Tag: ITB Berlin Travel Trade Show

A strong voice in support of Native Hawaiian entrepreneurs

`Ano`ai kakou…  Thanks to my close working relationship with the American Indian Alaska Native Tourism Association (AIANTA), OHA was able to partner with them for a second year in the ITB Berlin Travel Trade Show from March 2-9, 2015.  Native Hawaiian entrepreneurs were once again represented in this prestigious event.

The ITB Berlin Travel Trade Show provides a tremendous opportunity for our Native Hawaiian beneficiaries to develop their self-sufficiency by giving them greater control over the marketing of their history and culture internationally and by bringing about a stronger, more authentic Native Hawaiian identity in the minds of travelers around the world.

I have served on the AIANTA board of directors for over two years.  AIANTA is a 501 (c)(3) nonprofit association formed in 1999 to help federally recognized tribes market their unique stories to visitors and to facilitate the ease to which travelers can explore Indian Country.  The association is made up of member tribes from the following regions: Eastern, Plains, Midwest, Southwest, and Alaska.  The Pacific region is now being represented thanks to my participation.

Each March, AIANTA sponsors an expansive Native American Indian booth located within the United States Pavilion at ITB Berlin, the world’s leading travel trade show with more than 170,000 visitors, including 110,000 trade visitors and over 10,086 exhibitors from 180 countries.  The Pavilion attracts large crowds of participants and hundreds of international travel agents.

The success of our experience in 2014 encouraged another Hawaiian organization to participate with us in this year’s ITB Berlin Travel Trade Show.

Pohai Ryan, Executive Director of the Native Hawaiian Hospitality Association (NAHHA), accompanied us to ITB Berlin this year.  NAHHA had never participated before but after recently joining AIANTA, they have learned the value of promoting our indigenous cultures collectively to the European market.  It is NAHHA’s goal to promote guided Huaka`i conducted by Native Hawaiian entrepreneurs, to promote the programs of NAHHA and advocate for a greater Hawaiian cultural presence in our state’s tourism industry.  As part of their participation with AIANTA, NAHHA has worked to arrange private meetings with wholesalers who have been carefully vetted to meet with them, matching the profile they have specified.

Also as a result of my involvement last year, five Native Hawaiian entrepreneurs from Kauai decided to participate in this year’s ITB Travel Trade Show.  Hopefully, next year we will be able to have even more Hawaiian businesses participating.

I look forward to working with NAHHA on other projects to ensure that only authentic and quality representations of Hawaiian culture are portrayed in the hospitality industry.  We will also look for more opportunities to provide a strong voice in support of Native Hawaiian entrepreneurs.

An untapped market for authentic Hawaiian travel experiences

`Ano`ai kakou… I would like to thank the Trustees who voted to support OHA’s partnership with the American Indian Alaska Native Tourism Association (AIANTA) to participate in the 2014 ITB Berlin Travel Trade Show.

Each March, AIANTA travels to ITB Berlin, the world’s leading travel trade show with more than 170,000 visitors, including 110,000 trade visitors and over 10,086 exhibitors from 180 countries. The event attracts hundreds of international travel agents. For the first time, Native Hawaiians were represented at this very prestigious event.

The purpose for this trip was to give an opportunity to our Native Hawaiian businesses, which have not been able to reach international travel markets, to promote their businesses. After distributing hundreds of Native Hawaiian business brochures from all of the islands to international travel agents, I am positive that we made a significant impact. The European market was very receptive.

For many, many years, Hawaiians have wanted to see our local tourism industry focus on authentic Native Hawaiian experiences, but this has not occurred. I believe that OHA can assist our Native Hawaiian businesses by helping them reach international markets that they previously could not afford to reach on their own. Travelling to ITB Berlin allows OHA to further develop a potentially lucrative market for our people and improve their economic self-sufficiency.

If we don’t tell our story, who will?

