Conferenze e Fiere

✈ Wizz Air sold out all 20,000 'All you can fly' annual subscriptions, launched on August 13, allowing travel across 780 destinations, excluding national routes. Users must book only three days in advance and pay €9.99 per flight without any supplements. Concerns were raised by Federconsumatori about the terms favoring the carrier.

🏨 Ethiopian Airlines has enhanced Addis Ababa's status as an African hub with the launch of its Silver Lounge located in Addis Ababa Bole International Airport, designed to accommodate up to 200 guests during peak hours. The lounge offers a range of services including dining areas, relaxation zones, a dedicated smoking room, children's corner, and ample luggage storage. Access is granted to Cloud Nine, ShebaMiles Platinum, Star Alliance Gold, and Silver cardholders. Mesfin Tasew, CEO of Ethiopian Airlines Group, highlighted the lounge as part of their continuous efforts to elevate hospitality standards.

🌿 Lidl's Parkside rechargeable hedge trimmer, available from August 12, is priced at €39.99. It features a diamond-sharpened, hardened steel blade of 52 cm capable of cutting branches up to 12 mm thick at 2600 strokes per minute. The trimmer is part of the Parkside X 20V Team series, indicating battery and charger compatibility within the brand, but they are sold separately. The trimmer's 90° rotating handle allows vertical and horizontal cuts with ergonomic ease.

🌎 Virgin Voyages joins the race to offer new itineraries for the solar eclipse in August 2026. Two cruises planned: a 12-day journey on Valiant Lady with stops at Dublin, Glasgow, and Reykjavik, plus a 15-day voyage on Scarlet Lady visiting Amalfi Coast, Majorca, and Cannes. Additionally, 6 more itineraries ranging from 8 to 16 days with 12 new destinations, including Salerno, Italy, have been announced for 2026. COO Michelle Bentubo emphasized the continuous evolution of routes based on passenger and partner demand.

🚢 AmaWaterways launched a 7-night "Best of the Danube" cruise, inspired by the co-founder. Cruises start and end in Budapest with 15 departures scheduled for 2025 and 14 for 2026. The season begins on AmaMagna, followed by AmaBella, AmaReina, AmaViola, and AmaLea. The tour includes Vienna and Bratislava, offering excursions like biking, walking, tastings, and visits to monuments.

🏃 The Dolce Vita Orient Express, Italy's first luxury train, will debut in spring 2025 with bookings already open. Offering eight itineraries all starting and ending in Rome, it covers 14 regions and 131 destinations including Venice, Matera, and Portofino. The train features cuisine by three-Michelin-star chef Heinz Beck, 12 carriages, a max capacity of 62 passengers, 12 deluxe cabins, 18 suites, and the exclusive La Dolce Vita Suite. Travelers can also enjoy excursions into urban and natural beauty.

✈ Edelweiss, a Swiss airline, expands its North American routes for summer 2025, adding two new destinations from Zurich Airport: Seattle, USA and Halifax, Canada. The Seattle route operates from June to September, and the Halifax route from July to September with a biweekly frequency. This brings Edelweiss's North American destinations to seven, including Denver, Las Vegas, Tampa Bay, Calgary, and Vancouver.

🏖 Assoturismo reported 14.8 million stays with 56% Italians and increased foreign visitors for the Ferragosto holiday period. Facilities reached 91% booking capacity, nearly sold out, surpassing last year's occupancy rate by 1%. Coastal areas saw 95% occupancy, up by 2 points, while lake destinations matched this figure with a 1% increase from 2023. Cities of art reported an average occupancy of 83%, a slight rise from 82% the previous year.

📣 Delta Air Lines is set to launch free onboard Wi-Fi on international flights, starting in August, with Italy among the first countries to experience the service. By the end of the year, the service is expected to cover most passengers, having already been implemented on 700 aircraft. Ranjan Goswami, SVP of customer experience design, highlights Delta's unmatched scale in offering free Wi-Fi in the aviation industry, reflecting the company's complex implementation efforts.

🏆 The 33rd edition of UFI's biennial Global Barometer report, involving 453 companies from 64 countries, highlights the trade fair industry's 50% operational growth in early 2024, with expected revenues to rise by 17%. The US and Canada outperform with a 59% increase, while Europe also sees growth at 48%. Optimism prevails as 50% of companies anticipate over 10% profit gains, with Brazil (82%) and the UK (69%) being particularly positive. Employment prospects look good, with only 4% forecasting staff cuts and 48% considering new hires.