The Advantage Travel Partnerships CEO hosted a keynote plenary session to begin the conference at the Meliá Villaitana in Benidorm.
At the conference's opening session, moderator David Meade got things started in high spirits, promising attendees "the most phenomenal two days full of education, full of entertainment, full of networking, and equipping you and giving you the foundation to have an extraordinary 2023, 2024 and beyond."
Manuel Butler, director of Turespaña, took to the stage, heralding "the relationship between Spain and the UK, (which is) not something that can be matched by other countries or other sectors.
On what agents can expect from Turespaña's activity across the UK and within The Advantage Travel Partnership, Butler promised the office is "looking to expand and diversify the range of Spanish product so you have the opportunity to grow your business with Spain."
Julia Bo Lue-Said then officially commemorated the start of the conference with her keynote introduction.
"Welcome to Benidorm and to The Advantage Conference 2023, to this perfect setting... coupled with a robust agenda and some fantastic local experiences for you to immerse yourself into – getting all of us ready to lead the way together."
On that robust agenda, Julia elaborated: "The sessions... are intended to give you a high-level overview of some of the macro challenges and opportunities we are facing across the economy. The workshops will arm you with insights, tools, and guidance across a wide range of topical themes."
The pandemic clearly enabled a pause for thought across the industry, and three years on, the findings become more obvious each day.
"Tourism can be a force for good and we should be proud of the economic and social impact our industry delivers. The pandemic bought into stark reality the devastation travel bans created for local communities across the globe, particularly in developing countries. We all need to work together."
Cost of living concerns were naturally on the agenda, but the Partnership's CEO added some much-needed context: "On the subject of pricing, you may have seen this week a number of press reports talking about price increases for this summer... from my perspective this media narrative will continue but we’re in a competitive marketplace delivering world class service to all our customers with travel agents remaining in the best place to provide consumers with the widest range of options to meet all budgets and desired experiences."
Drawing her keynote address to a close, Julia concluded: "As an organisation, we highly value the relationships we have with all of our stakeholders. And on behalf of all our team, I would like to take this opportunity to thank you, once again, for your continued commitment to Advantage."
