The Golfo dell'Isola, in western Liguria, is a tourist area with the towns of Spotorno, Noli, Bergeggi and Vezzi Portio. 

Safe waters and a biodiverse ecosystem

With a concentration of Blue Flag beaches, historical routes, outdoor sports and panoramas that are for year-round exploring, this part of Liguria has an impelling, identity-rich and heroic story to tell. The Golfo dell’Isola beaches all fly the Blue Flag and the Green Flag awards that attest to quality, safety and attention to families. The heart of this seascape is the Isola di Bergeggi Protected Marine Area, an ecosystem rich in biodiversity that can be explored on guided snorkelling, diving, kayaking and educational trails.  

Outdoor activities and sporting events

The Golfo dell’Isola is a reference destination for outdoor activities in Liguria. Trails, climbing walls, mountain bike trails and water activities make it a true open-air gym, and it is also a well-known trail running paradise. The Golfo dell’Isola Trail, a stage of the Golden Trail World Series, attracts athletes from all over Europe, as does Swim the Island, one of the leading open-water swimming competitions in Europe which is held every year in Bergeggi.  

From culture to agriculture 

Noli, an ancient Maritime Republic, has ancient towers, walls, the Castle of Monte Ursino and the Romanesque church of San Paragorio. Spotorno, which is a popular holiday resort, has long welcomed artists and writers with its churches, oratories and lively cultural life. Vezzi Portio tells the story of agricultural Liguria, with dry stone walls, rural paths and the Museum of the Territory and of Bees.  

Tasty local specialties and annual events 

The local cuisine reflects the landscape with products from the land and the sea, recipes handed down from generation to generation, and a focus on seasonality and sustainability. From salted anchovies to Ligurian-style rabbit, and from stuffed vegetables to inland goat cheeses, these are dishes that can still be found in the local osterias, farmsteads and on the menus of the best restaurants in the Gulf. The Gulf hosts many year-round sporting events such as the Golfo dell'Isola Trail and Swim the Island, as well as cultural events such as the Bergeggi MareFest, Festival of the Wind, Moby Dick Festival, Witches Trail, Noli Music Festival, and many historical re-enactments and maritime activities for all ages.

Figures from the ICCA (International Congress and Convention Association) show that in 2024 the global meetings industry registered over 11,000 international meetings worldwide; Europe welcomed 56% of these, Asia 18%, North America 10%, Latin America 8% India and Oceania both 3% and the Middle East 2% of the total. Meetings of this type are an economic catalyst for many cities and countries, from mature to emerging destinations, hosting medical (17%), technological (14%), scientific (13%), business (8%) and training (8%) congresses.

While the Catalonia region has a GDP growth of +3.6% (which is more than the +3.2% of Spain and even more than Europe which stands at +0.8%), Barcelona topped the world rating for the number of international meetings with 142 events in 2024, when it welcomed some 126,000 delegates and posted a turnover of US $ 360 million. Barcelona is followed in the rating by London, which with 105 meetings and over 79,000 delegates had an economic return of US$ 298 million. In third place we find Singapore where the GDP grew by 4.4% in 2024, and tourism and business events featured as key factors with 144 meetings, over 93,000 delegates and US$290 million.

The statistics also show that Rome and Milan are up there with the top destinations for MICE tourism.  In 2024 Rome hosted 114 major international meetings for over 58,000 delegates, posting a turnover of USS 200 million. Milan, with 100 international meetings and over 80,000 delegates, had an economic return of USS 237 million. However, the direct economic impact of MICE on a destination is only the tip of the iceberg. 20% of the total value is also made up of knowledge exchange, innovation, internationalization and the social impact.

In 2024, Italy played a leading role with 635 international meetings, confirming its position as European leader and second worldwide, just behind the United States, which hosted 709 meetings. Among the Italian cities. Rome with its 114 meetings is in 9th place in the world ratings and Milan stands out in terms of the average number of participants (803) in third position after Dubai (899) and Barcelona (886).

The meetings industry continues to assert itself as a rapidly expanding driver of economic growth, as shown by the data that emerged from a recent survey conducted by ENIT in cooperation with the Università Cattolica. The MICE sector shows a lively investment trend, with as many as 77.3% of the 450 facilities surveyed planning upgrades for 2024. Among the most active are conference centres (85.7%), historical residences (85.0%), alternative spaces (83.3%) and congress and exhibition centres (82.4%). Investment priorities in 2023 were mainly the upgrading of venues (57.7%), professional training (52.1%) upgrading audio-visual technologies (46.6%) and promotion strategies (42.0%).

