KOTA KINABALU: 23 March 2026: China’s Chongqing Airlines launched its inaugural service, linking southwestern China to Kota Kinabalu, the state capital of Sabah, Malaysia, last week.
OQ2193 landed at Kota Kinabalu International Airport (KKIA) at 2315, marking the start of a three-weekly service operating on Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday, using an A320 with 166 seats. Flight time: Four hours and 15 minutes.
Photo credit Sabah Tourism Board. Chongqing touches down at Kota Kinabalu airport to launch three-weekly services.
Chongqing Airlines is a subsidiary of China Southern Airlines.
Flight schedule
OQ1923 departs Chongqing (CKG) at 1845 and arrives in Kota Kinabalu (BKI) at 2315. (Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday). OQ1924 departs Kota Kinabalu (BKI) at 0030 and arrives in Chongqing (CKG) at 0510 (Wednesday, Friday and Sunday).
The service opens a new gateway for travellers from southwest China during the Visit Malaysia 2026 campaign year.
Malaysia Airports Holdings (MAHB) welcomed the 154 passengers on board the inaugural flight with a water cannon salute.
With the addition of Chongqing, Sabah is now connected to eight key cities in China — the others being Hong Kong, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Shanghai, Beijing, Hangzhou, and Fuzhou, further strengthening its position in the Chinese outbound travel market.
(Source: Sabah Tourism Board with additional reporting)
SINGAPORE, 23 March 2026: Looking ahead to the 2026 Alaska season, Princess Cruises will sail its largest Alaska season ever in 2026, highlighted by the debut of its newest ship in the fleet, Star Princess.
All eight Princess ships sailing in Alaska this season will feature new programming: Star Princess, Coral Princess, Royal Princess, Ruby Princess, Grand Princess, Emerald Princess, Discovery Princess, and Island Princess.
Photo credit: Princess Cruises.
First introduced in 2015, Princess’s immersive North to Alaska programme brings local personalities, culture and food, connecting guests with Alaska’s rich heritage, awe‑inspiring scenery and natural wonders through authentic offerings, educational events and engaging entertainment both onboard and ashore.
The expanded programme features eight ships, 180 departures and visits to 19 destinations, giving travellers an unparalleled range of Alaska adventures by sea or through combined land-and-sea cruisetours.
“Our North to Alaska programme is designed to bring guests closer to the spirit, culture and natural beauty of Alaska,” said Princess Cruises Vice President of Entertainment John-Paul Lamb. “From encounters with local experts and native storytellers to immersive entertainment and scenic glacier viewing, these experiences allow our guests to connect with Alaska along every step of their journey.”
With more than 55 years of experience sailing in Alaska, Princess Cruises continues to bring guests closer to the people, landscapes, and stories that define The Great Land, with five convenient departure ports, weekend departures from Seattle, and flexible itinerary choices for 2026-2027.
HONG KONG, 23 March 2026: Hong Kong presents three major international sporting fixtures — the Hong Kong Sevens, Champions Day, and the 2026 UCI Track World Cup, Hong Kong, China, during April.
Photo credit: HKTB. Rugby icons and party anthems take centre stage at the Hong Kong Sevens 2026.
Hong Kong Sevens 2026
Rugby icons and party anthems take centre stage at the Hong Kong Sevens 2026, 17–19 April 2026, Kai Tak Stadium
One of the world’s most iconic annual sporting spectacles returns in 2026 as the Hong Kong Sevens celebrates its 50th anniversary. For its second edition at the state-of-the-art Kai Tak Stadium, the tournament promises three days of 72 rugby games between 30 of the world’s top teams, including Hong Kong China Men and Women’s 7s stars who will defend their Melrose Claymores titles.
Cycling fans can witness world-class competition at the 2026 UCI Track World Cup in Hong Kong.
2026 UCI Track World Cup, Hong Kong, China
Elite cyclists compete for global ranking points at the 2026 UCI Track World Cup, Hong Kong, China, 17–19 April 2026, Hong Kong Velodrome.
Cycling fans can witness world-class competition at the 2026 UCI Track World Cup in Hong Kong, the second round of the prestigious international track cycling series.
