Exploring the transformation in tourism with X. Festival 2022: The Leaders Summit

We invited the global industry leaders who previously joined the event as speakers to Twitter Spaces to share their perspectives on how the industry has evolved over the last two years.

The last two years have been a period of evolution for the tourism industry. As the leading community guiding tourism's transformation, here at the DTTT we have been exploring critical topics, trends and innovations that are shaping the future of tourism in the run up to our annual event - X. Festival.

This year, we have invited key global industry leaders who previously joined the event as speakers to Twitter Spaces to share their perspectives on how the industry has evolved over the last two years. It was a very informal yet an interesting conversation that uncovered the key challenges and trends that are severely impacting the tourism industry and reshaping the future of tourism.  

Talent Crisis

During the pandemic, the tourism sector witnessed millions of layoffs and job cuts which made it difficult for the tourism workforce. Many tourism professionals decided to migrate to other professions to survive the harsh hit caused by the pandemic.

The major challenge that arises for the tourism sector today is to prepare the workforce for the demands of the future. There is a need to transform and innovate business models to support the workforce and young talent that will be leading the tourism sector tomorrow.

Social, Economic and Environmental Sustainability

There is a need to prepare our destinations, businesses and overall industry for a sustainable future. The key challenge for the industry is to involve all the stakeholders, including DMOS, municipalities, businesses and travellers, to work together in achieving sustainability.

We as an industry need to make smart decisions and integrate technology to develop smart cities.

Adoption of digitalisation

Digitalisation and innovation are the key drivers of growth in the tourism sector. The industry needs to rapidly adapt to these digital innovations to meet the demands and expectations of the next tech-savvy generation of travellers.

For example, Götenborg & Co are developing a Destination Data Platform in collaboration with Mastercard to source different kinds of data to support the local stakeholders in the industry with insights on dynamic consumer behaviour.

The evolving role of DMOs  

In such a period of change, the role of DMOs has been transforming from marketing the destination to managing the sustainability and innovation of the sector. Destinations are working closely with the stakeholders to build a sustainable tourism ecosystem that focuses on digitalisation and innovation to support industry growth.

Building inclusive tourism

The pandemic has provided the tourism industry with an opportunity to build back better, with more inclusiveness and accessibility. Planet Abled has been working on making tourism accessible to people with disabilities. They have identified the gap and challenges that people with disabilities face while travelling.

The travel industry needs to be more inclusive and offer accessible travel opportunities for all kinds of travellers, whilst understanding that accessibility is something concerning all of us, increasingly so with issues such as mental wellbeing becoming more critical in the last few years.


Developing life-changing tourism experiences

The tourism industry is developing innovative and life-changing experiences. The intersection between technology and innovation is resulting in an ability to build sustainable business models.

AR, as just one example, is changing the way the traveller is visiting a place. Space tourism, as another example going beyond what we currently know, is shaping the travel experiences way into the future.

Ryan Hartman, CEO & Founder of World View, is designing a space tourism experience that involves immersive components like excursions near the Grand Canyon, Arizona; the Great Barrier Reef, Australia; the Great Wall of China; or northern Norway, to be able to view the Aurora borealis. Here, the experience is not only the perspective shift of going above Earth's atmosphere, but also the connection with transformative experiences on the ground.

Creating new opportunities with Partnership

The tourism industry as a whole needs to work together in responding to the demands and desires of the tourism needs of the future with collaboration and partnerships.

In this critical time, the responsibility lies in the hands of the industry leaders of today and tomorrow to unite and lead the tourism sector towards a sustainable future.


Here at the DTTT,  we are proud to announce the launch of X. Festival 2022: The Leaders Summit will be 100% free of charge for the first time ever.

This year it is going to be an intimate gathering of industry leaders, representing different sectors of tourism coming together to discuss these critical issues. The festival will be taking place from 29th November - 1st December 2022 bringing together leaders from tourism destinations, aviation, hospitality, and academia, to address the key challenges faced by the industry and lead the tourism sector towards a sustainable future.  

The Twitter Spaces discussion shared a glimpse of the exciting and interesting discussions and sessions that will be taking place during the three days of X. Festival 2022. We will be uncovering some crucial questions over six different themes, uncovering  key topics, such as how we can address the talent crisis in tourism, how inflation is shaping brand experiences and what sustainable futures look like and how travel agents are being reinvented.

During this crucial and transformative time for the tourism industry, we believe that knowledge and opportunities should be easily accessible to everyone. That is why we are making X. Festival free and open for our online audience, so don't forget to register yourself and your team to join the leading event in tourism transformation.

