Incentive - March 2008 - (Page 66)

TRAVEL An Ocean of Options PAGE 74 The Land of Lost PAGE 81 From mega-ships to yachts, there are more ways than ever to customize your cruise experience Activities around the hit show are some ways ‘Hawaii’ has become synonymous with ‘high adventure’ Welcoming the Wild Cards Poland, Armenia win IMEX honor for industry newcomers By Alex Palmer I MEX recently gave a particularly warm welcome to four exhibitors who will exhibit for the first time at this year’s show. Poland’s Torun and the Republic of Armenia, as well as Holstein Eventmarketing and Marketingkooperation Städte, both of Germany, received IMEX’s annual Wild Card awards. IMEX, the international Torun, Poland, receives over a million tourists a year exhibition for incentive travel, meetings and events, created the Wild Card program to help new destinations and travel companies get a shot at showing alongside more established destinations and participants. To qualify, entrants to the program must not have exhibited at a major international show before but must have strong enough organization to have legitimate chances of succeeding in the incentive or meetings travel market. The winners receive free exhibit space and accommodations for the show, taking place between April 22-24 in Frankfurt, Germany, as well as complimentary tickets to the show’s gala dinner. Perhaps even more valuable, winners also receive year-round marketing support and guidance from the IMEX marketing team. Torun, Poland, has been designated a UNESCO World Heritage site, has much to offer travelers. It can currently host events for up to 1,000 participants, and offers a wide choice of ballrooms, hotels and the Park Fair Centre, a modern exhibition hall. Torun’s win is another indication of the rising popularity of Eastern Europe as an incentive destination. “In the past few years we have seen the number of applicants rise from the Eastern European destinations,” says Carina Bauer, marketing and operations manager for IMEX. “[This is a] reflection both of their growing maturity as markets serving the meetings industry and also their eagerness to develop their products and services.” The Armenian Republic is also set to gain attention. Awards also went to Holstein Eventmarketing, which specializes in event and incentive planning for small groups, and Marketingkoooperation Städte, which represents 14 cities in the German federal state of Schleswig-Holstein. BY THE NUMBERS Travelocity Respondents willing to have fewer flight choices if it meant having fewer delays Respondents who will reduce international travel due to weakening U.S. dollar Respondents who prefer an off-the-beaten-path food experience or to try something they haven’t had before (compared to only 7.8 percent preferring top-rated/gourmet restaurants) Respondents willing to spend more on an eco-friendly destination or business Respondents planning an “all-guys” or “all-girls” vacation 65% 17% 81% 80% 33% SOURCE: TRAVELOCITY 2008 FORECAST SURVEY WWW.TRAVELOCITY.COM/FORECAST2008 66 | Incentive | March 2008 | incentivemag.com http://www.travelocity.com/forecast2008 http://incentivemag.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Incentive - March 2008

Incentive - March 2008 Contents Editor’s Note: Delivering on Diversity In The News Cover Story: Leveraging Diversity in the Workplace Incentive Interview: Paul Levesque on Why Awards Fail Case Study: AEIS’ Max!-imum Incentive Program Mine Employees’ Creativity with Innovation Incentives Incentive Must-Reads The Third Annual Gift Card Roundtable My Turn: Motivation or Bribery? Everybody Get Together In Her Shoes: Why Bosses Should Be Flexible Incentive Primer: Passport Problem-Solving potentials Here and Now Is CES Electronics Heaven? China and Crystal: More Than a Pretty Face Travel News Florida: What’s New on the Beach? Smooth Sailing for Incentive Cruising Come To Hawaii And Take It Fast Last Word: But Enough About You

Incentive - March 2008

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