FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 18, 2020
CONTACT: JENNIFER FERNANDEZ, SVP EVENTS & CONTENT
EMAIL: JENNIFER@TRAVELSMG.COM
PHONE: (718) 979-1952
WEB: www.TravelSMG.com
7th Annual Romance Travel Forum to Take Stage August 16 – 19, 2020 at Hard Rock Hotel Riviera Maya
(Boston, MA – May 18, 2020) Travel Show Marketing Group (TravelSMG), North Americas leading independent event organizer focused on the B2B travel agency channel has announced new plans for its seventh annual Romance Travel Forum. The event, which was originally scheduled to take place at the Hard Rock Hotel Los Cabos from May 17 – 20 will now be held at the Hard Rock Hotel Riviera Maya from August 16 – 19, 2020.
“We are optimistic and excited with our plans to host the 2020 Romance Travel Forum later this summer. The safety and comfort of our delegates will continue to play the leading role as we move forward. Our host and other partners are all working on new protocols focused on the well-being of guests. In speaking with suppliers and travel sellers, the response with our August 2020 plans has been overwhelmingly positive.”, said Jennifer Fernandez, SVP TravelSMG.
Fernandez added, “There is tremendous confidence in recovery as it relates to romance travel. Destination weddings and honeymoons in particular are emotional buys, so under today’s circumstances, they are more often being postponed instead of canceled. There is great promise for this segment to rebound quicker than most, and we, along with our partners know travel advisors will play an essential role in making that happen”.
“The health and safety of all guests, travel partners and staff have always been and will continue to be our number one priority. We’re committed to offering a SAFE + SOUND experience with enhanced sanitization protocols at our properties, which have become standard across the Hard Rock brand and these will be in place for the event. Romance Travel Forum always brings in the best travel agents in the romance vacation industry so this opportunity not only allows us the chance to tap into this lucrative audience but also allows us to collaborate with travel advisors to establish confidence with their own clientele when traveling to our resorts.”, said Ash Tembe, Vice President of Global Field Sales – AIC Hotel Group.
Details on the All-inclusive Hard Rock Hotels enhanced cleanliness and sanitation plan, Hard Rock SAFE + SOUND program powered by Ecolab, can be found here.
Romance Travel Forum is a boutique sized program designed to engage a select audience of North Americas top romance travel sellers with a global base of travel suppliers focused on the romance vacation market, including destination weddings, honeymoons and other romantic milestones celebrated with travel. The event affords participating exhibitors the chance to conduct mutual-interest one-to-one meetings with travel sellers. Additionally, the event features a series of educational offerings, such as big-room presentations; top-level peer-to-peer discussions; product and destination discussions; in-destination experiential networking, site inspections, FAM itineraries and more.
Travel sellers in attendance are carefully vetted through a multi-faceted process comprising a written application, telephone interview, professional reference check and review of their online/social presence. The selection process takes a number of factors into consideration, including sales volume, year-to-year growth, destination wedding group business and more. If selected, travel sellers are hosted for participation.
Suppliers in attendance represent an array of romantic destinations, hotels and resorts, tour operators, destination management companies, unique wedding venues and other commissionable vacation experiences along with resources and technology providers that are vital to the travel seller community.
In addition to Romance Travel Forum, Travel Show Marketing Group has re-scheduled its entire 2020 event line-up, either to later in the year or to early 2021. Learn more about these changes here.
About Travel Show Marketing Group
Travel Show Marketing Group (TravelSMG) is an independent event organizer who caters exclusively to the North American travel agent community and supplier partners on a global level. TravelSMG has a proven track record in producing highly effective events, featuring some of the most acclaimed leisure travel trade shows and events, and works collaboratively with the industry’s leading organizations and experts. Its growing portfolio of top-notch events comprises a balance of traditional tradeshows, conferences and smaller boutique niche focused programs. For more information on TravelSMG, visit www.TravelSMG.com.
Suppliers interested in exhibiting at any TravelSMG event should contact Jennifer Fernandez, SVP Events at Jennifer@TravelSMG.com or via telephone at (718) 979-1952.
Travel advisors interested in attending any TravelSMG event should email Lisa Marshall, Travel Advisor Relations Manager at Lisa@TravelSMG.com.