From its Alpine peaks to its Mediterranean coasts Italy stands out as one of the most popular destinations for corporate events, congresses and incentive trips. The wealth and variety of locations available - ranging from prestigious hotels and contemporary properties to historical residences, castles and creative spaces - make it possible to tailor customized experiences that enhance great art cities, charming small towns and spectacular natural landscapes.

This versatility makes Italy competitive compared to more established international destinations for the excellence of its services and a constant drive for innovation. Italian conference centres, often located in fascinating architectural and natural settings, offer an immersive experience that interweaves the event with the local cultural heritage, turning each occasion into an unforgettable experience.

A further element of attractiveness is the bleisure phenomenon which combines professional needs with personal pleasure. More and more MICE event participants are choosing to extend their stay to explore the local area, taking advantage of Italy's artistic beauty, natural landscapes and culinary excellence. This trend underscores Italy’s role as a prime destination, combining business opportunities with exceptional experiential travel.

RX’s World Travel Market London today announced that Chris Carter-Chapman has been named as the new Event Director of WTM London, the world’s most influential travel and tourism event. The annual WTM London event returns to Excel London on 4-6 November, 2025.

Chris is an accomplished business leader, having worked in the media and events industries in a variety of sectors over the past 15 years. He has held several senior roles including as Head of Content, Commercial Director and Event Director, with experience of launching and running events across Europe, North America and South America.

Chris joins WTM London after almost five years at event specialist Intelligence Squared and, before that, as Event Director at Centaur Media.  At Centaur, Carter-Chapman oversaw the marketing portfolio which included responsibility for two large-scale events – the Festival of Marketing and Marketing Week Live – as well as several one-day events.

He has been appointed to the role previously held by Juliette Losardo, following her transition to RX Arabia. In this capacity, Chris will report directly to Jonathan Heastie, Travel Portfolio Director at RX UK.

Chris’ appointment also comes as Excel London celebrates its 25th anniversary – and becomes the largest fully integrated venue in Europe as it completes an additional 25,000sqm expansion.

Heastie said: “I am excited to announce Chris’ appointment as we work towards WTM London 2025 – which marks 45 years since our first WTM in 1980. He has a very successful track record in running B2B trade shows and conferences – and his achievements show that he has the commercial and management skills to lead the WTM London team as the tourism and travel sector goes from strength to strength.

“I look forward to working with him and the team to build on the growth and success we saw in 2024 – and deliver an outstanding WTM London 2025.”

Chris added: “I am delighted to be joining RX as the new Event Director for WTM London at what is an exciting point in its evolution. As the world’s most influential travel event, WTM plays a vital role in the lives of travel industry professionals across the globe.

“I am acutely aware of the immense responsibility that comes with leading an event of WTM’s stature and the significant potential it holds for continued growth.

At RX, we place a strong emphasis on delivering value to our customers.  We are constantly listening to our event partners and attendees to ensure that every aspect of WTM London 2025 is tailored to meet their needs and objectives. Our venue – and the opportunities it offers – is a key part of this.

“Excel London’s latest phase of expansion will make it the largest integrated event space in Europe, enabling us to host WTM on a scale not seen before.

“WTM London is an opportunity to celebrate global travel as a force for good and to exchange ideas on the next steps in our collective journey towards sustainable, experience-led tourism – a journey that is more important than ever in today’s complex and evolving international landscape. I am deeply privileged to be able to play a role in making this vision a reality.”

Italy continues to captivate American visitors with arrivals up 22% through August 2025.  

1.4 million US arrivals through August 2025

According to the Italian Ministry of Tourism, 2024 saw over 8.1 million arrivals, 23.7 million overnight stays (ISTAT), and €6.4 billion in spending (Bank of Italy). In the first eight months of 2025 total of 1.4 million US arrivals were recorded (+2.2%) and more than 765,000 are expected September through December, +9.4% (National Travel and Tourism Office), for more than €2.8 billion spent in the first half of this year (Bank of Italy). These numbers paint the US market as one of the most important for Italian tourism, which these days sees Minister Daniela Santanchè on a government mission to Washington.

The US degree of satisfaction is 86.1/100

United States visitors are those who spend the most in Italy, with €191.1 per night on average and 10.3 nights, rising to 12 in the first eight months of 2025 (Embassy of Italy Washington). In addition, US tourists are the most satisfied with Italy, with a degree of satisfaction at 86.1/100, which is well above average, indicating a more than positive trend in the US perception of Italy (The Data Appeal Company). The 2024-2025 numbers confirm a strong bond between Italy and US tourists, suggesting positive prospects and opportunities for further development for the tourism industry and for relations between the two nations, also in view of the more than 17 million Americans of Italian origin estimated to live in the US.

