On the occasion of the Italian Travel Workshop in London, a workshop dedicated to the promotion of Italian tourism in Great Britain, five companies from the Marche region met international buyers and tour operators during a day of B2B meetings. The initiative is part of the regional internationalisation strategy supported by ATIM – the Agency for Tourism and Internationalisation of the Marche Region – and confirms the growing interest of the UK market in authentic Italian destinations not affected by mass tourism. The region confirms itself as a destination capable of attracting high-quality tourism, attentive to the storytelling of the territory and its discovery.

The 2026 edition of the Italian Travel Workshop - ITW London, a B2B workshop dedicated to the promotion of Italian tourism in the United Kingdom, was held yesterday. On this occasion, ATIM – the Agency for Tourism and Internationalization of the Marche – accompanied five companies from the Marche region with the aim of strengthening the region’s presence in international tourism networks and building new opportunities for collaboration with buyers, tour operators and specialized operators. 

The organizations involved were Grotte di Frasassi, Break in Italy, Enjoy Travel, Lindbergh Hotels and Tenuta Santi Giacomo e Filippo.

Participation in ITW London is part of a tourism promotion strategy aimed at consolidating the positioning of the Marche as an authentic, sustainable and experiential destination: a region able to respond to travelers who are increasingly attentive to the quality of their time, the beauty of places, the culture of territories and cuisine as an expression of local identity.

The UK market continues to show growing interest in less crowded Italian destinations, where travel is not merely consumption of places, but discovery and lasting memory. In this sense, the Marche region represents a highly valuable proposition: ancient villages, art cities, rolling hills, as well as sea, mountains, craftsmanship, music, food and wine combine into an integrated and recognizable offer.

The direct exchange between Marche companies and attending buyers proved particularly meaningful. For accommodation providers, tour operators and incoming operators, participating in an international workshop such as ITW means presenting concrete tourism products, building commercial relationships and understanding the expectations and trends of the UK market. 

The value of the initiative lies not only in the promotion of individual structures or packages, but in the ability to present the Marche as a comprehensive experience. What particularly impressed international buyers was the authentic dimension of the region, a feature highly appreciated during the meetings. In this sense, the Marche position themselves as a destination “for the right person”: a destination for those seeking something genuine, for those who love discovery, and for those who wish to experience a more intimate and profound Italy.

“Participation in ITW London confirms the importance of supporting the internationalization of the regional tourism offer through targeted actions aligned with the vocations of the territory,” said Marina Santucci, Director of ATIM. “By accompanying companies in qualified international business contexts, our organization strengthens the role of the Marche in foreign markets and helps generate new opportunities for the regional tourism system.” 

In a global context where travelers increasingly seek personalized, sustainable and meaningful experiences, the Marche offer a distinctive competitive advantage: authentic beauty, sincere hospitality and genuine emotions. London has confirmed that this narrative resonates and can become a concrete driver of growth for businesses and for the entire regional territory.

INFO: www.letsmarche.it 

Alice RINALDI

Research has shown that over half (58%) of brits feel self-conscious in the gym, but with those exercising regularly having better mental and physical health, how can you overcome gym anxiety and make the most of your gym experience?

With this in mind, Live Football Tickets have partnered with BACP registered counsellor Georgina Sturmer, to provide top tips for overcoming gym anxiety, as well as the psychology behind this.

Four tips for overcoming gym anxiety:

1. Start small & easy

Setting yourself small and achievable goals when going to the gym can help improve your confidence. Beginning with a small 15-20 minute cardio workout for instance may be simpler, and less daunting for your first few gym visits. Once you are more comfortable, you can then build up to longer durations, or a more varied workout regime. 

2. Plan ahead and scout in advance

Planning which workouts you will do, which machines you plan to use, and in which order, can help avoid any uncertainty throughout your workout. You could also visit your gym before you begin using it for your workouts, to familiarise yourself with the equipment, the layout, and any other extra services it may offer. Staff are always happy to help so if you are unsure of any of the facilities, asking questions can help ease your mind. 

3. Consider group classes, personal trainers, or having a gym buddy

Partnering up with a friend and doing workouts together can act as a source of comfort or reassurance, and could build you up to solo visits once you’ve become more comfortable.

