Exhibitors enjoyed a fantastic show at The Times Presents Destinations Holiday & Travel Show at Earls Court 4-7 February 2010 with many achieving record-breaking sales at the event; leaving them confident about the year ahead. Destinations Holiday & Travel Show, sponsored by The Times is now in its 16th year and is still popular with exhibitors and visitors alike.  Organisers, Clarion Events reported that overall visitor numbers were up by 5.2%.
 
Show Director, Matt Miller from Clarion Events commented: “We are delighted with the response to this year’s Destinations Show. We saw a steady flow of visitors from the very first morning. These are  seasoned travellers who attend the show with a view to planning and booking their trips for this year. The atmosphere was excellent with some great acts on the World Entertainment stage including Streetdance and Art of Capoeira and the likes of BBC World Affairs Correspondent John Simpson attracted enormous numbers for his Question and Answer session.”
 
The event, that has just taken place at London’s Earls Court, aims to provide inspiration, expert advice and exclusive offers to thousands of consumers. Information and advice hungry, the visitors attend the Show to discuss their requirements with companies face to face, chat with expert advisers and tailor-make their next trip, whether they are looking to venture a little further off the beaten track and find an adventure, or simply plan their next holiday. The Show featured over 800 holiday and travel specialists in the following categories: Asia & Pacific, Africa & Indian Ocean, Latin America, North America, Europe & The UK, Caribbean, Middle East and Adventure Travel, Cruise and Responsible Travel.
 
Neil Barclay, National Sales Manager for Viking River Cruises commented “Destinations is one of the best shows we’ve ever done and we’ve taken a fair bit of business on the day”. Dragoman’s Sales and Marketing Manager reported that the Show had “attracted the right mix of people who are interested in adventure travel”, a sentiment that Billie Austin, Consultant for Travelsphere agreed with: “The quality of people with serious intentions has been excellent”. Gwendoline Meryrick, Senior Sales and Marketing Account Executive at Puerto Rico Tourism Board noted that the show had been busier for them than previous shows and that the Sensations demonstrations (singing and dance acts) worked well at attracting large crowds to different areas of the Show. Carolyn Spinks from ABTOI concluded: ''As first time exhibitors, we found it more successful than other exhibitions we have participated in."
 
Destinations Holiday & Travel Show had representation from all the major organisations including AITO, ABTA, CTO and LATA. Wanderlust magazine continued their support of the show and once again used Destinations as the platform to announce the winners of the Travel Photo of the Year competition and Wanderlust Travel Awards.  Major exhibitors included Trailfinders, Titan Travel, Carnival Cruise Lines, Travelsphere, Audley Travel Group, Explore Worldwide, Dragoman, Cox & Kings Travel and Hurtigruten. 
 
The next Destinations Holiday & Travel Show will take place at the NEC, Birmingham on 5-7 March 2010. Ticket sales are looking strong and Clarion Events is looking forward to a successful show.