The KKM Group, a pioneer of experiential tourism, is back in the spotlight with the YesWeGooo marketplace.

A journey of steady growth

The YesWeGooo marketplace is dedicated to experiences that combine technology, digital training and marketing tools with the aim of building a collaborative ecosystem that encourages agents' creativity.  “YesWeGooo is a natural evolution of the KKM Group's journey: not only as a supplier offering products and solutions designed to make agents more competitive and incisive on the market, but also as a container where partner agencies can upload and share their own itineraries based on specialized themes.  It has taken us several years to define our positioning and reach our target segment, - says Andrea Cani, CEO KKM Group, - and we continue to develop, adding new goals and opportunities. 

Technical and promotional support

“Now we want to focus on agencies that are ready to take on theme and specialized group travel, linked to personal passions or initiatives in which they are directly involved. We support them both for the technical realization of the trips as well as promotionally, using social and digital tools while offering them a marketplace where they can distribute their products and broaden their user base."

Building an integrated system between agencies and tour operators

The KKM Group’s preview of its 2026 programming, which already has 57 product themes designed to intercept different passions and interests: from the world of sport to major international events, from wellness to cultural itineraries, and from food to entertainment. “The partnerships we are developing, - adds Dario Panella, CEO & founder of YesWeGooo,-  "show our commitment to building an integrated system between agencies and tour operators.”

Key global decision makers are set to converge for WTM London’s Ministers’ Summit this November, traditionally the world’s largest annual gathering of tourism leaders, each year.

Taking place on Tuesday 4^th November, the event will once again be held in association with UN Tourism and the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC), moderated by Christian Fraser, Chief Presenter at BBC News. Taking place in the new Maritime Suite, George V Room 1 (part of Excel London’s newest expansion), the summit, now in its 19th year, is expected to showcase its most impactful lineup so far, building on momentum from previous events.

Last year, the summit brought together over 50 Tourism Ministers - a 12% increase on 2023 and record figure to date. A growth which reflects an overall uptake in attendance for WTM London, with 2025 on track to become the largest in the event's 45-year history.

This year, the summit, ‘Reimagining Tourism Investment Models: Building Next-Generation Incentives’, will explore innovative approaches to tourism investment and forward-looking incentives, aligning with the show’s overarching conference theme of ‘Reimagining Travel in a Changing World’. Building on last year’s discussion, which focused on artificial intelligence, this year’s summit will address key topics such as the integration of emerging technologies to unlock new markets, tools to align investment with national economic transformation agendas and how to diversify tourism investment for long-term resilience.

With tourism entering a decisive stage of transformation, the summit will present clear steps to take tourism investment models from traditional and service-based to strategic and forward-looking.

Elsewhere on Tuesday 4^th November, WTM London’s wider conference programme will see the return of the Sustainability and Geo-economics summits, as well as the unveiling of the latest WTM Global Travel Report, with the Technology and DEAI summits to follow the next day. The final day of the event will feature the Marketing summit, ITT Future You Forum and closing keynote session, with a soon to be announced special guest.

Chris Carter-Chapman, WTM London Event Director, said: “As the world’s most influential travel show, we’re delighted to be hosting the Minister’s Summit once more, particularly after such a strong attendance last year. WTM London has an undoubted impact at policy level, leading the way in top level discussion about the key issues affecting global tourism. As the industry adapts to challenges such as conflict and climate change, and opportunities like those presented by technological advances, it’s important to come together to share best practice and consider how we can harness tourism as a force for good.”

SkyAlps is planning international growth at Bolzano Airport: for winter 2025-26, the company will in fact be flying to the new destinations of Dresden and Warsaw.

Giving passengers greater flexibility

Dresden will be connected twice a week (Wednesdays and Sundays) from December, while the route to Warsaw will be operated every Friday from December. The South Tyrolean carrier is thus expanding its international network with two important cultural and economic hubs, while at the same time opening up new opportunities for winter tourism. The connection to Copenhagen, already operated in past winter seasons, will be significantly expanded in response to the high demand and will be offered up to three times a week, thus giving passengers greater flexibility in planning their journey.

Bolzano will have 11 European connections

The route to Hanover, already established in the summer season, will also be operated for the first time during the winter months. With the new winter operation, passengers departing from Bolzano will have 11 direct connections to European metropolises and important regional centres to choose from. The winter network includes - in addition to those already mentioned - flights to Antwerp, Hamburg, Berlin, Duesseldorf, Gothenburg, London Gatwick and Billund.