Alternatively, a personal trainer can be helpful if you are unsure on the exercises needed to achieve your fitness goals, and can also show you how to correctly use any equipment you may need. Try a couple of sessions to familiarise yourself with the workouts and equipment, then once you feel more at ease, you can implement their techniques into your own solo workouts.

Going to any group fitness classes can also be a great idea for those who are unsure on how to exercise. Attendees can follow and replicate the instructor’s exercises, and potentially make new friends within the group. 

4. Use mindfulness techniques and be consistent

For more persistent gym anxiety, it can be helpful to go in with some mindfulness techniques or breathing exercises that you can utilise if necessary.

For example, the 4-7-8 breathing technique involves breathing in for 4 seconds, holding that breath for 7 seconds, and then exhaling for 8 seconds. This helps focus the mind and body on breathing, calming your nerves and helping to decrease anxiety symptoms.

Alternatively, the 333 rule is a valuable mindfulness technique for when your anxiety occurs. The aim is to identify 3 objects, 3 sounds, and then move 3 body parts, which helps ground you and reduce intrusive anxious thoughts, helping to manage your anxiety.

If your anxiety is manageable through using techniques such as these, being consistent and persisting in your gym journey can be very rewarding. Not only can your confidence grow, but you can begin to reap the mental and physical benefits that exercise brings. 

BACP registered counsellor Georgina Sturmer provides expert psychological advice around gym anxiety, as well as tips for overcoming this:

“With gym anxiety, there’s a sense that when we go to the gym - or even think about going to the gym - we risk being overwhelmed by our fears or worries. This can manifest in all sorts of ways.  We might feel frightened or overwhelmed. We might find ourselves making excuses or creating ways to avoid the gym. And we might also notice physical sensations when our anxiety becomes triggered.

“Understanding our anxiety: When we experience a sense of anxiety, we are not always able to tune into what’s going on. But if we reflect deeper, we can understand that there are a whole host of reasons why we might fear or worry about going to the gym. Maybe we are worried that we will embarrass ourselves, that we won’t know what to do. Perhaps there’s an element of social anxiety about interacting with other people. Once we really start to understand what’s underneath our anxiety it can help us to tackle it.

“Noticing patterns: We might notice that the idea of going to the gym makes us feel anxious. But it’s worth keeping track, or perhaps making notes in a diary, to see what else is going on. When the anxiety overwhelms us, thinking about what has just happened. The thoughts that are going through our mind, any self-criticism or catastrophizing. When we notice and track these patterns, it helps us to have a more rational approach to our anxiety. These actions might also help us to understand ourselves better. If we struggle with our self esteem then this might leave us feeling as if we don’t deserve to spend time or energy on our own wellbeing.  

“Figuring out what might keep you calm: Be your own best friend. If you know that the idea of the gym leaves you feeling anxious, think about what you can put in place to help you along your way. This could involve some calm breathing or integrating some grounding or mindfulness practices.

“Celebrate success: Consider setting some achievable goals, and congratulate yourself when you meet them. The key is for these goals to be simple and achievable milestones.  This might feel hard if we are prone to perfectionism, or self-criticism, but it’s useful to practise feeling proud of ourselves.”

Methodology:

1. Live Football Tickets wanted to provide some expert tips to help people overcome gym anxiety.
2. To do this, they scoured multiple reputable websites such as verywellmind.com, and planetfitness.com.
3. Live Football Tickets then partnered with BACP registered counsellor Georgina Sturmer, who provides expert commentary on the psychology behind this, and expert tips to overcome the anxiety. 
4. Research was collected April 2024, and is accurate as of then.

Helena

Of all public places, a climbing wall would be high on the list - although still below public toilets - of places to avoid for germophobes. High-contact surfaces in the form of hand and foot holds are subject to thousands of fondles and smears during their typical life-cycle of many weeks - sometimes months - in a setting rotation, before being stripped and cleaned. The ongoing spread of the novel coronavirus - or SARS-CoV-2* - is understandably a cause for concern for climbers using indoor walls, but how big is the risk and what can we do to minimise transmission and keep walls running? Climbing walls are high-contact spaces, but good personal hygiene will reduce risk of transmission and business closure.