Connecting the World to India’s Travel Market: Darren Seah on ITB India

Meaningful business outcomes begin with connecting the right people. At ITB India, our priority is to facilitate meetings that have genuine commercial relevance rather than simply increasing the number of appointments.

TFT: India’s outbound travel market is witnessing unprecedented growth, while inbound tourism is steadily recovering. How is ITB India positioning itself to capitalize on these changing market dynamics?

DS: India’s travel market is entering an exciting phase of expansion. Outbound travel continues to grow as rising disposable incomes, improved air connectivity, and increasing demand for international experiences encourage more Indians to explore the world. At the same time, inbound tourism is benefiting from renewed confidence, stronger destination marketing, and greater investment across the tourism ecosystem.

ITB India is positioned at the intersection of these developments by bringing together international destinations, tourism organisations, hospitality companies, travel service providers, and technology businesses with qualified buyers from across India and South Asia. This creates opportunities for suppliers to engage directly with decision-makers who are actively seeking new products, partnerships, and destinations.

The event also reflects the increasingly interconnected nature of the industry. Leisure, MICE, corporate travel, and travel technology are no longer operating independently, and ITB India provides a platform where these sectors can collaborate, exchange knowledge, and identify new commercial opportunities. Combined with a conference programme that examines market trends and emerging traveller behaviour, the event helps businesses develop strategies that respond to India’s evolving travel landscape.

 

TFT: India has set an ambitious vision of becoming a global tourism and MICE hub. How do you see ITB India contributing to this national objective?

DS: India’s ambition to become a global tourism and MICE hub depends on more than infrastructure alone. It also requires stronger international partnerships, greater knowledge exchange, and platforms that facilitate meaningful business engagement between global and regional stakeholders.

ITB India contributes to this objective by bringing together tourism boards, convention bureaux, hospitality companies, airlines, destination management companies, travel technology providers, and qualified buyers under one roof. The event creates opportunities for international businesses to establish partnerships with Indian organisations while enabling local companies to expand their global networks.

Beyond commercial engagement, ITB India serves as a platform for industry dialogue. Through its conference programme, the event explores the trends influencing tourism, business events, digital transformation, sustainability, and changing traveller behaviour, providing practical insights that help businesses remain competitive.

As India’s influence within global tourism continues to grow, ITB India strengthens the country’s position as an important meeting point for the international travel industry. By facilitating investment, cross-border collaboration, and business development, the event supports the broader objective of positioning India, and Mumbai in particular, as an increasingly important destination for tourism and business events.

TFT: With the growing importance of experiential travel, luxury tourism and wellness tourism, what new opportunities do you see emerging for international destinations targeting Indian travellers?

DS: Indian travellers are becoming increasingly sophisticated in the way they travel. While traditional sightseeing remains important, there is growing demand for experiences that are personalised, immersive, and aligned with individual interests and lifestyles.

Luxury travel continues to evolve beyond premium accommodation to include exclusive cultural experiences, bespoke itineraries, and meaningful local engagement. At the same time, wellness tourism is expanding as more travellers prioritise physical wellbeing, mental wellness, preventive healthcare, and longer restorative holidays. Cruise tourism is another segment gaining momentum, with travellers seeking multi-destination experiences that combine convenience with premium services.

These shifts create significant opportunities for international destinations to diversify their offerings and develop products tailored to Indian travellers. Success increasingly depends on understanding traveller preferences and creating experiences that deliver authenticity, flexibility, and value.

ITB India provides an ideal environment for destinations and travel suppliers to engage directly with buyers who are responding to these changing demands. It allows businesses to showcase emerging tourism products, explore new partnerships, and gain valuable insights into one of the world’s fastest growing outbound travel markets.

 

TFT: Technology continues to reshape the travel industry, from AI-powered trip planning to digital payments and smart tourism. How will ITB India 2026 showcase these innovations?

DS: Technology has become central to every stage of the travel journey, from inspiration and booking to customer engagement and operational efficiency. At ITB India 2026, digital innovation is integrated throughout both the exhibition and the conference programme.

