Adventure, Tourism & Travel Hub: Outdoor and Travel Hand in Hand

In times of urbanization, outdoor and travel are inseparably interwoven. Adventure tourism is one of the fastest growing industries in the tourism market. ATTA members serve annually more than 6 million adventure travelers. And the potential is far from exhausted!

The Adventure, Tourism & Travel Hub in Hall B6 at OutDoor by ISPO in Munich from the 30th of June to the 3rd of July will show how this cooperation between the sports and travel industries can promote both sides without forgetting the idea of sustainability.

In cooperation with the Adventure Travel Trade Association (ATTA), opportunities for cooperation between the travel and outdoor industries are presented and potentials are identified. The focus is on matchmaking. How do the right partners in both industries find each other? How do the greatest synergies arise for both sides?

Meet our partner ATTA and benefit from their knowledge and network. Get in touch with members of the adventure travel industry and open up new business channels. Founded in 1990, ATTA is widely recognized as the premier voice and partner of the adventure travel industry worldwide.

Another highlight is the screening of the film "Loved by All: The Story of Apa Sherpa" - an award-winning film by Sherpas Cinema at Outdoor on 30 June at 5 p.m. The Nepalese Sherpa mountaineer Apa Sherpa and Magnus Welander, CEO of the Thule Group, will present the inspiring work of the Apa Sherpa Foundation. In a competition, participants can win a hike with Apa Sherpa in Nepal.

For an up-to-date event overview of OutDoor by ISPO, simply use our event calendar with a practical filter function.

Christopher Doyle, Executive Director for Europe and Central Asia of the Adventure Travel Trade Association, talks in a brief interview about the advantages of the new cooperation between ATTA and OutDoor by ISPO.

Why is it so important, that the adventure travel sector and the outdoor sector get in touch with each other at the OutDoor by ISPO?
Christopher Doyle: From the lens of the Adventure Travel Trade Association, which represents the more than 600 billion Euro market global adventure tourism trade, we are gifted with an open-to-buy, gear-hungry, passport-wielding community of more than 50 million active travelers.

Concurrently, our private sector members who guide millions of travelers have immense, trustworthy influence over traveler gear purchases. These companies increasingly seek to improve the safety and experiences of their travelers. The ATTA’s May 2019 Global Outdoor Gear Survey proves that our industry is eager and open pursue new and innovative partnerships.  

OutDoor by ISPO offers a compelling platform to invite the adventure tourism industry "in". There, opportunity exists for outdoor brands to engage directly with the adventure tourism community to explore and co-create new distribution solutions. The time is now for the outdoor industry and the adventure tourism industry to break the mold and forge new paths - together.

What are the demands of the tourism sector regarding outdoor brands? What do outdoor brands have to offer when they want to be interesting to adventure travel companies?
The ATTA will release the overall findings a May 2019 Gear Study of the global adventure tourism trade's needs and interests in the outdoor gear/apparel industry.

Tour operators are not only attractive communication partners to reach +50 million adventure travel consumers, but also as a distribution channel. The study conducted with ATTA members indicate that their annual gear purchase budget for guide equipment, guest rentals and as retailers is even bigger than the buying budget of many outdoor retailers.

How can retailers play a role in that connection between adventure tourism and the outdoor sector?
The intersection between adventure travelers, adventure travel companies, outdoor gear brands/manufacturers and retailers has morphed dramatically in recent years. And, while each segment noted has experienced impact, sometimes negative due to eroding market share, these challenging times also have borne witness to creative solutions. The lines between these segments are blurring and within the "haze", opportunities are being created that may not have existed before.

So, for the retailer, exploring options to get more actively engaged with the experiences/emotions that the gear they sell bring to their customers, the more loyalty is likely and repeat business. Retailers can look to forge ties with adventure travel companies, with destinations (like national or regional tourism boards) to perhaps be expert gear knowledge sources that can contribute to safer experiences.