»When the small ones join together, they become large,« was the guiding thought of the organisers of the largest tourist event in Slovenia, the Tourism and Leisure Show, as they were searching for new directions of development. The geostrategic position of Slovenia in the Alpe-Adria region was an important influence on the preparation of the Tourism and Leisure Show. The connecting thread running throughout the Show this year will be cookery. A new international prize Jakob will also mark the event.
The Tourism and Leisure Show, which takes place annually at the end of January at the Ljubljana Exhibition and Convention Centre, with its ambition for greater visibility of its offer, segmented by individual products and the expectations of the visitors, is expanding over the Alpe-Adria region with the goal of becoming its central tourist event.
The organizer of the updated event, the Ljubljana Exhibition and Convention Centre, will, together with its partners, strive to equally represent at the Show all tourist destinations within the region; thus, on the one side facilitating greater recognition of exhibitors via various marketing tools, and on the other, offering visitors actual possibilities for spending their holidays and leisure time. The patronage of the Alpe-Adria: Tourism and Leisure has already been accepted by the City Municipality of Ljubljana, with its Mayor, Zoran Janković, as the host of the above mentioned meeting, and the Ministry of Economy of the Republic of Slovenia. The key actors of Slovenian tourism, who will also participate in the newly founded expert committee of the Show, have also expressed support.
The event will become more interesting for visitors only with suitable programme and destination expansion of the Show concept. By attracting a larger number of visitors from the entire Alpe-Adria region, the offer of exhibitors will also be received with greater interest. The region is home to 26 million inhabitants, who continually seek new ideas of how to spend their free time. With its proximity, accessibility and attractive offers, Slovenia is undoubtedly an interesting choice. At the same time, this type of concept offers to the Slovenian guests a wide range of opportunities for shorter trips across the border.
In addition to the regional expansion, the Show is also expanding in terms of content and for the first time presents the offer from the viewpoint of the visitors. The layout and themes of the Show will thus correspond to various tourist “tribes” (target groups):
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All representatives of the “traveller tribe” will find at the Show presentations of interesting destinations, where they may travel on their next trip – offer of travelling holidays from different agencies and information required by the travellers.
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The representatives of the “holiday tribe” will be informed about the offer of spas, holiday resorts and offers from agencies. The selection of spots where they will be spreading their beach towel next, will thus be simpler.
- The representatives of the “excursion tribe” will find a whole range of ideas for when and where to travel, either in their immediate vicinity or to more remote destinations. They will also be informed about the integral offer of destinations and current events, festivals, etc.
- The representatives of the “active tribe” will find at the Show a rich selection of offers of sports tourism, from cycling paths, winter sport centres, hiking routes, water sports to adventure sports.
The promotional role of participation at the Show will be joined by the sales role, since the visitors will be able to book their holidays at the Show or arrange for a meeting. Thus, the Show will become more than just an exhibition, it will become the direct sales window for the exhibitors.
The wide support of actors of Slovenian tourism ensures that the Show will become more than just an exhibition space. The accompanying programme will, with the support and participation of educational institutions, contribute to continual upgrading of knowledge of those working in the tourist industry. At the same time, it shall adapt the important function of guiding young people into tourism, which is of key importance for the development of the branch.
In addition to the above, the organisers are planning a number of programmes, which will considerably enliven the Show, from presentations of innovative ideas in tourism to attractive social events and programmes. The event will be lively, entertaining, particularly informative and also educational.
The central connecting role among the exhibition, the accompanying programmes and the prizes, which shall be awarded for special achievements in the field of tourism, will this time be held by cookery. The Jakob prize, a new international prize of the event, awarded by the organiser, the Ljubljana exhibition and Convention Centre, for tourist quality and excellence, is a new addition to the other prizes. The name of the prize originates from one of the oldest forms of tourism, the so-called pilgrimage, a cultural form known by almost all religions. The entire European space (and also a number of other continents) connects pilgrimages with the image of St. Jacob, who has become an allegory of not only the pilgrim but also of the tourist in general.
The conditions for this year’s exhibition are published at the official webpage of the Show www.alpeadria-tip.si.
All of you looking for your opportunity in tourism, take advantage of the sales/promotional role of the Show and build upon your visibility in the wider region. All of you seeking ideas of where to travel in your free time, how to fill your free hours and where to spend your holidays, follow the up-to-date information on the event and in the last week of January 2011 walk through the Alpe-Adria region at its central event Alpe–Adria: Tourism and Leisure at the Ljubljana Exhibition and Convention Centre.
