This is where you future-proof your destination

Attendees that represent the biggest companies and destinations in travel – as well as the most nimble and innovative upstarts – come poised to network and join the in-depth, strategic discussions moderated by unbiased and expert analysts and executives.

At The Phocuswright Conference, destination marketing organizations in the global travel industry can gain insights to give them the competitive edge they need to future-proof their destinations.

The following sessions are specifically geared toward DMOs: 

• Executive Panel: Digital Identity Becomes Reality
  The future is here when it comes to digital identity for travel, with the tiny island of Aruba a global leader in implementing this type of solution. What will this technology mean for border crossing, hotel check-in, entry to attractions and more broadly, how travel brands access customer data?
  Panelists
  Heather Dahl, CEO, Indicio.tech
  Dangui Oduber, Minister of Tourism and Public Health, Aruba
  Michael Zureik, Director of Digital Identity, SITA
  Moderator
  Robert Cole, Senior Research Analyst, Lodging and Leisure Travel, Phocuswright
• Executive Interview: Tours, Activities and Experiences: Aiming High
  Tours, activities and experiences have long been seen as travel's next frontier for aggregation and consolidation. But despite a few notable successes, the sector remains stubbornly fragmented. CEOs of the two biggest marketplaces clear up misconceptions about the sector, why it is different to the rest of travel and what the future holds.
  Panelists
  Ben Drew, President, Viator
  Johannes Reck, CEO & Co-Founder, GetYourGuide
  Interviewer
  Douglas Quinby, CEO, Arival
  
• Executive Panel: The Experience Economy
  A room or rental are table stakes for travelers today. Can these companies go beyond and give consumers experiences they'll never forget?
  Panelists
  Lindsay Liszewski, Vice President, Business Insight and Analytic Services, Choice Hotels International
  Oral Muir, VP Partnership Development & Global Distribution, Hilton
  Amir Segall, Commercial Director, Airbnb
  Moderator
  Lorraine Sileo, Founder, Phocuswright Research and Senior Analyst, Phocuswright Inc.
  
• Executive Panel: Beyond the Funnel
  Ask these executives and they’ll tell you that social’s role in travel extends well beyond inspiration. But what that means in practice differs across platforms. Hear how social facilitates connections in this session.
  Panelists
  Sanjay Bhatia, Travel Industry Director, Meta
  Kelly Covato, U.S. Head of Travel, Snap
  Gary Morrison, CEO, Hostelworld
  Moderator
  Madeline List, Senior Research Analyst, Phocuswright
  
• Executive Panel: The Boom is Dead. Long Live the Boom!
  Just when investors were focusing on substance over hype, advances in AI seem ready to set off another boom cycle. Our panelists discuss funding innovation in the age of AI and balancing it with investing in the basics.
  Panelists
  Amy Burr, President, JetBlue Technology Ventures
  Kurien Jacob, Managing Director, Highgate Technology Ventures
  Mia Morisset, Principal, Inovia
  Moderator
  Mike Coletta, Manager, Research and Innovation, Phocuswright
  