Held at the Hong Kong Velodrome, the event will bring together elite national teams competing across Olympic track cycling disciplines. As one of the most important events on the international cycling calendar — alongside the World Championships and Olympic Games — the competition offers riders valuable World Ranking points. The Hong Kong round is expected to attract nearly 400 professional cyclists from around 40 countries and regions, promising a thrilling showcase of speed, strategy and endurance.
Champions Day is a standout moment in Hong Kong’s racing calendar.
A day at the races
Champions Day brings world-class horse racing to Sha Tin, 26 April 2026, Sha Tin Racecourse.
Another standout moment in Hong Kong’s racing calendar is Champions Day, a major international meet that attracts top contenders from across the globe.
The event features three elite Group 1 races, bringing together world-class horses and jockeys to compete against Hong Kong’s finest thoroughbreds. For racing fans, it offers a rare chance to see hometown champions — including Romantic Warrior, Voyage Bubble, and Ka Ying Rising — defend their reputations against global challengers on home turf. The combination of elite racing and a charged race-day atmosphere makes Champions Day a can’t-miss spectacle for visitors and locals alike.
BANGKOK, 20 March 2026: Centara Hotels & Resorts reports a highly successful visit to ITB Berlin 2026, where it met with its travel industry colleagues and revealed updates for the coming year and beyond.
Staged at the Berlin ExpoCenter City, ITB Berlin is the world’s largest travel trade show, attracting more than 100,000 attendees.
This provided the platform for Centara’s senior executives, including Thirayuth Chirathivat, CEO, and Michael Henssler, Chief Operations Officer, to showcase the group’s latest news, reaffirm progress on its expansion plans, and reconnect with its esteemed industry partners from Europe and around the world.
Centara welcomed its key travel trade partners to an exclusive “Centara Journeys” cocktail evening at KaDeWe.
This year, Centara’s strapline read “Real Thai Hospitality, Shared with the World,” and the concept was brought to life at two “Centara Journeys” cocktail evenings at KaDeWe, the famous luxury department store owned by Central Group, Centara’s parent company.
On the evenings of 3 and 4 March 2026, guests were greeted with a Thai welcome ritual and treated to locally inspired drinks and light bites amid an enchanting ambience of traditional Thai décor.
Delegates at ITB Berlin learned about Centara’s expansion milestones, including its 2025 openings and the launch of the 42-key Himalayan Hideaway Resort Pokhara, The Centara Collection, in January 2026, marking the group’s debut in Nepal.
At least four more properties are set to open their doors this year. They comprise: The 300-key Centara Life Namba Hotel Osaka, Japan; the 481-key Centara Hotel & Residences Van Don and the 496-key Crystal Holidays Harbour Van Don, both in Vietnam; and the 110-key Centara Life Hotel Surat Thani, Thailand.
Thirayuth Chirathivat, Centara’s CEO (top right), brought the group’s unique style of “Real Thai Hospitality” to life as he greeted media at the cocktail reception in Berlin.
In addition, two of Centara’s most popular Thai resorts will be transformed in 2026: Centara Grand Beach Resort Hua Hin and Centara Grand Beach Resort & Villas Krabi. The latter will re-emerge as Centara Reserve Krabi — the world’s second Centara Reserve.
Centara also discussed how the adoption of smart technology will drive its global growth. Central to this strategy is the Centara Data Warehouse, which will support advanced analytics and enable hyper-personalisation. A new customised booking engine has been designed for seamless connectivity and future AI integration, and the Centara App has already exceeded 100,000 downloads since its launch in December 2025.
Another important talking point was sustainability, which is woven throughout Centara’s business. It became the first Thai hotel group to achieve full Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC) certification in 2025, reduced its energy use by 26%, water consumption by 33%, waste-to-landfill by 23% and overall emissions by 24%, while also generating three times more solar power. Overall, Centara has set itself the goal of net zero emissions by 2050.
Centara hosted its media friends at the Thai-inspired “Centara Journeys” cocktail reception.
