What’s toprail about?
In the context of steadily growing international tourism, TopRail is a UIC project that actively promotes railway tourism products by increasing the visibility of service offerings. This is accomplished by fostering close collaboration between stakeholders and their customers to encourage railway tourism opportunities. Railway tourism is able to offer a wide range of tourism alternatives combining exclusivity, technology, luxury and sustainability whilst contributing to fostering local economies.
Scope (target audience)
The governance of transportation services requires consensus that is essential for the image of countries as well as the tourism and railway industries. It is crucial to improve communication between stakeholders and promote collaboration on an international level.
The TopRail Forum will address key challenges and new tourism trends to provide an overview of the different dimension of railway tourism projects and services from a sustainable point of view. It intends to put together all the stakeholders in order to arise awareness of this market potential and contribute to the growth of existing and new tourist offers.
The objective of this third TopRail Forum is to bring together Rail and Tourism related industries, operators, institutions and customers to discuss about the opportunities on the sector regarding Tourism and Railways and how Railways will be able to face the social concerns about a more sustainable way of living and travelling.
For more information check TopRail website https://toprail.org/
Programme
TopRail Forum on Friday 29 May 2020
08:30-09:30 Registration
09:00-10:30 Welcome and Keynote Speakers
10:30 Coffee break
11:00-12:30 Session I: Sustainability and innovation as key to competitiveness
12:30 Lunch
13:30-15:30 Travel Trade Masterclass | ETOA - European tourism association
ETOA – the European tourism association is the trade body for better tourism in Europe. ETOA works to enable a fair and sustainable business environment, so that Europe remains competitive and appealing for residents and visitors. With over 1,200 members representing most areas of the industry, ETOA is a powerful voice at local, national and European levels.
This masterclass will explore the synergies and opportunities between rail and the international travel trade; including distribution channels and routes to market, plus the collaborative development of sustainable tourism product. Tim Fairhurst, ETOA’s Director of Policy will lead this informative and interactive session supported by representatives from major tour operators.
15:30-17:00 Session II: Night Trains (opportunities and challenges)
17:00-17:30 Closing Session
20:30 Gala Dinner
Technical visit on Saturday 30 May 2020
- Railway-related highlights in the Lake-Lucerne-Region
- Exploring Gotthard Panorama Express into the Mediterranean part of Switzerland, the TICINO
- Using the World’s longest rail tunnel, the Gotthard Base Tunnel
Venue
Accommodation
Please notice that there are many events taking place in Lucerne on those days. Please make your reservations as soon as possible.
Bookings should be done individually by participants. Our partner STC has reserved some rooms for the event in the hotels below:
Transport within switzerland
For your comfortable journey through Switzerland, Swiss Travel System is happy to provide the participants with a unique all-in-one 1st class and 4 days Swiss Travel Pass.
4 advantages of your #swisstravelpass:
- Unlimited travel by train, bus and boat
- Public transportation in more than 90 cities and towns
- Including mountain excursions: Rigi, Stanserhorn and Stoos
- Free admission to more than 500 museums throughout Switzerland
Call for Papers (Now Open)
UIC invites experts in these fields to submit their abstracts through by sending them to perez at uic.org. The deadline for submission is 22 March 2020.
Criteria for the speaker selection
# 1. Correlation and relevance with the theme of the conference and the panel session selected
# 2. Innovative and/or disruptive approach of the issue
# 3. Quality of the abstract
- The abstract may have a maximum length of 600 words and a maximum of two support graphics and/or images
- Working language is English, no other language allowed for abstract and presentation.
Process after acceptance of your abstract/registration
Selection of papers will be done just afterward and will be communicated directly to the applicant. In case the lecture is approved, the final presentation will have to be provided by exclusively in English and according to the guidelines /template that will be provided in due time by UIC.
The registration for the speakers is free of charge. After confirming your participation as a speaker, you will receive a code to register for free in the “registration” area of the website. This will also give you access to the gala dinner, to the technical visit and to a 4 days Swiss Travel Pass kindly offered by Swiss Travel System.
We hope that you will be able to support this important event and we look forward to receiving your proposal.
For questions concerning the submission of abstracts or for more general questions please email Vanessa Perez perez at uic.org
Registration
- All conference sessions on 29/05/20;
- Lunch on 29/05/20;
- Dinner on 29/05/20;
- Technical visit on 30/05/20.
- A 4-day Swiss Travel Pass in first class !!
- To make a bank transfer in the payment panel, please click on the link to “Other means of payment”.
- All prices are VAT included.
Partners
