Crop of the top meeting venues

By

-

May 22, 2026

SINGAPORE, 22 May 2026: Cvent, an industry-leading meetings, events, and hospitality technology provider, has unveiled its lists of the Top Meeting Destinations and Top Meeting Hotels for the Asia Pacific.

Singapore tops the list of best destinations for events in the Asia Pacific, with the top hotel listed as the Hilton Singapore Orchard.

The annual lists are also issued regionally for North America, Europe, the Middle East & Africa, and Latin America & the Caribbean.

Commenting on Singapore’s success in the latest Cvent listing, Singapore Tourism Board’s Executive Director, Conventions, Meetings & Incentive Travel, Carrie Kwik, said: “This accolade is a testament to the depth of our industry’s commitment — grounded in world-class infrastructure and driven by bold innovation that sets new possibilities for what exceptional events can deliver.”

Top meeting destinations in the Asia Pacific

The top five cities remained consistent year over year, with Singapore maintaining its top ranking for the eighth time. Seoul made the most notable move in the top tier, rising one spot to seventh, while Bali dropped one place to eighth. The rest of the top 10 held steady, underscoring the stability and deep-rooted appeal of Asia Pacific’s leading MICE destinations.

Top Meeting Hotels Asia Pacific

Hilton Singapore Orchard rose two spots to claim the top position in Asia Pacific for the first time, building on three consecutive years of top-three recognition since 2023.

Hyatt Regency Sydney held steady second place, while Hilton Sydney made an impressive jump of six places to enter the top tier in third place. ANA InterContinental Tokyo was the region’s biggest mover, ranking fourth. Bangkok Marriott Marquis Queen’s Park rounded out the top five.

About Cvent
Cvent is a leading meetings, events, and hospitality technology provider with 5,500+ employees and 30,000+ customers worldwide as of 31 December 2025. Founded in 1999, the company delivers a comprehensive event marketing and management platform and offers a global marketplace where event professionals collaborate with venues.

(Source: Cvent)

Regent Seven Seas rolls out 2028-2029 Collection

By

Newsdesk

-

May 22, 2026

SINGAPORE, 22 May, 2026: Regent Seven Seas Cruises has unveiled its 2028-2029 Voyage Collection, featuring 238 new sailings around the world.

The season features three Grand Voyages, a 150-night World Cruise, and destination-rich, all-inclusive sailings through Africa & Arabia, Alaska, Asia, Australia & New Zealand, Canada & New England, the Caribbean, Panama Canal, the Mediterranean, Northern Europe, South America, and the South Pacific.

*Photo credit: Regent Seven Seas Cruises.*

Guests can now pre-register their interest at RSSC.Com/2028-2029-Voyage-Collection before reservations open on 28 May, 2026. Guests in Asia who book by 8 July 2026 will enjoy a low 7.5% deposit.

As part of the collection, Seven Seas Prestige, which is set for delivery in late 2026, will make her Canada and New England debut in fall 2028 with five 11-night itineraries. Regent’s newest ship, Seven Seas Prestige, will be 40% larger than Regent’s previous ships, yet accommodates only 10% more guests.

Seven Seas Splendor will visit Alaska’s waters for the very first time, sailing 16 new voyages that call on destinations such as Icy Strait Point, Skagway, and Juneau. These seven-night itineraries immerse guests in the heart of the Last Frontier, offering up to 50 included shore excursions on each sailing.

For the first time, Seven Seas Voyager will include a quiet Mediterranean winter season starting in November 2028, offering the opportunity to explore the region’s most beloved locales from a different perspective.

The 2028-2029 season will see Seven Seas Explorer sail in Africa and Arabia for the first time. Voyages will sail in spring 2029, ranging from 14 to 23 nights, and visit ports such as Abidjan, Ivory Coast; Walvis Bay, Namibia; and Luanda, Angola.

Season highlights also include maiden calls in three new ports: Dundee, Scotland; Oulu, Finland; and Šibenik, Croatia. Dundee blends maritime heritage, striking architecture, and gateway access to the Scottish Highlands. Oulu offers natural beauty, coastal charm, and a growing creative scene. Šibenik captivates with its medieval old town, UNESCO World Heritage-listed landmarks, and Adriatic coastline.

(Source: Regent Seven Seas Cruises)

Cathay Group presents April traffic results

By

Newsdesk

-

May 22, 2026

HONG KONG, 22 May 2026: Passenger and cargo demand continued to be robust, but jet fuel prices remained at highly elevated levels according to the Cathay Group’s traffic figures for April 2026.

