ABTA’s new autumn events schedule consists of a mix of new hybrid events, virtual training days and free webinars for members.

The events are open to the whole travel industry, with reduced rates available for members and partners.

ABTA is offering a 10% discount on bookings made before 8 October with the code ABTAAUTUMN21.

The new hybrid events give participants the choice to attend in person, joining industry peers at a central London venue, or to tune in to the live content virtually through a custom platform.

There are two events in this format taking place in the second half of November:

  • Travel Trends conference (24 November) will give participants the most up-to-date insights on key sector trends including luxury, cruise, youth and over 50s travel, popular destinations, customer sentiment and marketing strategies to support the continued recovery of travel businesses. Speakers include Black Tomato Co-Founder Tom Marchant and Kuoni Marketing Director Dean Harvey.
  • The Travel Regulations Conference (30 November) will explore the practical lessons learnt from the COVID-19 pandemic, what the travel industry can expect from the major regulations going forward and what this could mean for travel businesses. Confirmed speakers at this event include David Marshall from the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS).

The virtual training days offer in-depth, practical guidance in key areas:

  • Travel VAT Training (19 October)
  • Introduction to Health and Safety Risk Management and Auditing for Travel (21 October)
  • Consumer Law in the Marketing and Selling of Holidays (8 December)
  • Digital Marketing for Travel (28 September), with Travel Gossip and Ginger Juice MD Bruce Martin amongst the panelists.

Business resilience webinars are free for ABTA members and partners, though non-members are welcome to pay to attend. They provide practical guidance for travel businesses to navigate the challenges of COVID-19 and beyond. Upcoming webinars include Decarbonising Tourism (November) and Accessible Travel and Tourism (December), with more free webinars to be announced shortly.

ABTA’s Head of Events, Eve Coburn, said: “We’re offering events on topics that have been in demand, from marketing and finance, to travel law and health and safety, presented by high calibre speakers and experts.

“We’re pleased to also be offering hybrid events – giving people the choice to attend in person – offering a much missed opportunity to network with industry colleagues – or to attend online . I look forward to seeing you – face-to-face or virtually.”

To find out more and register, visit abta.com/events.