The 13th edition of the Meetings Arabia & Luxury Travel (MALT) Congress, hosted by the Abu Dhabi Convention & Exhibition Bureau (ADCEB) in partnership with QnA International, concluded on February 19-20, 2025, marking another milestone in the Middle East’s luxury travel and MICE industry. Held over two dynamic days, the event solidified its position as the region’s premier platform for high-level networking, strategic collaborations, and industry innovation.
The MALT Congress 2025 attracted top-level travel and hospitality stakeholders, including global travel suppliers, top-tier travel agencies, corporate travel heads, and luxury concierge services. The event’s meticulously curated one-on-one meetings fostered meaningful business connections and delivered tangible outcomes for participants.
Board member Anil Chandirani who is Group president of Satguru Travels remarked on the growing interest in travel. The Founder of the 35 year old travel conglomerate with operations across 80 countries says, “ Travel has changed and grown. People are exploring more and more. They are being adventurous with travel destinations, looking for upgrades” , Satguru Travels is a full fledged agency that owns the travel portal Travel Wings and has recently acquired Orient Tours as well as Trav Trips, a pure holiday organising company. Chandirani said the market has grown for both economy and luxury travel. Demand in all segments of the market has increased, even for business travel related to MICE in spite of the of the growing incidence of online meetings. High demand has led to travellers booking in advance. “We have covered 30% of our revenue target for 2025 in January itself’ he added.
With over a decade of experience in the travel and tourism industry, Mr. Nasir, CEO of Al Naboodah Travel & TourismAgencies LLC and MALT Board member emphasized the value of networking at key events, saying, “I consider myself lucky that I never missed all these events… this is my 13th year.” He highlighted the rapid recovery post-COVID in the region, noting, “We recovered the business volumes at the level of 2019 much earlier than expected.”
Mr. Nasir also observed the rise of online bookings in markets like Saudi Arabia and the UAE, stating, “Online business has grown tremendously… Saudi Arabia has 75% penetration… and UAE has almost the same trend.”Despite this, he stressed the continued importance of travel agents for personalized support, especially for cancellations and refunds: “People are now coming back to the travel agent to buy services… there’s a responsible person now.”
He noted the increasing popularity of luxury travel and shorter holiday durations, with travelers seeking more control over their plans: “Luxury travel has picked up a lot after COVID… people are booking shorter holidays.” Lastly, he commented on rising costs in the industry, adding, “Airline fares are going up, hotel rates are up, but the occupancy rate is 95%.”. Travel is here to stay in spite of higher costs.
“The whole concept of MICE and Meetings and Luxury Travel is evolving in the Middle East. Middle Eastern travellers used to have a standard pattern of traveling to certain specific location and not go anywhere else. But it’s changing because luxury is no longer about glitz and glam. Or VIP service, it’s about connecting with nature. It’s about sustainability. It’s about all they want is just to unwind. It’s different things to different people. We are looking forward to setting the trend year after year.” He added.
The Congress concluded with an award distribution recognizing excellence in various categories. * Mr, Mishal Kanoowon the Lifetime Achievement award. He highlighted the important role the travel industry plays in adding meaning to people’s lives.
- List of awardees attached.
Chris Flynn Executive Chairman of World Tourism Association for Culture & Heritage had a varied perspective on luxury travel. He said, “We work with governments on how to build a better policy. He suggests that the success of a destination should not be based on volume but on attracting the right type of tourist who will value the experience and respect your culture. When the right profile of traveller is attracted for the right reasons in optimum numbers, the impact on the industry and host country are excellent.”
Mohamed Islam Salama, Senior Regional Director Client Executive EMEA, CWT highlighted the increasing role of technology in travel and tourism. “In our company we have lots of training on how to generate savings by using AI and it’s a very sensitive subject, managed as such. As an American company we are very aware about protecting passenger information and not exposing it to an open environment like AI. We are also focused on sustainability and developing sophisticated techniques to measure the carbon footprint of travelers to meetings and events.”
Sidh N.C., Director of QnA International reiterated the location of the MALT 2025 Congress. ”Abu Dhabi is a perfect location for this Congress. We are overwhelmed with the response.”
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