climate and biodiversity challenges worsen.

In addition, WTM London 2023 will be rounded off on Wednesday 8 November with a not-to-be-missed keynote speaker, whose identity will be revealed soon.