Strategic Partnership Forged in Youth Travel

The World Youth Student and Educational (WYSE) Travel Confederation, the global industry body representing youth travel, and the Adventure Travel Trade Association (ATTA), a global organization dedicated to responsibly growing the adventure travel market, today announced a new partnership agreement concerning youth adventure travel.The WYSE Travel Confederation and the ATTA recognize the importance of cooperating to advance the contribution of youth adventure travel development and are planning to collaborate in the areas of advocacy, research, and education to achieve their shared objectives.

Both youth and adventure travel sectors are among the fastest growing sectors of international tourism. This partnership will strengthen the collective ability of both organisations to understand and develop each sector according to best-practices, and promote the importance of this sector to key-stakeholders.

David Chapman, Director General of the WYSE Travel Confederation said “There are considerable synergies between the two organisations and we look forward to working together on research, education, and providing opportunities for our joint membership.”

According to the ATTA Executive Director-Europe, Chris Doyle, “The WYSE-ATTA partnership matters because the organisations’ joint efforts can perpetuate young traveller interest to choosing responsible adventure travel as their first holiday choice. In addition to the healthy mind and body merits of such activity-based journeys, increased interest in immersive cultural and nature-based experiences among the next generation of travellers is good for tourism’s sustainable future.”
Both the ATTA and WYSE Travel Confederation recently announced that their annual conferences would be held in Ireland for 2014. WYSE Travel Confederation’s conference is in Dublin and the ATTA conference in Killarney is just one week later.

About WYSE Travel Confederation:
WYSE) Travel Confederation is the world’s largest network of youth and student travel operators. WYSE Travel Confederation is a not-for-profit association dedicated to supporting the global industry and connecting the organisations that serve millions of young people who travel to study, work and grow. The Confederation is committed to understanding the ever-changing characteristics, motivations, and needs of young travellers. The Confederation’s annual networking and trading event is the annual World Youth and Student Travel Conference, the youth, student and educational industry’s essential global youth and student travel event. Visit WYSE Travel Confederation: www.wysetc.org or on Twitter @WYSETC

About Adventure Travel Trade Association:
Established in 1990, the Seattle-based Adventure Travel Trade Association, serving more than 900 members worldwide, serves as the hub for tour operators, tourism boards, association partners, media, specialty agents, adventure accommodations and industry partners with a vested interest in the sustainable development of adventure tourism. Host of the annual Adventure Travel World Summit trade conferences, the ATTA is dedicated to unifying, networking, professionalizing, promoting and responsibly growing the adventure travel market. The ATTA also publishes www.AdventureTravelNews.com, the adventure tourism community’s news source and makes possible www.Adventure.Travel, the traveler’s guide for trusted tour operators from around the globe specializing in physical, cultural and nature-based adventures.