ITB leading the way to the future

Berlin’s big bear opens doors to an industry that has always been driven by inspiration and innovation

I’ve been going to ITB Berlin for 40 years now. That’s right, since 1976 and every single year, both ITB and Berlin astonish me.

Both share the appetite for change, the left-wing ideals and the astonishing level of diversity.

OK sometimes both seem like a mess. For the last couple of years, Berlin has suffered the loss of face from a public works initiative sucking in megabucks – its much-vaunted Brandenburg airport (originally scheduled to open 6 years ago). But Berlin’s integrated and cheap public transport system, its cheapness and innovation, its great food and drink, and colourful nightlife but above all its endearingly quirky citizens means that it’s a great place to be.

There’s not one year that I’ve come to Berlin for ITB without there has been something really different in Berlin – and at ITB.

The fact is that both Berlin and ITB do innovation and iconoclasm for a pastime and I always come away footsore (really) and invigorated.

This year, in particular, I was gripped by a few events, at ITB and one in Berlin, that I think put many things (including the global travel and tourism industry!) in context.

It all came together for me on Friday afternoon after four days and 60km (that’s right ITB is big) of walking at the event.

On Friday afternoon I went with a friend to have a coffee in the LGBT (should it now be the LGBTQ?)  section of hall 4.1 – a part of the fair that I hadn’t visited thus far.  After we had a pink photo-booth picture and a gay Japanese wedding ceremony and a fabulous cup of coffee and cookie, I was hooked. It was great – fun-filled, enthusiastic, innovative, generous, charming, kindly, hospitable… and a bit camp. In a word – it was inspirational.

Then I went to the IIPT (International Institute for Peace and Tourism) celebration of ‘Her’. In other words awards for empowered females. Why is it that this organization always has its finger on the button? First I noticed that it was hosted by a man (actually tourism and climate scientist Professor Stefan Gossling – so that’s OK then!) Secondly I noticed the line up of lady awardees included Jane Ashton (TUI’s director of Sustainable Development) and Valsa Nair Singh (Secretary of Tourism for Maharashtra) and that the redoubtable Anita Mendiratta was moderating the event. Clearly a very powerful bunch.

But it was the next event that really got me. As the hall was cleared after ‘Her’ the stage was taken by a young man I’d never heard of before. Aziz Abu Sarah, a peace campaigner and travel agent, shared what he called ‘The Future of Travel’. This is a future that depends on the tourism industry’s greatest (and often unused) asset – the ability to personally meet and engage with billions of curious people every year. Watch his TED talk 4 minute video and you’ll see what I mean. TED TALK VIDEO

Straight after that, I went to something that I knew was going to enthuse me Responsible Tourism Networking which involves unstructured short pitches – inspirational short stories told by young people each with a new way for tourism to make a difference. If that’s the future I want to be a part of it.

And the next day in Berlin showed me why. It showed me that tourism can be economically, socially, culturally and environmentally powerful and… musically, politically and artistically, relevant too.

Alternative Berlin Tours  sets out to put you right about Berlin. My five and a half hour, €12 experience with Jake Sweetman certainly did that and much more. This sports-writer, rock drummer, failed artist and brilliant tour guide showed our small group his Berlin. The Berlin that Jake introduced us to was the city that Iggy Pop and David Bowie adored, the city that Hitler and his gang had decimated, the left-wing iconoclastic city of ironic humour, big drinking, food fights and resilient people. Above all, Jake showed us the city that he’d fallen in love with – warts and all.

He described Berlin as a kind of Earworm that once it had entered your head, would never leave and bring you back again and again. And as he did the walk, and told the stories to introduce us to Berlin’s many, many characters from communist pioneer Rosa Luxembourg to terrorist Andreas Baader, he nailed the Earworm more firmly in our brains. We’ll be back.

But more importantly, Jake’s tour reminded me of the hard work and research behind a good guided tour, the ability of a guide to interpret the destination, the power of a guide to communicate the destination character and change the political narrative, and, above all the extraordinary value of such a personal and engaging experience. Like a personal performance of a great work of art, it was truly transformational.  As in Jerusalem with Aziz Abu, so in Berlin with Jake.

All this transformational stuff brings me back to what happened the rest of the week at ITB, in particular the new breed of destinations becoming more and more sustainable, not just for their inhabitants, but for visitors too.

At the Global Sustainable Tourism Top100, destinations told their sustainability stories – their ways of making their destinations more authentic, more natural, more healthy, more accessible, more efficient; simply more welcoming. From community beach cleaning in and no smoking beaches in lovely Alonissos, to accessible sailing in beautiful Baiona to holidays for all in Ameland to glorious biodiversity in Bliesgau, and more… including a fabulous, healthy, local, amazingly authentic tourism offer in Ljubljana – Europe’s well-deserved Green Capital.

At the Silk Road ministers meeting, destination after destination had confirmed their commitment to sustainability and authenticity and at meeting after meeting with African destinations, one could get inspired by the care each was taking to make sure that their communities really benefitted from tourism.

So, from North to South and East to West, inspirational destinations driven by inspirational characters are changing the face of world tourism.

In the next few years, these destinations, delivering tourism which truly benefits their communities and offers real experiences to their visitors, will certainly enjoy the benefits of real sustainable success.

This current global tourism marketing situation combined with the need to manage emissions and resources , is making available a great swathe of massive opportunities…

SustainableTourism2016 sets these challenges out in detail in its folio and vodcast – and offers the opportunities with updates on a weekly basis.

Make sure that you get yours now… find out more at: TOTEMTOURISM and join the experiential hands-on Green Tourism Seminar in Italy this autumn

Valere Tjolle

@ValereTjolle [email protected]