“ITB Berlin is one of the world’s most important travel trade events, so we were delighted to return to Germany again this year to meet with our esteemed industry colleagues and media friends. Despite global headwinds, Centara has enjoyed a highly productive last 12 months, as we opened new hotels and introduced our authentic, family‑centric hospitality to even more guests from around the globe. We look forward to working closely with all our trade partners and media friends in 2026, as we strive to become ‘The Place to Be’ for the world’s travellers,” said Centara Hotels & Resorts CEO Thirayuth Chirathivat.
With a growing global portfolio of exceptional hotels and resorts under six inspiring brands, including locations in Thailand, Japan, Vietnam, Laos, Nepal, the Middle East, and four distinct resorts in the Maldives, Centara is moving confidently towards its goal of becoming one of the world’s top 100 hotel operators by 2027.
SYDNEY, 20 March 2026: Tourism Australia has launched a new sustainability initiative, Green is Our Gold, to rally the Australian tourism industry around a shared promise to protect and strengthen Australia’s natural environments, cultures and communities.
Tourism Australia launched the sustainability initiative at its annual conference, Destination Australia, earlier this week in Melbourne, which welcomed over 800 tourism industry professionals.
Photo credit: Tourism Australia.
The Green is Our Gold campaign responds to growing demand for tourism experiences that deliver positive social and environmental impact.
Tourism Australia’s Consumer Demand Project shows that sustainability is increasingly important to travellers, both in their everyday lives (77%) and in the way they choose to travel (70%).
There is also continued demand for sustainable practices among business events decision-makers, with three out of four incentive decision-makers (76%) ranking sustainability credentials as a significant driver of destination choice.
Tourism Australia Managing Director, Robin Mack, said: “Australia has a strong track record of sustainable growth in tourism, and many businesses have already embraced sustainability — delivering world-class experiences that are sensitive to our natural environments, our cultures and our communities.”
Green is Our Gold builds on the National Sustainability Framework for the Visitor Economy and the Sustainable Tourism Toolkit, launched by the Australian Government in 2023 alongside the State and Territory Tourism Ministers, and which is a key action under the national long-term visitor economy strategy, THRIVE 2030.
KATHMANDU, 20 March 2026: Visa is bankrolling a survey to demonstrate the level of digital payment adoption in the city’s popular Thamel district, which is visited by 80% of all tourists to the Nepalese capital.
Visa and its project partner, the Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) Nepal Chapter, launched the baseline survey phase of the ‘Cross-Border (XB) Acceptance in Thamel’ initiative earlier this week.
Photo credit: PATA Chapter Nepal.
PATA Nepal Chapter has engaged 30 tourism and hospitality students from its educational member institutions to conduct a survey assessing how small and medium enterprises in Thamel are meeting the challenges of adopting digital payment systems and participating in cross-border commerce.
The study has the backing and support of the Nepal Tourism Board (NTB), the Confederation of Nepalese Industries (CNI), and the Thamel Tourism Development Council (TTDC).
Survey objectives will focus on measuring the current status of digital payment usage, merchant readiness, challenges, and knowledge gaps among SMEs operating in Thamel.
PATA Nepal Chapter CEO Suresh Singh Budal said: “At PATA Nepal, we are committed to enabling our tourism SMEs to thrive in a digital-first global economy, with Thamel serving as a model destination. We sincerely thank Visa, NTB, TTDC, and CNI for their collaboration and support in this initiative.”
The project will later implement training programs, merchant engagement activities, and capacity-building initiatives to create a replicable model for SME digital transformation in other tourism destinations across Nepal.
Thamel is an iconic district in Kathmandu, famed for its maze of lanes and alleys packed with shops, restaurants and rooftop bars. The longest street in Thamel is known as Thamel Marg, a hive of jewellery shops, trekking stores, and souvenir shops. Chaksibari Street, also one of the longest streets in Thamel, is famous for trekking gear stores, travel agents, and book shops.
VALENCIA, Spain, 20 March 2026: Arival, a global leader in insights and events for the tours, activities, attractions, and experiences sector, has announced the full speaker lineup and expanded programme for Arival 360 Valencia, taking place at the Centre de Congressos from April 27–29, 2026.
