Buyers are contractors, purchasers, decision-makers, and programme developers representing tour operator businesses, Wholesalers, OTAs, travel agents, and other organisations bringing visitors to the United Kingdom and Ireland. They are looking to develop their British and Irish tourism products and programmes connecting with the supply chain. Review ETOA’s Buyer members here.

Suppliers are British and Irish tourism businesses promoting their services, offers and destinations to the international travel trade. Typically, suppliers are qualified if they fall in to one of the following categories:

• Cruise/Rail Excursions
• DMCs
• Destination Management Organisations
• Hotel/Accommodation Services
• Museums & Visitor Attractions
• National Tourism Organisations
• Restaurants/Hospitality/Shows
• Retail & Shopping Experiences
• Sightseeing/Tours/Activities/Ticketing
• Transport Services

All located in England, Wales, Scotland and the Island of Ireland.

If you provide business services for the travel trade, want to get your brand in front of 450+ travel trade professionals, the best option to attend BIM is by registering with a Marketing Table or choosing one of the many sponsorship options we have.

A Marketing table will give you a dedicated table you can brand as you wish, with two exhibitor badges and an agenda of appointments – connecting with both tour operator and travel trade suppliers. Marketing table exhibitors have access to the meeting bookings on a first-come, first-served basis once the initial preference-based matches have been created. You will visit buyers at their desks or be visited by the suppliers. Additional access can be purchased.

To attend without appointments, with access to the workshop floor and free-flow networking – please book a ‘Supplier Secondary Delegate’ ticket.

Networking

A full day from 08:00-20:00 of networking opportunities including:

• Pre-scheduled meetings
• Open appointments
• Informal networking during breaks and at the post-event reception
• A printed copy of the BIM attendee Directory

Food & drink

• Welcome coffee and light snacks
• 2 x Coffee breaks with light snacks
• Buffet Lunch
• Evening reception hosted by Guinness Storehouse, Smithwicks Experience and Roe & Co, with canapés, wine, beer and soft drinks
• Unlimited water

Note that we do not cover accommodation, flights, transfers, and any F&B in addition to the above.

We expect around 450+ travel trade professionals at BIM 2027. This will include around 200 buyers, 250+ British and Irish suppliers and destinations, Business service providers specialising in tourism, as well as other industry professionals and partners.

The event is in partnership with VisitBritain and UKinbound. VisitBritain will invite their buyer network and UKinbound members can register for the event.

We receive new registrations daily. We will soon share the attendee list.

You can register for BIM via this link.

This will direct you to our event booking platform / portal. You will need to fill in your details and proceed to payment, if your ticket comes with a fee.

You can choose to pay with a credit card or download an invoice. If you can any issues with the payment process, please make sure you visit our Portal Help page.

If you plan to book more events with ETOA, you can save by combining your bookings through our event packages.

Buyers

If you are a buyer and would like to bring a colleague, you have two options.

1. Add another table (primary buyer) for your organisation: Your colleague will have their own table and receive their own meeting agenda, which will increase your total meetings and reach. This option is FOC but subject to availability.
2. Your colleague can attend as a secondary buyer: They will not get their own agenda but will be seated with you at your table and get access to the event and the networking opportunities. This option is available for a small fee and is recommended if your colleague is new in the travel trade and will need more guidance before taking their own meetings, or if they would like to attend without fixed meetings.

Contact Elisa Li if you would like to bring a buyer colleague or book directly here.

Suppliers & Destinations

If you are a supplier and would like to bring a colleague, you have two options:

1. Add another primary supplier from your organisation: Your colleague will have their own meeting agenda, which will increase your total meetings and reach. The rate will be the standard or early bird rate (depending on availability.
2. Your colleague can attend as a secondary supplier: They will not get their own agenda but will follow your agenda or walk the room, as preferred. This option is available for a lower fee and is recommended if your colleague is new in the travel trade and will need more guidance before taking their own meetings, or if they would like to attend without fixed meetings.

Contact John Ngalame if you would like to bring a supplier colleague or book directly here.

You can add a secondary delegate up until the event.

The deadline to add an additional primary delegate is 12th January.

If you plan to book more events with ETOA, you can save by combining your bookings through our event packages.

Log in to the ETOA portal to view, download and pay your invoice.

You can choose to pay with a credit card or download an invoice. If you can any issues with the payment process, please make sure you visit our Portal Help page.

Our payment terms are 14 days after booking or the event date (whichever earliest), we reserve the right to withhold provisional appointments until payment has been received.

If you have any problems with the payment, please contact us.

Suppliers and Destinations, please note: Early bird rate available until 9th October for the primary supplier registrations; standard rate applies thereafter.

For ETOA members: We encourage you to always keep your member profile and logo up to date on the ETOA Member Search. To make changes, please log in to the member portal.

For non-members: We will share the process shortly.

On 2nd December, we will email you and request that you submit a detailed attendee profile. This will allow other BIM attendees to learn more about your business, what you are looking for and what you offer. It will enhance the quality of your meetings as your counterparts can prepare accordingly, and it will help the matching process.

