Global Travel Meet 2025 Kicks Off In Kuala Lumpur in Preparation for Visit Malaysia 2026
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, October 2, 2025 / TRAVELINDEX / After an 18-year hiatus, Global Travel Meet 2025 officially opened in Kuala Lumpur, positioning Malaysia back at the heart of global tourism networking. The long-awaited event, organized by Tourism Malaysia, drew over 600 qualified buyers, 400 travel trade sellers, and 100 international media delegates from more than 45 countries — making it one of the most significant tourism B2B gatherings in Southeast Asia this year.
Opening the event, Khairul Firdaus bin Akbar Khan, Deputy Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture Malaysia, underscored the strategic importance of the Global Travel Meet as a platform for industry reconnection, market recalibration, and brand revitalization.
“The last time we hosted this event was in 2007. Today, we return not just to participate in the conversation — but to lead it,” said Akbar Khan. “This is a space to build sustainable partnerships and unlock new opportunities.”
Diverse Global Participation
The event featured a diverse exhibitor lineup that included national tourism boards, airlines, hotel groups, DMCs, tech providers, and regional attractions. Key exhibitors included Malaysia Airlines, Firefly, Genting Group, Berjaya Hotels & Resorts, Sunway Group, and state-level tourism bodies from Sabah, Sarawak, Penang, Langkawi, and Johor.
International tourism boards from Indonesia, Thailand, India, Korea, and the Philippines also participated, reflecting strong regional interest in two-way partnerships with Malaysia.
Leading OTA and booking platforms such as Traveloka, Trip.com, and Klook also showcased their latest solutions in AI-driven personalization, experience packaging, and seamless payments — signaling a convergence between traditional and tech-led tourism stakeholders.
Key Sponsors and Strategic Partners
The event was made possible through the support of Platinum Sponsors including Malaysia Airports Holdings Berhad (MAHB) and Petronas, while Visa, Maybank, and Amadeus served as key industry partners. Tourism Malaysia’s overseas offices in India, China, and the UK played a pivotal role in curating top buyers from priority markets.
Exhibitors benefited from pre-scheduled business appointments, hosted networking lunches, and destination site visits — reinforcing the B2B value proposition of the event.
Focus on Data-Driven and Sustainable Growth
Akbar Khan emphasized that the Meet serves as more than a sales platform — it’s also a listening post for industry feedback, which will be instrumental in shaping the next phase of Malaysia’s tourism growth. “We’re adjusting our products based on what our trade partners are telling us. Global Travel Meet is the starting point,” he noted.
The strong response comes at a time when Malaysia is experiencing a post-pandemic boom, with 38 million visitors in 2024, and 24.5 million already recorded by July 2025. This momentum feeds directly into the planning and positioning of Visit Malaysia Year 2026, which aims to attract 47 million visitors under a unified message of sustainability, innovation, and authenticity.
For buyers, especially those from long-haul markets like Europe, Australia, and the Middle East, the event offered a chance to reconnect with Malaysian products that have evolved significantly — from niche offerings in golf and wellness tourism, to high-end destination weddings, and eco-cultural circuits in Borneo.
“There’s real energy on the floor,” said a buyer from France. “Malaysia is back with a more diversified, higher-value product. It’s the right time to reintroduce it to our market.”
As the show continues over the next two days, more than 8,000 scheduled appointments and dozens of networking activations are expected to drive meaningful commercial outcomes — making Global Travel Meet 2025 not just a comeback, but a catalyst.