The 2008 Gulf Incentive Business Travel and Meetings (GIBTM) Exhibition kicks off today (Tuesday, April 8, 2008) at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre (ADNEC). GIBTM has been recognised as the Gulf’s only dedicated meetings, incentives, conferences, and exhibitions (MICE) event and has been organised to cater for the growing Middle East MICE market.

The three-day exhibition will gather 275 senior-level hosted buyers from Europe, Asia and the Middle East along with an expected 1,000 regional and local trade visitors; providing a valuable regional platform for venues, hotels, destinations and suppliers to network with meeting planners, incentive travel buyers, and other key MICE players.

A full range of new features will also be introduced to enhance GIBTM's 2008 edition, such as the Abu Dhabi Day Family Trip for hosted buyers, a Technology and Events Services Village, and a European Pavilion.

Simon Horgan, CEO, ADNEC, said: “GIBTM is a crucial exhibition in ADNEC’s busy events calendar because it is Abu Dhabi’s opportunity to promote itself to an important regional audience.  We expect this year’s GIBTM to eclipse the success of last year’s inaugural show; in fact, organisers, Reed Travel Exhibition (RTE), anticipate a 70 per cent growth this year.”

GIBTM is part of RTE’s growing portfolio of global meetings and incentive events that include EIBTM, CIBTM AIME and ICCA.  ADNEC is a major supporter of MICE events around the world, not only by staging GIBTM, but also by participating in some of the most important international events.

“Abu Dhabi acknowledges the business tourism and MICE sectors as rapidly evolving and lucrative growth areas of the global travel industry and has thus marked them as priority. GIBTM, and international events of this kind, provide the perfect platform for further promoting the emirate as the region’s MICE centre; ADNEC will continue to be a key partner in helping Abu Dhabi realise this goal, ” added Paul Vincent, Marketing Director, ADNEC.