Advantage names woman as this year’s conference keynote speaker
Female broadcaster Sarah Smith has been chosen as keynote speaker at this year’s Advantage Conference as the association looks to increase the number of women who speak at its events.
The theme of this year’s conference, taking place in Cadiz in May, will be the evolution of the travel industry over the past 40 years, in celebration of Advantage’s 40th anniversary.
Smith, who is Scottish editor for the BBC, has covered Scotland’s independence referendum, Barack Obama’s election as US President, the Madrid train bombings and the trial of Saddam Hussain.
Prior to joining the BBC full-time, Sarah was the presenter of the Scottish current affair programme, ‘Scotland 2014’ on BBC2. She was also Channel 4 News business correspondent for three years.
"Sarah Smith will be one of the great female speakers in our programme line up for this year’s conference. We are committed to increasing the number of women who speak across all Advantage events to echo the gender-balance in our industry, which we also reflected at our last Advantage Business Travel Symposium where more than half of our speakers were female," said CEO Julia Lo Bue-Said.
"Sarah will provide a fascinating perspective on the impact of politics on the travel industry, as well as the challenges of working in a fast-moving industry. Sarah’s understanding of the political process also enables her to be in a position to influence and articulate the views of travellers all around the world, especially as we may be in a post-Brexit era by conference."
Conference sessions will be held at the four-star Valentin Sancti Petri Hotel and Convention Centre, the largest event space in the Cadiz region. Advantage Conference guests will stay in a number of four and five-star hotels located on Sancti Petri’s beachfront.
Linsey McNeill
Editor Linsey McNeill has been writing about travel for more than three decades. Bylines include The Times, Telegraph, Observer, Guardian and Which? plus the South China Morning Post. She also shares insider tips on thetraveljournalist.co.uk
Vegas’s Billion-Dollar Secrets – What They Don’t Want Tourists to Know
Visit Florida’s New CEO Bryan Griffin Shares His Vision for State Tourism with Graham
Chicago’s Tourism Renaissance: Graham Interviews Kristin Reynolds of Choose Chicago
Graham Talks with Cassandra McCauley of MMGY NextFactor About the Latest Industry Research
Destination International’s Andreas Weissenborn: Research, Advocacy, and Destination Impact
Graham and Don Welsh Discuss the Success of Destinations International’s Annual Conference
Graham and CEO Andre Kiwitz on Ventura Travel’s UK Move and Recruitment for the Role
Brett Laiken and Graham Discuss Florida’s Tourism Momentum and Global Appeal
Graham and Elliot Ferguson on Positioning DC as a Cultural and Inclusive Global Destination
Graham Talks to Fraser Last About His England-to-Ireland Trek for Mental Health Awareness
Kathy Nelson Tells Graham About the Honour of Hosting the World Cup and Kansas City’s Future
Graham McKenzie on Sir Richie Richardson’s Dual Passion for Golf and His Homeland, Antigua
ADS PRO 
TAP Air Portugal to operate 29 flights due to strike on December 11
Qatar Airways offers flexible payment options for European travellers
Airlines suspend Madagascar services following unrest and army revolt
Strike action set to cause travel chaos at Brussels airports
Digital Travel Reporter of the Mirror totally seduced by HotelPlanner AI Travel Agent