Premiere in Stuttgart: In mid-January, the Rothaarsteig presented itself for the first time at the world's largest public trade fair for vacations and tourism, CMT for short, in Stuttgart. In Hall 9, the popular long-distance hiking trail was part of the joint stand of the "Top Trails of Germany" as part of the CMT subsidiary trade fair "Cycling & Hiking Travel". The Rothaarsteig is a founding member of this cooperation, under which the 13 best long-distance hiking trails in Germany are marketed. A total of 234,000 visitors demonstrate the importance of the trade fair, which appeals to a wide audience with around 1600 exhibitors and a varied supporting program.
"We can look back on a successful vacation trade fair," said Roland Bleinroth, Managing Director of Messe Stuttgart, with which Katharina Schwake-Drucks could only agree. The person responsible for Rothaarsteig marketing was there in person and was impressed by the visitor response at the Top Trails joint stand. "The CMT is known for its interested public and high visitor frequency. These were also the decisive reasons for presenting the Rothaarsteig and, of course, the attractive tourist region of Südwestfalen from Brilon in the Sauerland to Dillenburg there for the first time. Until now, the distance to the trade fair location has prevented us from taking part," says Katharina Schwake-Drucks, explaining the reasons for participating. Especially as the Rothaarsteig is deliberately only represented at a few selected trade fairs. Those responsible have not regretted their decision in favor of Stuttgart and CMT. On the contrary, the joint stand was very busy. "We made many contacts and were able to hold numerous high-quality discussions."
The Rothaarsteig is one of the most popular long-distance hiking trails in Germany. This was particularly evident from the visitors who were already familiar with the Rothaarsteig and reported on their experiences. "Due to its proximity to the Black Forest and the Swabian Jura, the Rothaarsteig and the region were often not yet familiar to the part of the audience that came from Baden-Württemberg. Against this background, many visitors stopped at our overview map and asked about the Rothaarsteig, its location and its route," says Katharina Schwake-Drucks. This was an opportunity to get new guests excited about the Rothaarsteig and the region. In particular, the good train connection from Dillenburg to Frankfurt was an important criterion for visitors from the south to take a closer look at the Rothaarsteig and hike it in the future.
Another popular point of interest at the Top Trails stand was the large map of Germany, which clearly shows all 13 trails. "It was nice to see that many interested people lingered at the map and talked about trails that they had already hiked and that are still on their list for future hiking trips." This is precisely the aim of the cooperation, emphasizes Katharina Schwake-Drucks in her summary of the trade fair. "Hiking enthusiasts who have enjoyed one of the Top Trails look forward to exploring one of the other trails afterwards. After all, the high quality standard is an important criterion for all 13 trails." In addition to attracting guests to the Rothaarsteig and the region, the trade fair also served as a large networking event with time for discussions and an exchange of experiences among the exhibitors. "The contact with our colleagues once again inspired us. It also gave us new ideas for future projects."
All information about the Rothaarsteig: www.rothaarsteig.de
Service number of the Rothaarsteig Association: 02974 4994163
E-mail: info@rothaarsteig.de