We will be running two rounds of meeting preferences/matching for BIM 2027.

3rd January is the start date for you to submit your meeting preferences. You can submit up to 15 preferences. Please watch this short video to familiarise yourself with the process. The deadline for submitting your preferences is Date TBC. We will email you when the portal opens for submissions.

12th January is the top-up phase of the appointment matching. Here you will be able to see which provisional meetings you have been assigned after the first matching round. This will be based equally on all attendees’ preferences. This is your opportunity to top up your meeting schedule yourself. This will be on a request/accept basis. This is the stage where you can also book in meetings with business service providers / exhibitors.

Your final printed agenda will be available on the morning of 22 January. You can plan and prepare according to the provisional schedule you will receive via email shortly after the 12th January, but due to potential last-minute cancellations and changes, the printed agenda you receive on the day is final.

Note that below videos were recorded in preparation for BIM 2023 and GEM 2025. However, most elements will be identical to the BIM 2027 meeting scheduling.

ETOA’s matchmaking methodology has been developed over 30 years and seeks to the maximise the business opportunities in a time efficient and equal manner.

How it works:

1. Through supplier and buyer recruitment, company and personal profiles will be created.
2. Approximately one month before the B2B workshop, buyers and suppliers will be invited to select and rank their counterparts in line with their commercial objectives.
3. This first round of preference-based matching with result in a ‘provisional agenda’.
4. Thereafter, delegates will have access to ‘top up’ their agendas to complete their diaries.
5. Unless in situations with very low assigned appointments or as agree with the client, ETOA will avoid the creation of any non-delegate meetings.

This approach is applied to allow meeting matches based on interests and business profiles, placing each delegate on an equal footing and putting aside the pressure of first-come, first-served diary management. The approach allows small players to secure meetings and make their pitch and for large players to connect with new market entrants. It accommodates set-piece meetings between existing partners but encourages serendipitous connections.

ETOA strongly recommends that buyers be seated at dedicated desks during the workshop, with suppliers moving around the room in line with their respective agendas. This ensures that all buyers are accessible and visible to suppliers throughout the session.

When you receive your agenda, you will find three types of slots:

1. Prescheduled meeting: Buyers stay seated and the supplier/destination will meet you at your numbered table
2. Open appointments: There are 4 open appointments for all attendees, clearly market on your agenda. This is your opportunity to meet with someone you didn’t manage to schedule a meeting with, or someone you meet during a break and would like to follow up with.
3. Free slots: You may have slots with no assigned meeting. This is your opportunity to walk the floor, looking for ad-hoc meetings and connect with the industry. Remember, there are around 450+ industry professionals in the room, and they are all there to network.

BIM 2027 AGENDA

Arrival

If you are a supplier or a destination, please go straight to the helpdesk to pick up your pack with your final agenda, the BIM Directory, and your badge for the day.

If you are a buyer, your agenda and badge will be on your desk. Desks are arranged in alphabetic order by company name. All desks have a number. Please as an ETOA team member for help if you can’t find your table.

If you have a Marketing table, your agenda and badge will be on your desk. The desk will be located on the side of the room, please ask a member of the ETOA team for help to find it.

Appointments

The first appointment will start promptly at 9:00. Buyers stay seated with suppliers and destinations walking the floor according to the schedule. Meetings last 12 minutes. When a meeting is over, a gong sounds and the suppliers and destinations move to their next appointment.

Be mindful not to overrun meetings. Most buyers have a full schedule and will have their next appointment waiting. If a meeting is running over, please don’t hesitate to politely remind them that you have arrived.

Find out more about appointment types here.

Informal networking

With over 450 tourism professionals in the room, there are plenty of opportunities to make new connections outside your agenda during the coffee breaks, lunch and evening reception. The ETOA team is around to help introduce you to new contacts.

In addition to the meeting agenda, you will receive a printed version of the BIM 2026 delegate directory. It will include details of all attendees and is your opportunity to follow up with your new connections. The Directory will also be available in PDF format.

If you would like to make your business stand out, advertisement in the directory is available.

BIM 2027 will be held at the Intercontinental London, the O2.

Full address:

1 Waterview Drive, Greenwich Peninsula, SE10 0TW

The venue is conveniently located right by North Greenwich tube station (Jubilee line), with easy connections to central London.

The closest airport is London City airport, which can be reached by public transport (direct bus no. 129) in less than 30 minutes. All other London airports (Stansted, Heathrow, Luton and Gatwick) are accessible by public transport in less than 1h30m.

Accommodation is not included in your registration. There are several options nearby. BIM attendees can get preferential rates at ACCOR properties, contact us to find out more.

If you have any accessibility needs, please submit these during the registration process or contact us as soon as possible.

Please share your requirements during the registration process. Around 2nd December we will send you and email asking you to confirm your dietary requirements.

Please note that all food served during BIM 2027 will be meat-free and served buffet-style or as finger food.

If you are no longer able to attend the event and would like to send a colleague in your place, please contact us as soon as possible.

If you are no longer able to attend and a colleague is not able to attend in your place, please let us know as soon as possible. Note that cancellation fees apply.