An alternative to the MITT exhibition may appear in Moscow
The Russian Union of Travel Industry (RST) has supported the idea of holding a new travel exhibition, Intourmarket, in Moscow. It is to become an alternative to the annually held Moscow exhibition Travel and Tourism. MITT, one of the four largest in the world, reports Travel.ru, citing Kommersant.
The idea to create a new exhibition was proposed by the Foundation for Sustainable Tourism Development (FURT), established three years ago by a number of tour operators and hotels. According to Leonid Isakovich, president of FURT and director general of Akademservice, the new travel exhibition already has a name: International Travel Market (ITM), or Intourmarket. FURT plans to hold it for the first time in the spring of next year at the Crocus Expo exhibition center, almost simultaneously with MITT, from March 19 to 22. The price of exhibition space at Intourmarket will be half that at MITT this year – 190 euros per square meter. The organizers of the new exhibition claim they have already secured support from authorities at all levels. In particular, Isakovich says Intourmarket is being created with the support of the presidential administration and the Federal Agency for Tourism. The organizers do not disclose the budget that FURT intends to allocate for organizing the new exhibition.
The creators of Intourmarket hope to attract exhibitors by playing on the dissatisfaction that MITT participants have long felt towards its organizers. "MITT remains the only major global travel exhibition where tourism professionals cannot work properly," says Vladimir Kantorovich, president of KMP Group. "Not a single day is set aside for travel agents, for whom the tourism industry exhibits at MITT." "From the very first day of work, crowds of 'vacuum cleaners' are let into Expocentre – people off the street who sweep up promotional materials intended for travel agents. In addition, market participants believe that ITE's pricing policy is discriminatory towards Russian companies involved in inbound and domestic tourism."
ITE doubts the success of the new exhibition and insists that tour operators' claims against MITT are unfounded. "I don't know who could manage to create a similar exhibition," says Irina Kochetkova, director of the travel exhibitions department at ITE LLC Moscow. "We entered the exhibition market at the very beginning of the formation of Russia's tourism industry; now it is already an established market."
The prospects for Intourmarket are also ambiguous in the opinion of exhibition business experts. "It is impossible to copy MITT, which will be held next year," believes Valentina Filonova, organizer and owner of the Credit Line exhibition. "Especially in a place like Crocus Expo, which is a problematic exhibition venue. All exhibitions held there have low attendance."
Thailand Expects Tourists Again
Thailand's tourism authorities have revised their forecast for the number of tourists who will visit the country this year. Despite the negative effect of the December tsunami, it was decided to return to the previous optimistic estimate of 13.38 million tourists.
"The current trend indicates a normalization of tourist flow into the country," said Deputy Prime Minister Somkid Jatusripitak. In the first two months of 2005, 2 million tourists visited Thailand, mostly Europeans. Meanwhile, Travel.ru reports, Asian residents still doubt whether to go to the country. Tourist arrivals from China, Taiwan and Hong Kong declined significantly early this year.
Spain Changes Its Advertising Slogan
Spanish resorts are steadily losing tourists. In terms of service level and infrastructure, Spain has long been inferior to Turkey and Southeast Asian resorts, experts say. Spanish authorities have become concerned about the problem, but so far have only managed to change the advertising slogan. As Financial Izvestia reports, they recently pompously announced that instead of the well-known slogan "Spain leaves a mark" they will use the phrase "Smile, you're in Spain" in advertising. How this "revolution" could attract tourists remains a mystery to experts.
According to the Spanish economic newspaper Cinco Días, Spain's largest tour operators are concerned about the decline in tourism revenues. On average, each tourist now spends almost 50 euros less on vacation than in previous years. For example, in 2001 the average spending of one tourist was 749.86 euros, and in 2004 it was 697.75 euros.
Analysts say Spain significantly lags behind other resorts in service level. "The infrastructure and hotel base of Spain's main resorts are inferior primarily to Turkish ones. As a result, Spain is experiencing a decline in tourist flow," confirms Andrei Ozolin, former chairman of the board of directors of "Last-Minute Tours Store".
Spanish authorities have decided to work on restoring tourist flow. The "bright" idea is to change the advertising slogan. Since March, tourists have been attracted with the phrase "Smile, you're in Spain" instead of "Spain leaves a mark".
However, the director of the Spain tourism representation in Moscow, Luis Boves Martin, told Izvestia that the slogan change is in no way connected with the decline in tourist flow. According to him, the introduction of a new slogan is necessary to better promote Spain as a destination for tourists from around the world. However, observers doubt that changing the advertising slogan can achieve any success.
A Guide to London for a Spy
The British National Archives has published a pocket guide to London, issued in the 1930s for Soviet intelligence agents. As the BBC reports, the guidebook was meant to help a Soviet spy avoid detection and arrest by British counterintelligence. In addition to this brochure, other documents related to MI5 were also published.
This brochure proves that some groups belonging to the anti-fascist intelligence network of World War II, known as the 'Red Orchestra', also operated against Great Britain. The point is that the 'guidebook' came into MI5's possession at the end of the war - it was among papers of German counterintelligence that fell into British hands, having been seized from one of the arrested Soviet agents.
The guidebook indicates places where one could safely arrange a meeting with an agent, advice on choosing a route to check for surveillance, recommendations on how to behave in order not to arouse suspicion among police. In particular, the author of the guidebook advises avoiding meetings in London's West End, where (even before the war) there were many nightclubs, restaurants, and hotels. This area, in the compilers' opinion, was too well guarded by the police. The author advised the intelligence officer to live on one of the outskirts of London and meet his agents and informants on the other - in that case, one could travel across the city and determine whether there was surveillance.
Among the most convenient meeting places, the brochure lists crowded squares, railway ticket offices, and even bus stops. The guidebook advises the spy to travel with expensive suitcases, as this earns respect from Britons.
According to experts, the person who compiled the guidebook was quite familiar with London and was a professional intelligence officer. In all likelihood, analysts believe, it was the head of the 'Red Orchestra' himself - Leopold Trepper. He visited Great Britain six times from 1937 to 1939. The British believe that at that time he was engaged in organizing a Soviet intelligence network in the country.