Cathay Chief Customer and Commercial Officer Lavinia Lau commented: “April continued to present a mixed picture. Travel demand was robust, and passenger load factors were high, driven by holiday and seasonal travel, while cargo volumes were healthy. However, jet fuel prices remained at highly elevated levels amidst the ongoing Middle East situation, increasing cost pressures. We are remaining agile in our response and continue to monitor the developments closely.”

Looking ahead to the summer travel peak, Cathay Pacific and HK Express will maintain July and August flight schedules.

“In view of softened travel demand to the Middle East in the near term, we have decided to extend the suspension of Cathay Pacific’s passenger services to Dubai and Riyadh until the end of August and redeploy the capacity to routes where customer demand is keen, such as Manchester and Rome. From a passenger capacity perspective, we remain on track to reach our 2026 growth target of around 10% despite the small number of cancellations announced previously for May and June,” said Lau.

Cathay Pacific

Cathay Pacific carried 17% more passengers in April 2026 compared with April 2025, while Available Seat Kilometres (ASKs) increased by 15%. In the first four months of 2026, the number of passengers carried increased by 19% compared with the same period in 2025.

Lavinia noted: “The robust load factor we achieved in April was driven by strong leisure travel demand, particularly in the first half of the month, coinciding with the Easter holidays and seasonal travel. This was followed by notable long-haul demand into our home hub in the middle of April, boosted by the Cathay/HSBC Hong Kong Sevens. Then, towards the end of the month, ‘Golden Week’ pre-holiday demand stimulated inbound traffic to Hong Kong as well as outbound travel to various destinations across our network. Demand for our premium cabins was robust, with major exhibitions and trade events in Hong Kong continuing to attract business travellers from across our network.

“Looking ahead, demand is expected to remain resilient, supported by seasonal leisure travel and event-driven traffic. That said, we have seen a slight shift in booking behaviour, with some customers booking closer to their departure dates, alongside broader market uncertainties.”

Cathay Cargo

Cathay Cargo carried 8% more cargo in April 2026 than in April 2025, while Available Freight Tonne Kilometres (AFTKs) increased by 7%. In the first four months of 2026, the total tonnage increased by 8% compared with the same period in 2025.

HK Express

HK Express carried close to 730,000 passengers in April 2026, an increase of 5% year on year, while Available Seat Kilometres (ASKs) grew by 7%. In the first four months of 2026, the number of passengers carried increased by 14% compared with the same period in 2025.

“In April, HK Express continued to record passenger growth, supported by strong load factors on its Thailand routes as well as routes to secondary cities in Northeast Asia. For May and beyond, bookings remain ahead of the same period last year on most routes,” Lau concluded.

(Source: Cathay Pacific)

IATA: Baggage travel just got better

By

Newsdesk

-

May 22, 2026

SINGAPORE, 22 May 2026: The International Air Transport Association (IATA) has developed the Baggage Community System (BCS), a secure digital platform to support the progressive adoption of the Modern Baggage Messaging (BIX) standard.

BCS will enable airlines, airports, ground handlers, and solution providers to gain the operational and passenger-experience benefits of BIX even as parts of the industry transition from legacy Type B messages for baggage handling.

*Photo credit: IATA.* *IATA Baggage Community System (BCS)*

“Improving baggage operations depends on timely, accurate, and secure information exchange. We cannot do that with legacy Type B messages on teletype networks. And we cannot wait for everyone to convert to modern BIX capabilities. That is where BCS plays an essential role. By handling both BIX and legacy Type B systems, it enables early adopters to gain the benefits of their investments without losing connectivity with those still operating legacy systems,” said IATA’s Senior Vice President for Operations, Safety, and Security, Nick Careen.

Fast, accurate, and secure exchange of messages between airlines, airports, ground handlers, and solution providers is the backbone/fundamental to improving baggage operations. BIX messages track bags through key stages of the journey, including check-in, screening, loading, transfer, and delivery. However, many are still exchanged with Type B messages on teletype, limiting data sharing, increasing costs, and limiting improvements.

BCS is a community platform capable of real-time, structured data exchange, including between those operating with Type B messages and using BIX. This allows legacy and modern systems to continue exchanging information even as partners modernise at different speeds.

The platform also includes a global directory that enables users to identify, connect, and exchange messages with partners more easily. This simplifies a complex and lengthy IT integration process and accelerates onboarding across the baggage ecosystem.

