The Biltmore Tbilisi was the proud host of the United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) Executive Council meeting. The 112th session was held at the hotel from 15 to 17 September 2020. It marked the first major in-person event involving tourism and the United Nations held since COVID-19 was declared a pandemic on 11 March this year.

The Executive Council was able to gather 170 delegates from 24 countries, including Turkey, China and France. The session was opened by Georgia Prime Minister Giorgi Gacharia, and UNWTO Secretary-General Zurab Pololikashvili gave the opening remarks.

At the session, the delegates all agreed to support the Tbilisi Declaration for Sustainable Tourism. The declaration recognises tourism as one of the worst-affected of all sectors by the pandemic and identifies the global standstill as a chance to realign the sector towards a more sustainable and inclusive future.

The Council also confirmed plans to open UNWTO’s first regional office by next year. Located in Saudi Arabia, it will serve the Middle East region.

The two-day session concluded with an UNWTO Investment Forum, which brought together experts from the public and private sector to explore opportunities and challenges for investments in tourism in the post-pandemic landscape.