• Executive Interview: Going with the Flow
  Maintaining momentum amid market uncertainty is not an easy task for travel marketers. Google shares its insights for staying nimble in a changeable marketplace.
  Susie Vowinkel, Managing Director, Travel, Google LLC
  Interviewer
  Pete Comeau, Managing Director, Phocuswright
• Phocuswright Research: The Sustainability Gap: Belief vs. Behavior
  Experts believe that travelers will rally behind sustainable options, yet overtourism and carbon-heavy travel options abound. So where is the disconnect? Phocuswright research is on the vanguard of understanding sustainable decision-making - the difference between what travelers say and what they do. Where are the real opportunities to inspire green behavior?
  Speaker
  Madeline List, Senior Research Analyst, Phocuswright
• Executive Interview: On Top of the (Business Travel) World!
  Exhilarating and exhausting aptly describe the last few years for business travel. Amid cyclical challenges, distribution shifts and competitive pressures, what does the future of business travel look like from this global leader's vantage point?\
  Paul Abbott, CEO, American Express Global Business Travel
  Interviewer
  Charuta Fadnis, SVP, Research and Product Strategy, Phocuswright
• Executive Panel: Bridge Series - Improving Travel Through Human-Machine Collaboration
  Travel enriches our souls and allows us to experience new places, cultures and traditions. Building off of the learnings from WiT’s Global Travel Tech Thinktank, hear from leaders from across the world on how they are striking the right balance between technology and humans to improve all aspects of travel from planning to booking to the destination experience.
  Panelists
  Schubert Lou, COO, Trip.com
  Damian Scokin, CEO, Despegar.com
  Moderators
  Pete Comeau, Managing Director, Phocuswright
  Siew Hoon Yeoh, Founder, WIT and Editorial Director, Northstar Travel Group Asia
• Executive Panel: AI - Exploits and Explanations
  In theory AI will dramatically alter all aspects of travel, but in practice what have we really learned? Technology leaders share early results with AI and the travel journey.
  Panelists
  Tom Kershaw, Chief Product & Technology Officer, Travelport
  Sanjay Mohan, Group CTO, MakeMyTrip
  Christian Spannbauer, CTO Lufthansa Digital Hangar, Lufthansa Group
  Moderator
  Norm Rose, Senior Technology and Corporate Market Analyst, Phocuswright
• Executive Panel: The Future of the Trip is Generative
  Generative AI exploded into consumer consciousness and forced travel companies to accelerate their thinking on ways they could leverage the technology in the traveler journey. Leading travel and tech companies tell us how they see this transformation taking place.
  Panelists
  Prashant Bhugra, Head of Travel, Microsoft
  Gilles Trantoul, VP Product Marketing and Portfolio Strategy, Amadeus
  Moderator
  Robert Cole, Senior Research Analyst, Lodging and Leisure Travel, Phocuswright
• Industry Roundtables
  The roundtable discussions are an opportunity for you to get together with like-minded attendees and industry experts in an informal setting to examine issues as they relate to the table topic. See the 11 Industry Roundtables to choose from.
  
  • Capturing Demand for Travel Beyond Earth's Atmosphere, Sponsored by Battleface
  • Changing Behavior and Sentiments, Sponsored by Allianz Partners
  • The Digital Future, Sponsored by Travelport
  See the list of Roundtables here.
• Innovation Launch
  Phocuswright is travel's stage for innovation. The program is packed with market-changing innovations presented in a fast-paced, no-holds-barred environment.
• Breakout sessions that advance the industry.
  This is where the industry transforms theory into practice. During breakouts, attendees receive educational content from industry leaders in an intimate, interactive environment to discover, learn and hone skills.
  • 80 Ways to Pay, Sponsored by Nuvei
  • New Traveler Path to Purchase, Sponsored by Expedia Group
  • Using AI to Convert Anonymous Consumers in a Privacy-First World, Sponsored by Session AI
  • BNPL in Travel: How Flexible Payment Methods have Driven Incremental Revenue for Royal Caribbean Group, Sponsored by Affirm
  • Tapping Real Travel Influence Sponsored by: Snapchat
• Plus, executives from the biggest companies in travel like Google, Expedia, Tripadvisor, Hopper, Despegar, MakeMyTrip, Amadeus, GetYourGuide and much more. There are numerous companies and attendees presenting the latest tech innovations and more that the finance sector must keep top of mind.

See the full program here

In addition to the unprecedented networking opportunities, destination organization executives should expect:

• Executives from every major online travel company
• Potential partners 
• The latest innovations impacting the traveler lifecycle
• Research presentations and sessions geared toward the evolving travel and distribution market, regions like India and Europe, plus the state of digital travel
• The leading intermediaries and business partners distributing travel products
• Valuable sessions on how the broader digital travel market impacts the traveler lifecycle

DMO-related attending companies:

In addition to your industry peers, the most influential suppliers, innovators and technology solution providers are fully engaged at the Phocuswright Conference.

View all attendee companies here

Research related to DMOs:

The latest research on destination marketing.
The latest research on consumer trends.

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