The Irish Travel Agents Association (ITAA) annual conference takes place in Antalya Turkiye/Turkey this week – starting tomorrow and running until Sunday (October 17-22).
This year’s conference will focus on the theme of ‘Embracing Growth: Strategies for Success’, where members of the Irish travel industry will have the opportunity to learn new skills and tactics, enabling them to further develop their businesses in a fast moving industry.
Oonagh O’Hagan, Managing Director of Meagher’s Pharmacy Group, is the keynote speaker. Delegates will hear of how she built up her business from a single store to a group of nine physical pharmacies in Dublin as well as a thriving online store. Meaghers has been recognised as one of Ireland’s Great Places to Work for the past three years and a Deloitte Best Managed Company for nine consecutive years. Oonagh, who was named Businesswoman of the Year 2023 by Irish Tatler, was this week awarded Compass WMB Female Entrepreneur.
The Conference will also hear from creator of SMÁCHT and bestselling author, Pádraic Ó Máille. SMÁCHT is a tried and tested methodology on how to grow your business and is best known for its mastermind programme, guaranteed to present delegates much food for thought and action.
Sinead Reilly of Travelport will join in conversation with Eoghan Corry, providing delegates an insight into the future of travel technology in her session ‘Travel & Tech – our flight paths crossing’.
Clare Dunne, CEO of the ITAA, commented: “This year’s conference is centred on the idea of embracing growth, something travel professionals must do in today’s world. We have a wonderful line up of speakers that will provide members with methods on how to capitalise on their strengths and strengthen their weaknesses.”
Angela Walsh, President of the ITAA, said: ”The knowledge and skills agents will discover during our conference will be extremely important to maintain growth and success in the industry. Of course it does help that we will be learning in the surrounds of the beautiful city of Antalya with lots of exciting excursions as well as staying in the luxurious Concorde De Luxe Hotel!”
Arzu Kahraman Yilmaz, Director of the Turkish Tourism Board, UK & Ireland said: “Türkiye is delighted to host the ITAA Conference in Antalya this year. Ireland is an important, growing market for Türkiye.”
She continued: “Antalya is a popular Turkish destination, with its stunning coastline, a wide range of accommodation, excellent cuisine, and historical sites. It has become more accessible for Irish visitors in 2023 with the introduction of SunExpress’ new direct service from Dublin. We look forward to welcoming representatives from the Irish travel industry to Antalya in the coming week and showcasing this stunning destination to them.”
