With a forecast of 10% expansion in terms of floor space and 8% in terms of the public, the 2025 edition will feature spaces dedicated to mobility, travel providers and experiences, as well as the launch of a system that will allow visitors to collect and store information about exhibitors through a new technological resource.
The information is from Bianca Pizzolito, Event Leader of WTM Latin America. The executive talks about the expected growth in attendance and exhibition space, about the new areas that debut in the event plan and highlights the set of technological tools available to exhibitors and visitors, in addition to reinforcing the theme of the edition confirmed to take place between April 14 and 16, at Expo Center Norte.
“Building the future was this year’s theme and now we are focusing on an extension of it, addressing the positive impact of technology on human relations with the theme ‘Where Technology Meets Touch’ to emphasise the importance of technology in building a smart, agile, and sustainable future,” he says. “Technology fosters human contact which, in turn, is the basis of tourism. People travel to meet each other and from that encounter business emerges,” he adds.
In addition to being presented in the three halls that democratize visitors' access to qualified content, practical advice and cases, the central theme of WTM Latin America is also aligned with the positioning of the event. “All events in the WTM portfolio are on the way to becoming smart events. Smart events make it clear that the digital format is not exhaustive in itself and that the face-to-face format is not exhaustive in itself either, but that the combination of both enhances the events,” he points out.
In this sense, the event offers a package of tools that support WTM in achieving its main objective: generating business. The first of these is the Exhibitor Dashboard, an informative panel where, in a visual and simple way, the exhibitor can access the metrics of their participation in the event. “Through this page you can monitor which products have the most access, from which regions of the world the greatest interest in your products comes and, based on this information, build a strategy. In this way, when the event starts, you already have a clear idea of what you need to prioritize in order to work more efficiently during the fair,” explains Bianca.
Another tool offered to exhibitors is Emperia, which collects, stores and categorizes information from all the people who visited the stand. At the end of the event, exhibitors have access to a report with the data from all these visits. “It is a way of working with data in an intelligent and agile way, since the exhibitor has his leads organized and qualified every day. With this, the exhibiting companies gain agility in their post-event actions,” he recalls.
This year, the new feature is Colleqt, a tool that will focus on visitors. All stands will now have a QR code that interested parties can scan and collect data. The exhibitor decides what they want to share – institutional material, folders, packages, rates or any other data, uploading it to the platform – and receives information from the visitor who was interested in obtaining that information. “In this way, we also offer an autonomous form of participation and open a new front in terms of sustainability and innovation, as well as converging with the central theme of the event,” argues Bianca, recalling that the tool is already used at WTM London.
Jonathan Heastie, WTM Portfolio Director since May 2024, highlights that “in terms of trends impacting the global travel industry, we see a growing demand for unique and memorable travel experiences. I am pleased to see this theme showcased at WTM Latin America 2025 through new areas alongside the event’s already strong focus on Diversity and Inclusion within the sector, which also continues to strongly manifest itself as a key area of focus across the global industry,” said the executive who has been part of the company’s management for 15 years.
New areas
The 2025 plant will have changes with a new sector that will make the visit even easier, optimising the time of visitors. The event will debut a Mobility area that will bring together stands from car rental companies, airlines, railway companies and others related to mobility. “We saw that we needed to rethink the design because we had exhibitors who were looking for an area to which they belonged, as they did not want to be limited to a certain geographical region,” explains Bianca. In the same vein, the Travel Providers area was created, dedicated to each and every company that, horizontally, provides services or products to the tourism industry.
In terms of size, WTM Latin America 2025 will see a 10% increase in the exhibition area, with the expansion of areas dedicated to Brazilian and Latin American destinations, a legacy of 2024 that will remain for next year. "We understand that the floor plan is a reflection of what is happening in the market, so this expansion is linked to current demand," he says. Another novelty that contributes to this increase is the inauguration of a new area dedicated to experiences.
“It is one of the big bets, since every year we see this trend of interaction at events,” says Bianca. The activations that were already taking place spontaneously at the stands now have their own area, with the participation of exhibitors who will bring immersive and interactive experiences to visitors. The area will also have a space for shows, similar to what happened at the 2024 edition.
At the forefront of sustainability debates, WTM Latin America is following the trend of diversity in terms of speakers and topics in the three theatres. “Half of the speakers are women and the other half must belong to minorities who will have to go on stage to address technical issues,” recalls Bianca.
The Diversity Route continues and will expand – the first edition of the project featured exhibitors with products and services related to three axes: LGBTQIAP+ Tourism, Afrotourism and Tourism 60+. “We must remember that the Diversity Route is a recognition of what is already happening in the market. It gives visibility to what already exists,” she says. The themes of the Rota also guided the programming of the rooms, which will also continue in 2025. “In addition to believing in these themes as core values, this positioning is an alignment with global trends since we are talking about niches that generate a relevant business movement. Afrotourism, for example, is today one of the greatest powers of Brazilian tourism and we see this impact in Latin America as well,” says Bianca.
The fifth edition of the Responsible Tourism Award has been confirmed, as well as the opening model with a guest speaker who will address a topical issue that refers to the central debate proposed by the event. “Trends in sustainability issues also greatly influence what we do. Echoing the importance of these issues, the award will undoubtedly promote the most inspiring and relevant stories from the travel and tourism industry to promote sustainable development across the continent,” argues Bianca.
The connection with Latin America will continue to be strengthened in the thematic programming of the rooms and in the alliance with partners that will bring to the discussion important topics for the continent. “We want to encourage even more Latin American visitors to attend the event. In addition to research and content relevant to the sector, we will focus on buyers from this region in our Hosted Buyers program, where we must have a minimum of 50% Latin American buyers,” says Bianca.
Source: WTM Latin America