For passengers, BCS will support more reliable baggage operations by enabling richer and more accurate baggage data. Issues such as delayed, misdirected, or misconnected bags will be identified earlier, real-time updates will be available, and solutions will be faster.

Importantly, adoption of BIX aligns with the overall digitalisation of operational processes. The collected data can enable more robust performance analysis and support more effective service recovery interventions, informed by scanned images and detailed event histories.

BCS is currently operating a live test environment where industry partners can validate integrations and messaging workflows in a controlled setting. The full platform is expected to go live in the third quarter of 2026. Participants already include a broad group of airlines and airports, including United Airlines, Lufthansa, Emirates, Cathay Pacific, British Airways, Air Canada, Finnair, and Air New Zealand, as well as airports such as Berlin Brandenburg, Toronto Pearson, Bengaluru, Münster Osnabrück, and Red Sea International.

BCS is part of IATA’s broader work to modernise aviation messaging, reduce industry costs, and support greater automation across baggage operations.

(Source: IATA)

Air Traffic at HKIA continues to grow in April

By

Newsdesk

-

May 22, 2026

HONG KONG, 22 May 2026: Hong Kong International Airport (HKIA) saw steady growth of air traffic in April, with the airport handling 5.67 million passengers and 34,445 flight movements, representing year-on-year growth of 9.4% and 5.5% respectively.

Cargo volume increased to 423,000 tonnes with a 4.9% year-on-year growth during the month.

*HKIA received the Platinum Award at ACI’s Green Airports Recognition 2026.*

Overall passenger growth in April was supported by the Easter holiday, with daily passenger traffic peaking on 3 April at over 210,000 passengers. By passenger segment, transfer/transit passengers continued to lead in growth, followed by visitors entering the territory.

By region, most markets expanded in April, led by the Chinese Mainland and Southeast Asia, while the Middle East was the only region to contract amid ongoing conflicts.

Overall cargo growth was mainly driven by transhipment, followed by imports, which recorded year‑on‑year increases of 20.2% and 6.5%, respectively, as the decline in exports narrowed to 0.3% year-on-year. By region, cargo performance was mixed. Growth in Europe and Southeast Asia continued to offset declines in markets such as North America and the Middle East.

For the first four months of the year, passenger volume rose by 13.0% year on year to 22.3 million, while flight movements increased by 5.1% year on year to 135,090. Cargo throughput recorded a 3.7% increase to 1.63 million tonnes compared to the same period of last year.

On a 12-month rolling basis, HKIA handled 63.54 million passengers and 401,240 flight movements, experiencing year-on-year increases of 13.7% and 6.6% respectively. Cargo volume grew by 2.9% year on year to 5.12 million tonnes.

In the Airports Council International’s (ACI) Green Airports Recognition 2026, HKIA’s “HKIA Flood Resilience Studies” project clinched the Platinum Award in the category of over 40 million passengers per annum.

Organised by ACI Asia-Pacific & Middle East, the Green Airports Recognition aims to promote the best environmental practices to minimise aviation’s environmental impact. The theme of this year’s award is “Climate Change Adaptation”, recognising airports for their outstanding performance in adapting to climate change.

(Source: HKIA)

Qatar Airways expands operations in Africa

By

Newsdesk

-

May 22, 2026

DOHA, 22 May 2026: Qatar Airways is expanding its African network, with flight resumptions and frequency increases launching from 16 June 2026.

Boosting connectivity across Africa, the airline will restart four weekly flights to Seychelles (SEZ) and two weekly flights to Kigali (KGL) from 16 June, and a daily flight to Marrakesh (RAK) from 1 July.

Qatar Airways serves the following destinations with increased flights:

Alexandria (HBE) – increased three weekly flights to up to seven;

Cairo (CAI) – increased from 28 weekly flights to up to 35;

Cape Town (CPT) – increased from daily flights to up to 10;

Dar es Salaam (DAR) – increased from three weekly flights to up to daily;

Lusaka (LUN)-Harare (HRE) – increased from five weekly flights to up to daily;

Maputo (MPM)-Durban (DUR) – increased from four weekly flights to up to daily.

Qatar Airways flights to Port Sudan (PZU)

Additionally, the airline is launching three weekly flights to Port Sudan, Sudan, from 2 July. Passengers travelling to Port Sudan from key markets in the Middle East and Southeast Asia, such as Oman and Pakistan, can transfer through Hamad International Airport.

