MTS Forum 2010 is built around the emerging “New Realities” that are shaping the way destination mountain travel business will be done in 2010 and beyond. The Forum is constructed on a foundation of three general session presentations that are supported by 13 workshops, many of which are presented in two-part tracks. Together these represent the pistons upon which the engine of the future is expected to be powered. From conception to post event follow-up, the Forum is designed to inform, enable and empower those who desire to understand and own the strategies and tool set that will characterize the winners in this “New Reality.”
General Session I: Driving the Competition Crazy
Wednesday, April 14, 8:30am – 10:00am, Alhambra Ballroom
Presenter: Guy Kawasaki, Thought Leader, Innovator, Author
Mindful of a mature industry, flat market, and increasing competition, it’s all about market share. MTS 2010 will kick off its opening keynote with a framework for competing in this new reality, presented by Guy Kawasaki, one of the progressive thought leaders of the new millennium, and the perfect pundit to provide a blueprint for competing for customer attention, dollars and loyalty. Says Kawasaki, “In my career at Apple, I had to do battle with two magnificent enemies: IBM and Microsoft. Not that my side necessarily won, but at least I learned how to be a royal pain in the ass!” In about an hour Guy will apply his learning to today’s mountain travel market, along with the strategies to gain a differential advantage and to ethically and effectively defeat the competition, be it the cruise industry or the resort down the road.
Sponsored by: 
General Session II: Destination Travel 2010, a 360 Perspective of What You Need to Know
Wednesday, April 14, 10:15am – 12:00pm, Alhambra Ballroom
Presenters:
Peter Yesawich, Chairman/CEO, Ypartnership
Philip Wolf, President/CEO, PhoCusWright
Jan Freitag, Vice President of Global Development, Smith Travel Research
Ralf Garrison, Founder/Director, MTRiP
MTS is proud to present its most distinguished faculty ever, representing the travel industry’s guiding light research companies and the respective thought leaders in their disciplines. Each will offer a snapshot of the key “New Realities” from their four points of the travel compass. These summary presentations will introduce four related workshops where their insights can be translated into strategic initiatives for the 2010-11 season and beyond.
Consumerism in Travel: Implications for the New Decade. Peter Yesawich, Chairman and CEO of Ypartnership, brings his insightful research and depth of industry experience to describe tomorrow’s travelers: what will matter to them—and what won’t. As the trend spotter of the “New Normal” way back in 2004, Yesawich is being challenged to unplug from his firm’s widely acclaimed Leisure Travel Monitor, roll up his sleeves and opine on how his “New Normal” will translate into the “New Realities” upon which the future will be built. Related workshop to follow.
New Media. Philip Wolf, President and CEO of internationally renowned PhoCusWright delves into the role technology plays in driving the new media and the social networking phenomenon that has enveloped us. As the travel industry’s custodian of enabling technology since the dawn of the internet, there is no one better suited to help unlock the keys to the overwhelming changes that are both disrupting and enabling the forthcoming new realities. Related workshop to follow.
Market Fundamentals – Pricing and Value in a Buyer’s Market. Jan Freitag, Vice President of Global Development at Smith Travel Research adds the hospitality dimension to the overall travel picture with a lodging-specific intensive on the paradox of pricing in a fluctuating economy. As keeper of the world’s largest lodging-based research dataset, Jan will bring his unique perspective and considerable insights to bear on the most perplexing questions facing the hospitality industry: price discovery and finding a manageable balance between two dueling values: keeping occupancy up and holding rates. Related workshop to follow.
Destination Mountain Travel 2010 – Review/Preview. Ralf Garrison, a long-time mountain travel industry market strategist and founder/director MTRiP, the Mountain Travel Research Program, will add his view of ski industry performance 2009-10, and provide a micro market deep dive to this illustrious group of travel research gurus. Ralf will interpret the MTRiP data to summarize the waning winter season, and then look forward to the forthcoming season and the market conditions forthcoming. A subsequent “deep dive” workshop and Forum recap
roundtable will follow this summary presentation.
Sponsored by: 
General Session III: New Realities in Mountain Travel: In Market Perspective from the Helm
Thursday, April 15, 8:30am – 10:00am, Alhambra Ballroom
Presenters:
Thomas Storey, President, Fairmont Hotels & Resorts
David Barry, CEO, Alpine Helicopters and Canadian Mountain Holidays
Julie Canning, President/CEO, Banff Lake Louise Tourism
Moderator: Ralf Garrison, Partner, Mountain Travel Symposium
The third general session, continuing the “New Realities” theme, shifts focus on the insider’s view of the mountain travel industry and perspectives of several senior-level executives in lodging, attraction, and destination marketing, each a recognized leader in their respective segments. From their complimentary perspectives, they will share several new realities that will be most strategic to the future of destination travel in general and mountain travel specifically.
Sponsored by: 