After speaking first hand with ITB Berlin attendees, I discovered an untapped market of wealthy European travelers eager for authentic cultural and historical travel experiences. These travelers were hungry for experiences that someone on a tour would never be able to experience. These travelers want to stay at a location far longer than the average stay. They want to stay for weeks and immerse themselves in a new culture so that they can make their long distance travel more worthwhile. OHA is in a perfect position to use its expertise in Native Hawaiian culture and history to develop strategies to assist our beneficiaries to tap this potentially lucrative international niche market.

I also made personal connections with nearly 50 travel agents and forwarded their contact information to the appropriate staff members within OHA, including Waimea Valley, which OHA manages through the Hi’ipaka LLC.

I believe OHA can increase its presence at next year’s ITB Berlin Trade Show by sponsoring our own booth within the Native American and Alaska Natives’ section. By focusing on our unique culture and history, we can bring about a stronger, more authentic Native Hawaiian identity in the minds of travelers around the world.

I heard over and over again from everyone I spoke to at the trade show that they did not want to travel like a tourist in “Waikiki” watching “dancing hula girls.” They wanted to see authentic Native cultural and historical sites and have a unique Native Hawaiian experience. They pointed out the harsh truth that if they wanted to experience warm, tropical weather, they could just go to Mexico or Florida.

Finally, I would like to thank the American Indian Alaska Native Tourism Association (AIANTA) for inviting OHA to participate in the ITB Berlin Travel Trade Show.

Tourism through a Native perspective

`Ano`ai kakou… On February 6, 2014, the Board of Trustees voted to support OHA’s partnership with the American Indian Alaska Native Tourism Association (AIANTA) to participate in the 2014 ITB Berlin Travel Trade Show.

This action is part of an effort to provide Native Hawaiian beneficiaries with greater self-sufficiency by giving them greater control over marketing their history and culture internationally and bring about a stronger, more authentic Native Hawaiian identity in the minds of travelers around the world.

The knowledge brought back from ITB Berlin will also assist our beneficiaries to develop authentic Hawaiian cultural travel experiences to market in the future.

Partnering with AIANTA

I have served on the AIANTA board of directors since February 12, 2013. AIANTA is a 501 (c)(3) nonprofit association formed in 1999 to help federally recognized tribes market their unique stories to visitors and to facilitate the ease to which travelers can explore Indian Country. The association is made up of member tribes from the following regions: Eastern, Plains, Midwest, Southwest, and Alaska. With my participation, the Pacific region can now be represented.

Each March, AIANTA sponsors an expansive Native American Indian booth located within the United States Pavilion at ITB Berlin, the world’s leading travel trade show with more than 170,000 visitors, including 110,000 trade visitors and over 10,086 exhibitors from 180 countries. The Pavilion attracts large crowds of participants and hundreds of international travel agents.

AIANTA Invitation to ITB Berlin: March 5-9, 2014 in Berlin, Germany

Thanks to my close working relationship with AIANTA, OHA has been invited to share a portion of AIANTA’s booth space in their Pavilion at ITB Berlin. Until now, Native Hawaiians were the only Native people in America not participating in this prestigious event.

Future AIANTA Partnership Opportunities

AIANTA President Sherry Rupert, who also serves as the Executive Director of the State of Nevada Indian Commission, was appointed this past June to the U.S. Department of Commerce Travel and Tourism Advisory Board. Rupert’s appointment helps to further strengthen AIANTA’s working relationship with the U.S. Commerce Department. Rupert is also a Benton Paiute tribal member.

The Obama administration, through agencies such as the U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Indian Affairs, the U.S. Department of Commerce, and the National Park Service, is working to promote Native American culture and arts and to demonstrate the contributions they have made to United States.

AIANTA recently worked with the Department of the Interior and the National Park Service (NPS) to develop a historical book on the 20,000 American Indians who fought in the Civil War. A similar historical project could be put together for Hawaii’s National Parks.

The advantages of developing partnerships with these federal agencies are enormous. Hawaii has National Parks that need more federal funding. Being able tell our story through our National Parks, like other Native peoples throughout the United States have done, is only one of the many potential advantages of participating in ITB Berlin with AIANTA.

Both the National Park Service and the Department of Interior have significant funding set aside for the promotion of Native American projects. Why should Native Hawaiians be left out?