Departing every Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday:

Doha (DOH) to Port Sudan (PZU) – Flight QR1319: Departure 0900; Arrival 1100
Port Sudan (PZU) to Doha (DOH) – Flight QR1320: Departure 1225; Arrival 1620

(Source: Qatar Airways)

The Maldives hosts World Travel Awards

By

Newsdesk

-

May 21, 2026

SINGAPORE, 21 May 2026: The spotlight will shine on the Maldives on World Tourism Day, 27 September 2026, following the announcement that World Travel Awards (WTA) will expand its Gala Ceremony to include winners from across Asia and Oceania.

The event will take place at Crossroads Maldives, a multi-island integrated lifestyle destination in the Maldives, located just 15 minutes by boat from Velana International Airport.

The expanded ceremony will bring together winners from dozens of markets spanning Asia, the Pacific, Australasia and the Indian Ocean.

World Travel Awards Founder, Graham Cooke, noted: “By bringing together winners from the Indian Ocean, Asia and Oceania, we are creating a powerful platform that reflects the dynamism and global influence of the Maldives.”

Crossroads Maldives features three distinct resorts — SAii Lagoon Maldives, Hard Rock Hotel Maldives and SO/ Maldives — creating a multi-experience destination.

SAii Lagoon Maldives, Curio Collection by Hilton and Crossroads Marina, General Manager Alexandre Traeger said: “It is a true privilege to host the World Travel Awards on World Tourism Day. This milestone reflects our vision of bringing diverse experiences together in one seamless destination, and we look forward to welcoming the industry’s finest.”

The Maldives last hosted the World Travel Awards in 2017. Since then, the nation has secured top honours at the World Travel Awards for sustainability and hospitality excellence, and currently holds the title of ‘World’s Leading Destination’.

Visit Maldives, Managing Director, Ibrahim Shiuree commented: “We are tremendously proud to bring the World Travel Awards back to the Maldives. The gala ceremony will allow us to showcase not only the natural beauty and hospitality that define the Maldives experience, but also our enduring commitment to responsible and sustainable tourism.”

(Source: Visit Maldives)

FLYR powers Riyadh Air’s retail space

By

Newsdesk

-

May 21, 2026

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia, 21 May 2026: Riyadh Air, home-based in Saudi Arabia, launches its content on FLYR’s Offer & Order platform to deliver a modern retail experience to its guests.

Since IATA introduced NDC protocols in 2012, airlines have worked to improve how they merchandise and distribute products and generate revenue, aiming to operate like modern e-commerce businesses, but are often constrained by legacy systems. Built on ONE Order standards, FLYR demonstrates that this ambition can be fully realised, with Riyadh Air serving as the industry’s first live, full-scale proof point.

*Riyadh Air retailing, powered by FLYR.*

Riyadh Air’s launch on FLYR’s platform showcases the commercial agility and operational advantages of an Offer & Order architecture, including the ability to launch new products and capabilities in minutes, not months, a pervasive challenge across the industry. In collaboration with IBM, the platform brings together multiple technology providers into a single operating environment and shopping experience.

“As a core pillar to building a world-class digital native modern airline, we challenged ourselves to rethink all the hows and whys of the operation of legacy airline systems,” said Riyadh Air CEO Tony Douglas. “FLYR has designed and delivered a platform that can quickly adapt and scale to our needs and pushes the boundaries of what airline retailing can be. The platform will be the backbone of our commercial operations for decades to come and create a path for other carriers to follow.”

Travellers using the Riyadh Air app can experience a reimagined booking journey, including a dynamic shopping cart that lets them save trips and searches, return to their trip planning at their convenience, and receive relevant offers related to their booking. Journeys are managed in a single, real-time order rather than a collection of separate products and services. Guests will also benefit from faster, simpler servicing of any post-booking changes.

Future developments will include collaborative trip planning within the shopping cart, allowing friends and families to create and customise itineraries together. The order management system that unifies flight bookings today is designed to incorporate hotels and other accommodations, ground transportation, and destination experiences, enabling Riyadh Air to offer the full journey, beyond the flight.

FLYR’s Offer & Order solutions replace the static airline “ticket” with a dynamic “order,” enabling Riyadh Air to become the world’s first airline to natively extend its offering beyond flights to include new products and services from partners and third-party travel suppliers.

At a time when just 25% of airlines expect to have fully implemented Offer & Order by 2027-28, according to IATA’s Readiness and Roadmap report, FLYR and Riyadh Air say they are “showing that implementing a modern retailing strategy is both realistic and achievable today.”

