The Tourister - Tourism Festival, an annual B2B and B2C platform for the tourism industry in Georgia, brought together international and local experts to discuss and debate the most pressing trends and challenges facing the sector. This year's festival focused on digital technologies in tourism, evolving tourist behaviour, effective tourism marketing strategies, and the transformative power of data analytics.
A highlight of the event was the introduction of Tourism Tax, inspired by the example of Slovenia. Tourism 4.0 experts Dr. Urška Starc Peceny and Tomi Ilijaš, along with Petra Stušek, CEO of Ljubljana Tourism, shared their insights and expertise about Slovenian tourism and local processes.
The two-day event followed the results of the Tourism for the Black Sea Project where Batumi was assessed using the Tourism Impact Model. Batumi has the potential to become a role model for tourism tax implementation, inspiring other destinations in the region to follow suit.
The Tourister - Tourism Festival proved to be a valuable forum for exchanging ideas, fostering collaboration, and charting the course for a sustainable and prosperous tourism industry in Georgia.
