The 20th Ho Chi Minh City International Travel Expo (ITE HCMC 2026) closed on August 29 at the Saigon Exhibition and Convention Center, marking two decades of steady growth and delivering its largest edition to date. Organizers reported strong gains in international participation, business matchmaking, and media reach, reinforcing the event's position as a leading regional tourism trade platform.
Under the theme “Vibrant Connections – Global Destinations,” the expo convened tourism authorities, global travel and MICE companies, international buyers, media, and the public. The event was directed by Vietnam’s Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Ho Chi Minh City People’s Committee, with joint organization by the Vietnam National Authority of Tourism and the city’s Department of Tourism. Implementation was led by the Ho Chi Minh City Tourism Promotion Center and C.I.S Vietnam Advertising & Exhibition JSC.
Record scale and international reach
ITE HCMC 2026 attracted 309 senior buyers, media representatives, and content creators from 32 countries and territories, including the UK, Australia, India, Poland, Belgium, Germany, the Republic of Korea, Japan, the US, and China (including Hong Kong and Taiwan). The buyer delegation featured major tour operators and travel distributors such as TUI Deutschland, DERTOUR, Intrepid Travel, Bunnik Tours, Flight Centre Travel Group, Luxury Escapes, Goway Travel, Collette, Remote Lands, Uniworld Boutique River Cruises, Thomas Cook India, Yatra Online, SOTC Travel, HIS, Nippon Travel Agency, JTB Corp., and WTS Travel & Tours.
The MICE and business travel segment was equally robust, with participation from American Express Global Business Travel (AMEX GBT), BCD Meetings & Events, HelmsBriscoe, MCI Middle East, FCM Travel Solutions India, Veena World MICE, and Global Business Travel Singapore. Multinational corporations including EF Education First, Xiaomi, GE HealthCare, BBVA, and Bureau Veritas China also attended, broadening the event’s connection to the global business community.
First-time participants such as TUI Group, Bunnik Tours, IFC, GetYourGuide, Trip.com, and Uniworld Boutique River Cruises underscored the expo’s growing appeal. The international media programme drew outlets like Conference & Meetings World, TTG Asia, Travel and Tour World, Travel Daily China, MICE in Asia, Think MICE, Travel Daily Media, India Outbound, M&C Asia, and RedNote (Xiaohongshu), amplifying the event’s global visibility.
Business outcomes and knowledge exchange
The expo hosted more than 520 exhibitors across 410 booths, representing tourism promotion agencies and businesses from Portugal, Bhutan, Cambodia, the UAE, Taiwan, the Republic of Korea, Indonesia, Laos, Russia, Malaysia, Maldives, Nepal, Japan, Nicaragua, Thailand, Switzerland, Sri Lanka, Italy, and others. Thirty-four Vietnamese provinces and cities participated, with 27 localities showcasing new tourism products.
Visitor numbers reached 47,960, including trade and public attendees. The event generated over 21,000 B2B meetings between international buyers and exhibitors, a clear sign of the expo’s commercial value. Fifteen forums and seminars featured 26 international and 25 Vietnamese speakers, attracting more than 1,100 in-person participants and 8,500 online viewers. Discussions focused on emerging trends, policy directions, and practical solutions for the travel industry.
The 20th edition’s success reflects a broader regional shift toward closer-to-home travel, as highlighted in Agoda data on Vietnam’s rising search popularity. With its expanded scale and international participation, ITE HCMC 2026 has solidified its role as a key gateway for tourism business in Southeast Asia.
As the industry debates the return on investment of large trade shows, ITE HCMC’s record numbers offer a counterpoint. The event’s ability to attract top-tier buyers and generate thousands of meetings suggests that trade show ROI remains a complex metric, but one that can still deliver tangible results when the platform is well-curated.
With two decades of growth behind it, ITE HCMC is poised to continue as a central meeting point for the region’s travel trade, connecting Vietnamese destinations with global markets and fostering long-term partnerships.
