Quick tips for a hassle-free ITB Asia

It's the event and meeting place for travel professionals with representatives coming from Asia and around the world -- ITB Asia 2009. The event is held in conjunction with Web in Travel 2009 and starts this week at the Suntec City Convention Centre with workshops, expert panel discussions and talks for the M.I.C.E., corporate and luxury travel markets.

The program's packed and the exhibition floor's huge, so we put together some quick tips on getting the most out of the three day schedule.

Walkaround -- mobile guide in your phone

Giata & Tourias has developed a mobile show guide that visitors can download to their phone. The ITB Asia Mobile Guide displays the schedule for the entire show, including a list of exhibitors, a floor plan and sightseeing suggestions for Singapore, making it easier for ITB Asia delegates to find their way around the exhibition hall and Suntec itself. The guide also contains the program of Web In Travel 2009 and a list of ITB Asia events, presentations and receptions. This mobile guide works for most phones and PDAs -- downloading is quick and quite painless.

Point your browser to www.itb-asia.com/mobile and input your phone detail for the system to send you the appropriate download link. It works for most web-enabled mobile phones, including those from Nokia, Blackberry, Apple, Sony Ericsson and Motorola.

If you're not fond of downloads, there's an internet-based version which will be available just before the event starts, which will display additional features such as detailed hall plans and news.

Plan your days around these must-attend sessions

There are several high-level talks and workships, so have a look at the detailed program to pick your must-see, must-hear events.

Some items we highly recommend are:

Audience With The CEOs: Ho Kwon Ping, Executive Chairman of Banyan Tree Holdings talks to his fellow business leaders on where the industry is headed, including CEOs from Orange Hotel Group of China, Accor Asia Pacific and Hotelplan from Switzerland.
October 20, 9.00am, Ballroom 2, Level 2.

The WIT Start-Up Pitch: Three finalists will pitch their ideas (five minutes each) to the audience and a panel of investor judges in this session. October 20, 1.50pm, Ballroom 2.

Taming The Social Media Beast -- Is It All About Twitter, and What About Search?: Moderated by blogger Timothy Hughes, BOOT – The Business of Online Travel, business reps from Google, Simplifying, Circos.com and GroupM Search Asia Pacific weigh in on the Internet 2.0. October 20, 3.20pm, Ballroom 2.

For overseas visitors, there are city tours available as well, showcasing the different attractions of Singapore. Go to www.citytours.sg/itbasia2009.html.

CNN is a media partner of ITB Asia 2009. CNNGo is a media partner of WIT-Web in Travel.