Arabian Travel Market launches 2022 exhibitor awards

Arabian Travel Market (ATM) 2022 exhibitors will be pulling out all the stops to showcase their creative and business flair at this year’s ATM Best Stand Awards.

The awards will recognise the creative design, people skills and the business-friendly appeal of exhibiting companies’ stands at the annual showcase which will be taking place at Dubai World Trade Centre from 9–12 May 2022.

Danielle Curtis, Exhibition Director ME, Arabian Travel Market, said “Arabian Travel Market would not be the huge success it is without the incredible amount of effort and investment that goes into creating and manning the exhibitor stands at the show.

“Since its inception, the award programme has not only recognised exhibitor’s efforts but has also encouraged exciting, fresh and creative stands.”

The five categories this year will be – Best Stand Design, Best Stand for Doing Business, Best Stand Feature, Best New Stand, Best Stand at ATM Travel Tech and the People’s Choice Award.

Judging will take place on day two of the show, (Tuesday 10th May) with the winners announced on day three, (Wednesday 11th May), with the panel comprising journalists and industry speakers, such as Paul Clifford, ITP Hospitality Group Editor and Philip Wooller, Area Director MEA at global hospitality research company STR.

“With more than 2,000 exhibiting companies spread across 10 exhibition halls, the judging panel will have a lot of ground to cover,” added Curtis.

The criteria for the Best Stand Design award focus on identifying an eye-catching stand with a creative design that makes the best use of available space. It should also appear inviting from a visitor’s perspective and have an outstanding presence in the halls, attracting a high level of visitor traffic.

For the Best Stand for Doing Business award, the judging panel will be looking for a busy B2B atmosphere as well as a well-planned and easy-to-navigate layout with a good presentation of the stand and its services.

The Best New Stand award seeks to recognise participants making their debut stand at ATM this year. The judges will be looking for a creative and striking stand that best uses the space available and with exceptional hall presence, as well as inviting and engaging from a visitor’s perspective.

The final award is the Best Stand within the ATM Travel Tech, which shines a light on the importance of technology to the industry and rewards exhibitors with a tech focus.

Once the winners have been selected, they will be put to the public vote for a chance to walk away with the coveted People’s Choice Award. Calls for votes will be made via social media, with the winner announced on Thursday 12th May. All the results will be shared with a global audience via ATM’s social media platforms.

Now in its 29th year and working in collaboration with the Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC) and Dubai’s Department of Economy and Tourism (DET) – formerly the Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DTCM) – ATM show highlights in 2022 will include, among others, a destination summit focused on the key source market of India, as well as Saudi Arabia.

Previously called Travel Forward, the revamped and rebranded ATM Travel Tech event will take place on the ATM Travel Tech Stage, hosting seminars, debates and presentations as well as the inaugural ATM Draper-Aladdin Start-up Competition.

The dedicated ARIVALDubai@ATM forum, meanwhile, will cover current and future trends for tour operators and attractions, focusing on growing business through marketing, technology, distribution, thought leadership and executive-level connections.

ATM will once again play an integral role in Arabian Travel Week, a festival of events dedicated to enabling travel professionals from all over the world to collaborate and shape the recovery of the Middle East travel industry through exhibitions, conferences, breakfast briefings, awards, product launches and networking events.