Beyond the Brochure: The Future of Travel Events in a Digital Age

With the rapid rise of AI trip planners, immersive virtual tours, and endless TikTok travel hacks, it is incredibly easy to assume that traditional travel fairs are a relic of the past. They can be expensive to stage, are resource-intensive to execute, and can be hard to measure in terms of ROI. So it’s a completely fair question for any travel marketer to ask: are they worth it? Are the customers your brand is trying to reach - whether they’re digitally-native younger generations, or older consumers for whom holiday inspiration still means ‘brochures’ - really going to make a costly trip to the city and spend their weekend wandering around a massive, brightly lit exhibition hall collecting leaflets and free pens?  Or has our shift to a digital-first mindset finally made the physical travel event obsolete?

At Llama, we have been debating this very topic.  The short answer is that face-to-face marketing is far from dead.  In fact, in an overwhelmingly digital world, real-world interaction has become a premium asset.  However, the traditional exhibition model desperately needs to evolve if it wants to survive.

The Myth of the Purely Digital Traveller

It is a common mistake to look at younger demographics and assume they only want to interact through a screen.  While Gen Z and Millennials are undisputed digital natives, they are also highly cynical of online advertising and performative social media.  They actively look for authenticity.  Often, the ultimate test of a travel brand’s integrity is how it actually shows up in the real world.

The data strongly backs this up.  According to industry research from event management platform Bizzabo, a massive 82% of event attendees actually prefer to attend in-person rather than virtually.  Furthermore, a recent Eventbrite report highlighted that 77% of Gen Z consumers are at least somewhat likely to travel for live events.  Meeting a brand representative face-to-face provides a genuine human connection that an algorithm simply cannot replicate.

The issue isn't that younger consumers don’t want to attend live events; it is that too many events are still designed with an outdated, transactional mindset.  They want to deeply engage with a destination's culture, meet the experts, and hear the real stories, not just be handed a glossy flyer from behind a folding table.

Facing the Fact of Wastage

However, we have to look closely at the other side of the coin.  You cannot successfully market to a modern, eco-conscious audience while completely ignoring environmental responsibility.

The traditional travel show model is notoriously wasteful.  From mountains of unrecyclable, heavy brochures that end up straight in the bin, to single-use exhibition stands and pointless plastic freebies, the environmental footprint is tough to justify.  The facts are stark:  according to sustainability consultancy MeetGreen, the average conference attendee produces 1.89kg of waste per day.  Furthermore, the average trade show carpet is entirely discarded after just three days of use, and over 50% of signage at typical trade shows is made from non-recyclable materials.

If your brand is actively trying to promote sustainable travel, but your physical marketing footprint is inherently wasteful, consumers will immediately notice the contradiction.  On the flip side, getting it right pays off.  Research from American Express Meetings & Events found that 68% of attendees say they are directly inspired by the sustainable practices they see at the events they attend.

The Llama Perspective: Meet Responsibly

Our view is clear:  meeting in person remains the most powerful way to build a lasting relationship with your audience.  But it must be done responsibly.

We need to stop measuring the success of an event by the sheer weight of the physical collateral we hand out. Instead, travel marketers should shift their focus, and their budgets, toward low-impact, high-engagement experiences.  Swap the heavy paper brochures for seamless digital downloads via QR codes.  Ditch the single-use plastic, invest in reusable modular stands, and focus your energy entirely on creating spaces where people can have genuine, meaningful conversations.

The digital world gives travel brands unmatched reach, but the physical world gives us unmatched connection.  The travel brands that win the future will be the ones that learn to balance both, without costing the planet.