The last two years have been a period of evolution for the tourism industry. As the leading community guiding tourism's transformation, here at the DTTT we have been exploring critical topics, trends and innovations that are shaping the future of tourism in the run up to our annual event - X. Festival.

This year, we have invited key global industry leaders who previously joined the event as speakers to Twitter Spaces to share their perspectives on how the industry has evolved over the last two years. It was a very informal yet an interesting conversation that uncovered the key challenges and trends that are severely impacting the tourism industry and reshaping the future of tourism.  

Talent Crisis

During the pandemic, the tourism sector witnessed millions of layoffs and job cuts which made it difficult for the tourism workforce. Many tourism professionals decided to migrate to other professions to survive the harsh hit caused by the pandemic.

The major challenge that arises for the tourism sector today is to prepare the workforce for the demands of the future. There is a need to transform and innovate business models to support the workforce and young talent that will be leading the tourism sector tomorrow.

Social, Economic and Environmental Sustainability

There is a need to prepare our destinations, businesses and overall industry for a sustainable future. The key challenge for the industry is to involve all the stakeholders, including DMOS, municipalities, businesses and travellers, to work together in achieving sustainability.

We as an industry need to make smart decisions and integrate technology to develop smart cities.

Adoption of digitalisation

Digitalisation and innovation are the key drivers of growth in the tourism sector. The industry needs to rapidly adapt to these digital innovations to meet the demands and expectations of the next tech-savvy generation of travellers.

For example, Götenborg & Co are developing a Destination Data Platform in collaboration with Mastercard to source different kinds of data to support the local stakeholders in the industry with insights on dynamic consumer behaviour.

The evolving role of DMOs  

In such a period of change, the role of DMOs has been transforming from marketing the destination to managing the sustainability and innovation of the sector. Destinations are working closely with the stakeholders to build a sustainable tourism ecosystem that focuses on digitalisation and innovation to support industry growth.

Building inclusive tourism

The pandemic has provided the tourism industry with an opportunity to build back better, with more inclusiveness and accessibility. Planet Abled has been working on making tourism accessible to people with disabilities. They have identified the gap and challenges that people with disabilities face while travelling.

The travel industry needs to be more inclusive and offer accessible travel opportunities for all kinds of travellers, whilst understanding that accessibility is something concerning all of us, increasingly so with issues such as mental wellbeing becoming more critical in the last few years.


Developing life-changing tourism experiences

The tourism industry is developing innovative and life-changing experiences. The intersection between technology and innovation is resulting in an ability to build sustainable business models.

AR, as just one example, is changing the way the traveller is visiting a place. Space tourism, as another example going beyond what we currently know, is shaping the travel experiences way into the future.

Ryan Hartman, CEO & Founder of World View, is designing a space tourism experience that involves immersive components like excursions near the Grand Canyon, Arizona; the Great Barrier Reef, Australia; the Great Wall of China; or northern Norway, to be able to view the Aurora borealis. Here, the experience is not only the perspective shift of going above Earth's atmosphere, but also the connection with transformative experiences on the ground.

Creating new opportunities with Partnership

The tourism industry as a whole needs to work together in responding to the demands and desires of the tourism needs of the future with collaboration and partnerships.

In this critical time, the responsibility lies in the hands of the industry leaders of today and tomorrow to unite and lead the tourism sector towards a sustainable future.


Here at the DTTT,  we are proud to announce the launch of X. Festival 2022: The Leaders Summit will be 100% free of charge for the first time ever.

This year it is going to be an intimate gathering of industry leaders, representing different sectors of tourism coming together to discuss these critical issues. The festival will be taking place from 29th November - 1st December 2022 bringing together leaders from tourism destinations, aviation, hospitality, and academia, to address the key challenges faced by the industry and lead the tourism sector towards a sustainable future.  

The Twitter Spaces discussion shared a glimpse of the exciting and interesting discussions and sessions that will be taking place during the three days of X. Festival 2022. We will be uncovering some crucial questions over six different themes, uncovering  key topics, such as how we can address the talent crisis in tourism, how inflation is shaping brand experiences and what sustainable futures look like and how travel agents are being reinvented.

During this crucial and transformative time for the tourism industry, we believe that knowledge and opportunities should be easily accessible to everyone. That is why we are making X. Festival free and open for our online audience, so don't forget to register yourself and your team to join the leading event in tourism transformation.

This year, we  invited the global industry leaders who previously joined the event as speakers to Twitter Spaces to share their perspectives on how the industry has evolved over the last two years

This year, we  invited the global industry leaders who previously joined the event as speakers to Twitter Spaces to share their perspectives on how the industry has evolved over the last two years

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