This year’s theme, “The Tomorrow Operator: Europe & the Future of Tours & Experiences,” sets the stage for a forward‑looking programme designed to help operators navigate a rapidly evolving landscape.
Photo credit: Arrival.
In a period defined by rising demand, disruptive technology, overtourism pressures, and shifting traveller expectations, Arival 360 Valencia will provide operators with the insights, tools, and connections they need to build resilient, future‑ready businesses. The event will feature original Arival research, executive perspectives, hands‑on workshops, and peer‑to‑peer learning, all tailored to the realities of running and scaling an experiences business in 2026.
“The experiences sector is at a turning point,” said Arival, CEO and co-founder Douglas Quinby. “From the rise of AI to the challenges of overtourism and the shifting expectations of travellers, operators must rethink how they deliver, distribute, and grow. This year’s Arival 360 in Valencia is about equipping the industry with the insights and connections to thrive in this new era.”
Arival 360 Valencia brings together more than 60 speakers from across the global experiences ecosystem – including operators, OTAs, technology innovators, culinary experts, multi‑day specialists, and destination voices. The speaker lineup includes:
Doug Weiss, Airbnb
Guillermo Oxangoiti, TUI Musement
Josh Carr, Intrepid Travel
Kristin Dorsett, Viator
Matt Jones, Klook
Dan Christian, Travel Trends Podcast
Andrès Spitzer, Civitatis
Brennen Bliss, Propellic
Sam Jefferies, Bókun (Tripadvisor)
Christian Watts, Magpie Travel
Roisin O’Sullivan, Walks
Travis Pittman, TourRadar
Robin Harnish, OCTO
Sean Finelli, The Tour Guy
This year’s event introduces several new programme elements designed to reflect the sector’s most dynamic areas of growth, and there will be three dedicated Experience Streams – AI for Experience Creators, Multi‑Day Experiences, and Culinary Experiences.
Arival 360 Valencia will also be more accessible than ever, with sessions delivered in both English and Spanish and AI‑powered translation available in more than 15 languages.
Valencia provides an ideal backdrop for a conference focused on the future of experiences. The city blends rich cultural heritage with a thriving culinary scene, innovative urban development, and a strong commitment to sustainability. From its historic old town and iconic City of Arts and Sciences to its Mediterranean coastline and renowned gastronomy, Valencia reflects the spirit of the experiences that inspire travellers worldwide.
SINGAPORE, 20 March 2026: Digital travel platform Agoda announced the winners of its 2025 Gold Circle Awards this week, recognising over 3,000 top-performing hotel partners globally for operational excellence within Agoda’s ecosystem.
Now in its 17th edition, Agoda’s Gold Circle Awards celebrate properties that consistently deliver high guest standards, maintain strong digital engagement and stay adaptable.
Copilot generates AI image.
Taiwan’s standout performance marks a milestone: 2025 is the first time it has led the ranking and placed in the top five markets by winner count, underscoring the consistency and agility of hotel partners in the market.
This year’s national ranking highlights excellence across the hospitality sector, led by Taiwan in first place and Vietnam in second. Japan, Malaysia, South Korea, Thailand and Indonesia shared third place, followed by a tie between the Philippines and India in fourth, with Australia in fifth.
Regional travel demand remains dynamic, with intra-Asia travel continuing to shape travel patterns across the region according to Agoda’s recent ‘Tailored to Win’ report.
As traveller profiles diversify and expectations for seamless digital experiences continue to rise, the Gold Circle Awards commend hotel partners that have maintained strong operational fundamentals and refined how they engage and convert travellers through Agoda’s platform at scale.
“Every year, what stands out to me is how much effort happens behind the scenes to make a stay feel effortless for the guest,” said Agoda Senior Vice President, Supply, Andrew Smith. “Over the years, we have seen different markets rise through the rankings, which is a healthy sign for the industry. It shows hotels across the region are learning quickly, adapting to new guest needs and raising their standards in ways travellers can feel. Across Asia, our winners have stayed agile and digitally strong, and we will keep investing in tools and support that help them keep performing as traveller needs evolve.”
