THREE MORE ASIAN TRADE SHOWS CANCEL

More travel trade shows in Asia scheduled in May and June are dropping off the calendar as Covid-19 shows no signs of abating any time soon.

This time the coronavirus hits important travel trade events in Thailand, Nepal and India.

Back in January, showtimes scheduled six months in the future gave organisers hope that they might escape the Covid-19 onslaught.

Now, as the pandemic’s path and potency become clearer, events set for September and October could face the same moment of truth.

For the three shows scheduled in May and June travel restrictions, national lockdowns and the dramatic drop in airline services, worldwide, forced organisers to throw in the towel.

Thailand Travel Mart scheduled 1 to 3 June on Phuket Island has been postponed with no new dates set. Over its 20 years, TTM survived military coups and mass demonstrations but not the onslaught of the coronavirus.

Moving to Phuket for the first time the national travel show was part of the Tourism Authority of Thailand’s 60th-anniversary celebrations. TTM attracts around 1,000 delegates a mix of hosted international travel buyers and travel content sellers from Thailand and neighbour countries.

A TAT statement released last week said the “decision was made after extensive and careful consideration of the current situation and outlook alongside our commitment to cooperate with government efforts to mitigate the spread of Covid-19.”

Phuket will get another shot at hosting the TTM possibly later this year. Traditionally hosted in the Thai capital, the show in recent years moved to Chiang Mai and Pattaya for two-year stints.

If TTM fails to reschedule this year, the popular tourist island in South Thailand will host the show in 2021 and 2022.

Read the full article at TTR Weekly: https://www.ttrweekly.com/site/2020/03/three-more-trade-shows-cancel/

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