(Source: FLYR)

Google expands Singapore AI partnership

By

Newsdesk

-

May 21, 2026

SINGAPORE, 21 May 2026: Google and Singapore’s Ministry of Digital Development and Information (MDDI) announced on Wednesday an expansion of its long-standing collaboration with the Singapore Government through a new National AI Partnership.

This partnership aims to harness frontier AI as a force for good – including deploying AI to solve society’s challenges, fostering an AI-ready workforce in Singapore, driving enterprise innovation, and creating a secure ecosystem. It also seeks to advance Singapore’s National AI Strategy to deploy AI at scale for economic growth and public good.

MDDI leads the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) and builds on the success of a 2022 MOU with the Smart Nation and Digital Government Group — the first public-private AI partnership to enhance AI innovation in Singapore.

A key area of this partnership is accelerating Singapore’s research and development efforts, bolstered by Google DeepMind’s presence in Singapore and a part of its global National Partnerships for AI initiative. These efforts will focus on empowering public agencies and researchers to deploy frontier AI models on high-impact areas, starting with health and life sciences.

Augmenting care with AI Co-clinicians: In healthcare, Google DeepMind is exploring a collaboration with public health clusters as part of its global AI co-clinician research initiative. It explores how AI can amplify a doctor’s expertise to deliver higher-quality care. It also examines the evolution of healthcare toward “triadic care,” in which AI agents support patients throughout their care journeys under the clinical authority of their physician, with systems that can provide more precise information drawn from clinical guidelines and scientific literature.

Accelerating scientific discovery: To further accelerate scientific discovery, Google DeepMind is partnering with the National Research Foundation (NRF) to train local researchers on agentic AI tools for science. Tools like Co-Scientist are already showing promise across a range of biomedical applications. Google DeepMind will also host workshops to help the local scientific community use these frontier tools to unlock breakthroughs.

In tandem, Google and the Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR) will collaborate to accelerate the translation of lab discoveries into high-value innovations across materials and life sciences. A*STAR plans to equip its researchers and staff with secure, AI-enabled tools on Google Cloud, including capabilities for hypothesis generation to support scientific research and analysis. By enabling researchers to draw insights from scientific datasets within a governed environment, the collaboration will help strengthen A*STAR’s ability to advance discoveries responsibly while safeguarding intellectual property.

Inclusive Innovation: Google DeepMind is developing a Gemma-powered running assistant for blind and low-vision athletes. By using spatial reasoning to provide real-time environmental understanding, this tool helps athletes run independently without physical lines or human guides. Google DeepMind is also partnering with SG Enable — Singapore’s focal agency for disability and inclusion—to test and iterate on the product so it meets the real-world needs of vision-impaired runners.

Enhancing education and building a future-ready workforce

To ensure that AI benefits everyone, Google is partnering with the Government to build a future-ready education ecosystem.

The foundation is already in place. Google has enabled advanced AI capabilities in Google Workspace for Education for all educators, from primary schools to junior colleges. This provides teachers with secure, AI-powered assistance for lesson planning and tailoring course materials, giving them more time to focus on teaching and mentoring students.

Building on this foundation, the Ministry of Education (MOE) and Google are expanding their collaboration to strengthen MOE’s AI capabilities across teaching and learning, including educator training and upskilling programmes. These efforts are part of MOE’s broader approach to evaluate how enterprise solutions can be applied effectively and scaled to support education outcomes.

Google will also continue to build on its programmes under the ‘Majulah AI’ initiative to empower every segment of the population in Singapore – including the flagship Skills Ignition SG initiative with the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA) for jobseekers, Google for Startups Accelerator: AI First and AI Cloud Takeoff for startups, entrepreneurs and developers, as well as Gemini Academy for every Singaporean, including our seniors.

Driving Innovations for Growth

Google will support efforts to drive innovations for growth for enterprises and the local startup ecosystem. Following the launch of its Singapore Engineering Centre, Google Cloud’s expanded team of Forward Deployed Engineers (FDEs) will help Singapore-based companies further accelerate and scale agentic enterprise transformation.

The new National AI Partnership also builds on Google Cloud’s ongoing work with the likes of AI Singapore (AISG), the Centre for Strategic Infocomm Technologies (CSIT), the Government Technology Agency of Singapore (GovTech Singapore), the Home Team Science and Technology Agency (HTX), and the National University of Singapore (NUS).

Creating a secure and trusted ecosystem

This National AI Partnership also supports Singapore’s ambition as a global AI hub for trust technologies, developing the safety frameworks and tools necessary for the responsible deployment of AI.

