Opening & Welcome at ITB Berlin 2026 Orange Stage 03/04/2026 @ITBBerlin

Uploaded March 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago

#Marketing #Distribution #Digitalization #Transformation #trends

Moderator:
Katie Gallus
Lea Jordan

Opening & Welcome at ITB Berlin 2026 Orange Stage 03/04/2026

60 Years of Stories: Kash Bhattacharyas (Budget Traveller) most unforgettable moment of ITB Berlin

Wrap up: a paradigm shift or business as usual in tourism?

$Beyond the Algorithm: Why AI Still Fails at Trust, Culture & Human Connection AI-powered travel concierges promise frictionless journeys and radical personalization — yet trust remains their biggest failure. Only a tiny fraction of travelers are willing to let AI book autonomously. Why? Because today’s systems optimize transactions, not relationships. They know preferences, but not people. They recommend highlights, but miss meaning. As AI assistants in hospitality and travel race toward mainstream adoption, this session asks a more uncomfortable question: what is fundamentally missing in the algorithm? The answer lies beyond data and automation — in context, community, cultural intelligence, and human judgment. This session explores why current AI travel tools remain fragmented, siloed, and culturally shallow — and what it takes to evolve them into trusted companions rather than smart booking engines. We examine how hyper-personalization must expand beyond individual taste profiles to include local co-creation, community knowledge, ethical design, and shared value creation. Drawing on perspectives from technology, hospitality, and academia, the session challenges hotels, platforms, and destinations to rethink their role in an AI-mediated future. The core message is clear: trust is not coded — it is designed, governed, and earned. Those who fail to move beyond the algorithm risk becoming invisible in the next generation of travel experiences. Moderator & Interviewer: Dr. Jessika Weber-Sabil Professor of Digital Transformation for Cultural Tourism Breda University of Applied Sciences Panel: Klaas Koerten Researcher Robotics Hotelschool The Hague Nicholas Hall CEO Digital Tourism Think Tank Laurenz Schwarzhappel Co-Founder & CEO Global Living Apartments Claire Robinson Co-founder & Co-CEO Region Lovers Katerina Volchek Professor Deggendorf Institute of Technology$

TikTok Revolutionizing Travel: From Inspiration to Trends and Bookings

The Industry View: How Travel Will Become AI-native

60 Years of Stories: Rika Jean-Francois (MissionRespo) on what ITB Berlin means to her

60 Years of Stories: Horst Schwartz (Redaktionsbüro Schwartz) on his most memorable ITB Berlin story

Camping: One of Europe’s Fastest-Growing Travel Segments