Report on the 17th National Etourism Meeting in Pau, October 11-13, 2021: tourist destinations at a crossroads, by Pierre Bellerose

After 20 months of COVID and the first signs of real tourism recovery, the ^17th Rencontres nationales du Etourisme in Pau (France) – the #ET17 – came at just the right time to discuss the prospects of the new tourism reality. From October 11 to 13, 2021, with a record attendance of just over 900 face-to-face delegates (almost half of them from tourist destinations), this event was rich in relevant content and professional encounters.

In addition to magnificent weather in Pau, plenary conferences and parallel workshops, they continued to open up to the world of startups, with a dedicated exhibition area and the presence of tourism incubators, including a first delegation from the MTLab incubator.

Here’s a summary of some of the highlights of the 17th edition:

Monday October 11 was dedicated to innovation, thanks to the Tourisme Lab Nouvelle-Aquitaine meetings.

Tourism Lab – UNAT Nouvelle-Aquitaine (unat-nouvelle-aquitaine.fr)

To reflect on innovation and experimentation at regional and local level, and facilitate the digital transformation of professionals, this event organized by the new “Tourisme Lab Nouvelle-Aquitaine” offered conferences on new innovative experiences and new products corresponding to the expectations of territories and visitors.

MT Lab’s General Manager, Martin Lessard, will be presenting the latest developments at the Montreal incubator to our French friends.

Open innovation is the term used to describe collaboration between companies in a given sector or region to accelerate the research and development of innovations together, rather than independently. Since its creation, the MT Lab has been facilitating open innovation with its major partners, such as the Palais des congrès, in the tourism and entertainment sector.

Emmanuelle Legault, CEO of the Palais des congrès, points out: “The Palais is one of those innovative organizations that wants to work with start-ups. From this vision stems our desire to get closer to partners like MT Lab and its network.”

In recent years, the Palais des Congrès has literally become a sandbox for start-ups. This was the case for Re-Ak, an MT Lab alumni startup, which was able to test its system for evaluating participants’ experience using biometric tools in an event environment.

Our solution worked with seated people, but it wasn’t adapted to events,” admits Frederic Simard CEO, Re-Ak. We first validated the idea, then worked with the Palais des Congrès to adapt our solution to people on the move.” By understanding needs in the field and testing its solution in the reality of major events, Re-Ak was able to refine its offering and validate it both technologically and strategically.

Tuesday October 12 and Wednesday October 13 were devoted to the traditional #ET17 National Etourism Meetings.

Overture by Paul Arseneault – YouTube

Paul Arseneault, our friend from UQAM and MT Lab, was the keynote speaker at the opening plenary of the Rencontres nationales de Pau on Tuesday, October 12. Always relevant and incisive, his talk focused on the “Challenges facing tourism and its post-COVID revival”. Using pertinent examples, he underlined the apriorisms and over-hasty assessments of the impact of COVID on tourist destinations. Paul also called on participants to change their business models and the way they do tourism. Easy answers to the crisis will not be at hand, even if Paul did point out a few trends that may be emerging on the horizon…

We also had the opportunity to hear Lionel Flasseur give an update on the notion of Benevolent Tourism in Auvergne Rhône-Alpes, whose concept launched two years ago has given rise to several very concrete projects and actions. A unique and inspiring initiative.

Other #ET17 workshops that caught my eye included, Tourisme Culture, on la fait cette révolution? and The programmed obsolescence of websites. I also really enjoyed the 15 minutes chrono by Laurence Giuliani, with her pertinent reflections on the desirable digital.

François Bitouzet, former Communications Director at Voyages-SNCF, took to the #ET17 stage in his new role as Managing Director of Publicis Live. His well-attended speech focused on business tourism as a whole, a sector that suffered greatly during the health crisis. On prospects for recovery, solutions implemented to digitize or hybridize events, sustainable business tourism … a flagship conference of #ET17.

Rémy Knafou, a French geographer specializing in tourism and Professor Emeritus at the University of Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne, brought the Rencontres nationales to a close with a powerful theme: “Adapting destinations to the^4th tourism revolution “. Rémy Knafou, who published the book “Réinventer le tourisme. Saving our vacations without destroying the world”, outlined the difficulties facing tourist destinations in the context of the tourism hypergrowth we have experienced over the past 15 years. The current health crisis is a wake-up call…

With several plenary sessions, 24 workshops and inspiring delegates, the Rencontres nationales du Etourisme remains a must-attend business event for our sector. All links to conferences and workshops can be found on the #ET17 YouTube channel.

Mark your calendars for #ET18: October 11, 12, 13, 2022, again in Pau!