The Travel Village Group will hold its 2026 conference earlier in the year in a bid to relieve pressure on suppliers who spend a lot of time away from home at industry events, particularly in the run-up to Christmas.
Next year’s event will take place in May and the group will hold conferences every two years from now on. Its last conference took place in Cyprus in December 2023.
The move to a May date comes after Travel Village Group CEO Phil Nuttall questioned the need for so many conferences in the run-up to Christmas earlier this year.
Phil was concerned Business Development Managers were ‘being taken for granted and, in many instances, put under enormous strain at the detriment to their health and their family life’, during the busy conference season.
Announcing changes to the 2026 conference, Phil said: “Earlier this year, I shared my concerns about the unsustainable pace our industry has set for supplier partners with events, awards, conferences etc – especially in the months leading to Christmas.
“We have reflected on this and taken the decision to play our part by moving to an early season date.
“This conference will not be an expectation placed upon our suppliers, but an invitation to partner in a way that is valuable, respectful, and energising.”
Travel Village Group hopes the ‘smarter timing’ will ‘avoid high-pressure periods, creating space for genuine connection, learning, and rejuvenation’ for operators and agents’.
Managing Director Paula Nuttall said: “We have made some key changes for 2026, which include a biennial format to reduce fatigue across the industry and allow us a more meaningful impact. We have implemented a ‘Respectful Supplier Participation’ invitation.
“Our supplier partners will not be expected to attend as a given. Instead, they will be invited to evaluate the opportunity and invest only if they see clear, mutual value – both financially and relationally.”
The conference, called ‘Building Tomorrow’s Travel Business’, will take place at the Grand Palladium Palace in Ibiza from 6 to 9 May 2026. Topics will include the role AI will play in the future of the travel industry.
