Ho Chi Minh City (VNA) – Two decades since its 2005 launch, the Ho Chi Minh City International Travel Expo (ITE HCMC) has grown from a modest regional trade show into Vietnam’s premier global tourism stage.
The event now links tourism authorities, localities, businesses and international partners, projecting Vietnam’s image abroad, tightening inter-regional ties, unlocking new cooperation and injecting new momentum into the entire sector.
Affirming its position as a gateway for tourism networking
The municipal Department of Tourism hailed the Hosted Buyers Programme as a key feature of the expo’s brand. It remains the only model in Vietnam that handpicks, invites and fully sponsors qualified international buyers with clear potential to close commercial deals once the show ends.
In its early years from 2005 to 2010, ITE HCMC drew roughly 210 exhibitors and brands, 120 international buyers from 18 countries and territories, and just over 3,200 pre-scheduled B2B meetings. Fast-forward to 2026, there will be more than 520 exhibitors and brands, 260 buyers from over 40 countries and territories, and over 21,000 pre-arranged business appointments. That near-eightfold explosion in meetings alone underscores the expo’s magnetic pull and its power to connect domestic and foreign travel firms.
Beyond the trade floor, ITE HCMC has cemented its role as the Asia-Pacific’s go-to forum for tourism cooperation, policy dialogue and knowledge sharing. High-level diplomatic activity runs in parallel with specialised summits and networking sessions, fusing policymaking, business promotion and innovation under one roof – an edge few regional travel fairs can match.
To turn the expo into an international gateway, Director of the municipal Department of Tourism Pham Huy Binh said organisers have rolled out an integrated communications blitz before, during and after the event, zeroing in on key markets and amplifying media value for every locality and business that takes part.
A standout is the International Media Programme, which marshals global press agencies, trade magazines, content creators, KOLs and digital platforms from multiple countries, layered with cross-border and domestic digital campaigns. That multi-platform engine has dramatically widened the expo’s reach in popularising Vietnam’s destinations, brands and tourism products, fuelling business matchmaking, international partnerships and the event’s rising regional stature.
Another brand-defining move is destination surveys for foreign delegations that showcase signature tourism products and untapped potential in Ho Chi Minh City and across Vietnam. The expo also serves as a stage where localities, enterprises and promotion agencies hold targeted seminars, destination reveals and networking pushes at every edition.
Participants roll out new routes, destinations, products and services alongside demand-stimulus programmes, special offers, One Commune One Product (OCOP) items and local specialties. Music shows, cultural exchanges, culinary showcases and a suite of interactive experiences keep the floor buzzing.
Foreigners explore Nguyen Hue street in Ho Chi Minh City. (Photo: VNA)
Pooling social resources
Le Chi Quan, Deputy Director of Vietnam Airlines’s Vietnam branch, said the carrier has stayed firmly behind the expo, systematically tightening both domestic and international air links with each successive year.
In 2026, Vietnam Airlines will fly in a foreign tourism survey team to forge connections on the expo floor while joining promotional and discount drives designed to jolt demand across the entire travel supply chain and relevant sectors.
The airline has orchestrated more than 50 outbound tourism survey trips to international destinations and around 20 inbound delegations from overseas into Vietnam. It has run roughly 20 tourism promotion and marketing events while expanding its flight network that connects Vietnamese hotspots to global and regional markets, positioning itself as a pioneer in the aviation – tourism nexus.
Duong Tri Dung, General Director of C.I.S Vietnam Advertising & Exhibition JSC, stressed that tourism promotion and networking now run on more than handshakes. Technology, especially AI, is reshaping outreach through online activations and highly targeted events.
The ITE HCMC 2026 will run from August 27 to 29 at the Saigon Exhibition and Convention Centre, bringing together the broadest and most diverse tourism ecosystem the expo has ever seen.
Under the theme “Vibrant Connections – Global Destinations”, organisers expect more than 520 exhibitors and brands, along with tourism promotion agencies of countries and territories, and numerous international partners. All 34 Vietnamese cities and provinces will join heavyweights in travel, hospitality, aviation, transportation and tourism technology./.