This year’s results also point to a continued appetite for distinctive stays, alongside trusted hospitality standards. Over 50% of this year’s Gold Circle Awards went to independent properties, representing an 11% increase from the previous year and underscoring growing appreciation for more unique, personalised guest experiences. Additionally, this year’s awards reflect renewed momentum within the hospitality industry, recognising 2,200 unique winners, including properties receiving a Gold Circle Award for the first time and those returning to the program since 2020.
SINGAPORE, 20 March 2026: JLL has achieved a dominant position in investment advisory services across emerging Southeast Asian markets throughout 2025, solidifying its role as the region’s leading advisor for institutional and private capital deployment.
According to MSCI Real Assets data, JLL captured an unprecedented 50.5% combined market share across Vietnam, Indonesia, the Philippines, Thailand, and Malaysia in 2025.
Individually, JLL achieved 50.5% market share in Thailand, 53.9% in the Philippines, 89.9% in Indonesia, 94% in Vietnam, and 34.7% in Malaysia, based on sell-side sales volume.
JLL’s capital markets team facilitated USD703.4 million in sell-side cross-border transactions across these five high-growth markets during 2025, representing a significant portion of institutional investment activity in these rapidly developing economies. The firm’s integrated platform connected global investors with high-quality opportunities in logistics, residential, office, and mixed-use developments as emerging Southeast Asia markets continued their post-pandemic growth trajectory.
BANGKOK, 20 March 2026: The global power shifts do not remain confined to geopolitics. They travel quickly, and often invisibly, through economic systems.
For Asia, and particularly for Thailand, the consequences of the Gulf War are immediate. The most direct transmission channel is energy.
Image generated by Gemini AI.
Any sustained disruption in Middle Eastern supply routes pushes oil prices higher. This feeds directly into aviation fuel costs, which in turn drives airfares upward. The result is predictable. Long-haul travel demand weakens, particularly from Europe, where consumers are already sensitive to economic uncertainty.
For Thailand, where tourism remains a central pillar of the economy, this creates a series of cascading risks.
The first is long-haul softness. European travellers may delay decisions, shorten stays, or opt for closer destinations. Even marginal declines in arrivals can have a disproportionate impact on high-value segments.
The second is airline behaviour. Carriers respond quickly to rising costs and operational risk. Routes may be adjusted, frequencies reduced, and fares increased. Airspace constraints linked to Middle Eastern instability can further complicate scheduling, adding time and cost to long-haul journeys.
The third is psychological. War involving major powers alters traveller sentiment. Even when destinations such as Thailand remain entirely safe, perception often overrides reality. The result is hesitation.
For Thailand, the danger is not the war itself but the hesitation it creates in travellers’ minds. Yet the outlook is not uniformly negative.
Asia’s intra-regional travel market provides a buffer. Demand from China, India, and ASEAN is structurally stronger and less exposed to disruption in the Middle East. Short-haul travel can partially offset long-haul weakness, particularly if supported by targeted government stimulus and competitive pricing.
Thailand also benefits from a diversified base of source markets and a deeply embedded reputation for hospitality and value. These strengths have historically enabled rapid recovery following external shocks, from financial crises to pandemics.
However, timing is critical. The longer uncertainty persists, the more likely temporary softness becomes structural weakness.
Airlines, tour operators and hoteliers will need to remain agile. Pricing strategies, market diversification and regional focus will be key to maintaining momentum.
At a broader level, this moment highlights a deeper truth. Global conflicts no longer remain contained within their regions. Their effects ripple outward through energy markets, transport systems and consumer behaviour, reaching destinations thousands of miles away.
For Asia’s tourism economies, resilience will depend not only on demand but on adaptability. Because in this new global environment, stability is no longer guaranteed. It must be managed.
And for Thailand, success will depend on how quickly it can respond, reassure and reposition itself in a world where uncertainty has become the norm.
About the author Andrew J Wood is a Bangkok-based travel writer and former hotel executive specialising in Asian tourism.