As agentic systems open new possibilities, Singapore is testing how AI agents – specifically “computer use” agents – work in real-world settings to understand their behaviour, potential value and risks, and how governance frameworks may need to evolve to enable their use. A joint whitepaper by Google, Cyber Security Agency of Singapore (CSA), Government Technology Agency of Singapore (GovTech Singapore), and the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA) discusses findings and recommendations from their AI Agents Sandbox. These include the best practices necessary for these agents to perform tasks safely and efficiently, such as software testing and social assistance applications.

Additionally, Google DeepMind is collaborating with IMDA and MLCommons to research multimodal and multilingual safety benchmarks. This collaboration focuses on supporting the safe and responsible deployment of AI that respects the nuance of local languages and cultures, helping ensure that the digital future we build is designed for and with everyone.

“This partnership builds on years of close collaboration with Google, and we are pleased to take it to the next level. Bringing frontier AI into our public services and enterprises is central to Singapore’s AI ambitions. This partnership, spanning across multiple agencies, allows us to deploy it at scale,” said Mr Chng Kai Fong, Permanent Secretary (Digital Development and Information).

“As Singapore advances its National AI Strategy, the focus now shifts to deploying frontier AI to accelerate real-world impact for the country. Through this expanded partnership with the Singapore Government, we are putting AI into action by combining the best of our technology, R&D expertise, and local talent to accelerate AI for the public good. This also creates a scalable blueprint for responsible AI innovation, built in Singapore for the world,” said Google Singapore Country Managing Director Ben King.

MTCO opens complimentary MTF registration

By

Newsdesk

-

May 21, 2026

YANGON, Myanmar 21 May 2026: Tourism leaders, destination experts, community tourism practitioners, educators, hospitality professionals, and regional partners from across the Greater Mekong Subregion will meet in Yangon from 16 to 18 June 2026 for the Mekong Tourism Forum 2026.

Themed “Tourism for People, Travel with Purpose,” the event is organised by the Ministry of Hotels, Tourism and Culture of Myanmar and the Mekong Tourism Coordinating Office.

Taking place at the Pan Pacific Hotel in Yangon, this year’s programme will feature keynote presentations, industry insight sessions, panel discussions, networking opportunities, and technical visits in and around Yangon.

Ahead of the main forum, a practical pre-forum workshop on evidence-based destination marketing and tourism insights will focus on practical approaches to tourism intelligence, destination marketing, and cross-border collaboration.

MTF highlights both international experts and changemakers from within the Mekong region itself — spotlighting practitioners, community leaders, social enterprises, researchers, tourism innovators, and local champions whose work directly shapes tourism across Cambodia, China, Lao PDR, Myanmar, Thailand, and Vietnam.

The forum will open with a keynote address by Masaru Takayama titled “Tourism for People: From Principles to Lasting Impact,” exploring tourism through the framework of Conservation, Community, Culture, and Commerce.

Speakers across the programme will include representatives and experts from organisations such as AirAsia MOVE, Planeterra, Asian Ecotourism Network, Clickable Impact, ASEAN Tourism Association, and Local Alike.

“Tourism is one of the few sectors where local communities can directly benefit from human connection, cultural exchange, and shared experiences. MTF 2026 is built around the belief that tourism should serve people and places first,” said the Mekong Tourism Coordinating Office Executive Director Dee Suvimol Thanasarakij.

Complimentary registration for the Mekong Tourism Forum 2026 is now open. To sign up and view the full programme, visit www.mekongtourism.org.

About the Mekong Tourism Coordinating Office

Established in 2006, the Mekong Tourism Coordinating Office (MTCO) is a tourism collaboration framework for the six governments of the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) — Cambodia, China (Yunnan Province and Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region), Lao PDR, Myanmar, Thailand, and Vietnam. MTCO’s work programme is guided by the GMS Tourism Working Group (TWG), composed of senior representatives of the National Tourism Organisations (NTOs) of the six member countries.

(Source: Mekong Tourism Cordinating Office)

Crop of the top meeting venues

Regent Seven Seas rolls out 2028-2029 Collection

Cathay Group presents April traffic results

IATA: Baggage travel just got better

Air Traffic at HKIA continues to grow in April

Qatar Airways expands operations in Africa

The Maldives hosts World Travel Awards

FLYR powers Riyadh Air’s retail space

Google expands Singapore AI partnership

MTCO opens complimentary MTF registration

Stay ahead with the
latest travel news
on Southeast Asia.

Subscribe now

Stay ahead with the latest travel news on Southeast Asia.

Subscribe now

Stay ahead with the
latest travel news
on Southeast Asia.