The most candid answer came from Edward Chia (left), co-founder of the Timbre Group, a live music and entertainment group, who said, “In our business, when women come, men come. This is from years of evolution.”

So how does his group attract women to its bars? “We think having ladies night is not the way to go, what’s more important is creating a safe environment so that they don’t feel they will get picked up all the time and they can have fun with their girlfriends.”

He’s also found that girls consume a fair bit of alcohol – much laughter from audience at this point – and so his group focuses promotions on women. “Most beer festivals are focused on men but we run a beer festival too and I tell our exhibitors to not only hire girls to serve beers but good looking men.”

Marvin Tan, CEO of SilkAir, said one of his airline’s competitive edge over low cost airlines was that his cabin crew looked after children well – “and we know women make decisions on behalf of families”.

While he said that the airline did not have any specific offerings to women, “maybe this is an idea worth exploring”.

Zubin Karkaria, CEO and MD of VFS Global, said that men had learnt the hard way that the final buying decision is made by women. “Men don’t have the time or patience to spend planning holidays so we leave it to women. We just pay.”

At ITB Berlin, I got another perspective from Hansruedi Frutiger, general manager of Movenpick Resort & Spa in Phuket. He told me that women customers are more inclined to be the first to either complain or compliment.

“If they are unhappy, they let us know it,” he said. “And if they are happy,” he added, waving his hands in the air, “then everyone’s happy.”

Which means that women are as important to influence at all stages of the travel cycle – from pre- to on-site to post- when they are more inclined to share and recommend on their social networks.

With just about a month to go before our WITX-Women In Travel event in Bangkok,. I am finding all this research into women behaviour personally enlightening.

This morning, we confirmed Aliza Knox (left), managing director, commerce, Google Asia Pacific, who is also responsible for Google’s Women In Leadership programmes for the region. The role of women in technology will also be championed by Adriana Gaiscogne, founder of Girls In Tech.

Also confirmed is Purva Misra, who recently joined MakeMyTrip to take charge of its human resources. With India’s leading OTA consistently regarded as one of the country’s preferred employers, she will share the secrets of how this online travel juggernaut creates a great workplace for its talent and how we should nurture the next generation of talent.

We will also shed light on women behaviour online with Experian Hitwise set to highlight exclusive data and Emilie Couton, director of hotel solutions, Accor Pacific, sharing insights on women and their behaviour on social media and what lessons can hotels and suppliers take away from such data.

We are also delighted to welcome onboard partners such as the Thailand Convention & Exhibition Bureau, Dusit Thani Hotel, HSMAI, Travelshark, Expat Ladies, Travel Daily China and Travel Trade Report.

Our event is open to all sexes – remember what Edward said, “When women come, men come.” See you in Bangkok.

Check out the programme here and register before March 31 to enjoy our early bird rate.