The ITB Asia Conference 2026 took place from October 21 to 23 at the Sands Expo & Convention Centre, Marina Bay Sands, Singapore. The three-day event convened over 150 travel industry leaders, with Messe Berlin Asia Pacific as the organiser. The conference adopted the theme “Experiences in Motion: Human-Centred Design in Travel & Tourism.”
The programme concentrated on how traveller expectations and business models are changing in tandem with technological advances. The focus was on placing human experience at the heart of innovation within the Asia-Pacific travel and tourism sectors. Messe Berlin Asia Pacific emphasised the conference’s role in facilitating
industry knowledge exchange and networking to explore new opportunities.
Conference Theatres and Core Topics
The conference featured three main theatres: Knowledge Theatre, MICE Show Asia Theatre, and Travel Tech Asia Theatre. Sessions covered key segments including leisure travel, MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, and Exhibitions), corporate travel, and travel technology. Topics ranged across market trends, Chinese outbound tourism, sustainability, luxury travel, artificial intelligence (AI), data analytics, emerging technologies, experience design, and the future of business events.
Knowledge Theatre Focus: Cruise, Sustainability, and Digital Transformation
The Knowledge Theatre included discussions on growth drivers in the Asia-Pacific travel economy and shifting dynamics in Chinese outbound tourism. Sessions addressed how digital natives shape future travel trends and
insurance products.
A dedicated Cruise Leaders’ Panel presented views from Disney Cruise Line, Intercruises Shoreside & Port Services, and STIC Travel Group on the evolution of cruise holidays within the new travel landscape.
Speakers from High-Yield Tourism and MDS Collective examined digital reputation management, focusing on generative AI and user-generated content’s impact on travel brand trust. Sustainability was a prominent subject, with contributions from Greytt.ai, Meaningful Tourism Centre, Small Luxury Hotels of the World, Thailand’s Green Plan 2030, and the Sustainable Tourism Action Center discussing responsible travel strategies and meaningful traveller experiences.
Additional topics included storytelling as a strategic tool
for immersive travel experiences by HOL Experiences and Discova’s analysis of purposeful travel to empower communities beyond visitor volume metrics.
MICE Show Asia Theatre: Events, AI, and Corporate Travel
The MICE Show Asia Theatre concentrated on transforming business events through event design, ROI measurement, AI adoption, and destination competitiveness. The MICE Destination Leaders’ Panel featured representatives from Sri Lanka and Uganda Convention Bureaus discussing strategies to attract the next generation of international business events.
Cvent’s Hospitality Cloud Leader Asia Pacific highlighted the necessity for event professionals to be AI-ready amid emerging event technology trends. A buyer-focused session by Midstay & MicePro analyzed challenges in securing MICE deals between requests
for proposal and contract confirmations.
Corporate travel demands and related technological solutions were explored by Chase Travel Corporate Solutions and FCM Travel Asia executives. Future event preparedness discussions included insights from Encore, S&P Global Ratings, and UPGroup Asia on maintaining relevance in the next decade of business events.
Travel Tech Asia Theatre: AI, Automation, and Digital Innovation
The Travel Tech Asia Theatre concentrated on innovations reshaping travel through AI, automation, multimodal transport integration, and digital discovery. Singapore Cruise Centre addressed digital transformation’s role in creating integrated air, sea, and intermodal experiences.
Executives from Agoda, TRAVEL.jp, Trip101, and WebBeds challenged common industry assumptions regarding technology, customer behaviour, sustainability, and growth.
Prominent panels featured AI’s tangible application in travel, with Booking.com, D-EDGE Hospitality Solutions, KAYAK, and Traveloka discussing AI’s value across accommodation, marketing, and booking processes. Trip.com presented how AI redefines travellers’ user journeys, while RateGain and Sojern shared perspectives on AI-driven hotel marketing strategies.