Travel technology companies will exhibit alongside destinations, hotels, airlines, travel agencies, and tourism organisations, creating opportunities for solution providers to engage directly with businesses looking to accelerate their digital transformation.

Artificial intelligence will be a key area of discussion, particularly its growing role in personalisation, customer service, revenue optimisation, operational efficiency, and business intelligence. Delegates can also expect conversations around smart tourism, data-driven decision making, digital payments, automation, and emerging technologies that are reshaping the industry.

For established companies, ITB India offers an opportunity to showcase new solutions and strengthen commercial partnerships. For start-ups and innovative technology providers, it provides valuable exposure to qualified buyers and industry leaders seeking practical technologies that address real business challenges. The objective is to create an environment where innovation translates into meaningful business collaboration.

 

TFT: Business matchmaking remains one of the biggest reasons professionals attend B2B exhibitions. What initiatives has ITB India introduced to ensure meaningful buyer-seller engagement?

DS: Meaningful business outcomes begin with connecting the right people. At ITB India, our priority is to facilitate meetings that have genuine commercial relevance rather than simply increasing the number of appointments.

Our Hosted Buyer Programme follows a structured qualification process to ensure buyers have purchasing authority and sourcing requirements that align with the products and services represented by exhibitors. We also maintain a balanced buyer profile across leisure, MICE, corporate travel, and travel technology to maximise business opportunities for participants.

To further enhance the experience, ITB India’s event app, powered by Jublia, uses artificial intelligence to recommend relevant business connections based on participants’ profiles, business interests, and meeting objectives. Together with our pre-scheduled business matching platform, exhibitors and buyers can review detailed profiles, receive personalised meeting recommendations, identify suitable partners, and schedule appointments before arriving onsite. This AI-enabled approach makes networking more targeted and efficient, helping participants maximise their time at the event.

In addition to scheduled appointments, networking functions and the conference programme provide valuable opportunities for delegates to continue conversations, exchange ideas, and build relationships beyond formal meetings. By combining AI-powered recommendations, structured business matching, and face-to-face networking, ITB India creates an environment where partnerships can develop naturally and deliver measurable value for both buyers and exhibitors.

TFT: ITB Berlin is regarded as one of the world’s leading travel exhibitions. How does ITB India leverage this global legacy while creating an identity that reflects the unique needs of the Indian and South Asian markets?

DS: ITB India builds on the global reputation, industry expertise and international network of the ITB brand while maintaining a strong focus on the specific characteristics and business priorities of the Indian and South Asian travel markets.

The travel landscape in this region is unique. It is shaped by rapid economic growth, a diverse mix of traveller segments, expanding outbound demand, and increasing investment across tourism, hospitality, MICE, and travel technology. These dynamics require a B2B platform designed specifically around regional business priorities while connecting local stakeholders with the global travel industry.

ITB India continues to evolve alongside the market by prioritizing a high quality-first buyer strategy and expanding its focus on high-growth travel sectors. Dedicated content and business opportunities around areas such as wellness and cruise tourism reflect the changing interests of Indian travellers and the commercial opportunities these segments present. This balance allows international exhibitors to access one of the world’s most dynamic travel markets while giving regional businesses opportunities to build global partnerships. The combination of the ITB brands’ international reach and relevance and deep regional market understanding is what has defined ITB India’s identity since its launch.

 

TFT: What is your long-term vision for ITB India? Are there plans to expand the exhibition in terms of scale, international participation, or new industry segments?

DS: Our long-term vision is for ITB India to continue serving as the gateway connecting India and South Asia with the global travel industry. As one of the world’s fastest-growing travel markets, India will play an increasingly influential role in shaping the future of tourism, and we want ITB India to evolve alongside that growth.

While facilitating business remains our core purpose, our ambition extends beyond being a three-day exhibition. We want ITB India to be recognised as a year-round platform that fosters strategic partnerships, encourages knowledge exchange, and supports the long-term development of the travel industry. This means continually strengthening the quality of our buyer programme, expanding international participation, and creating greater value for exhibitors through meaningful business connections.

We also see significant opportunities to develop dedicated platforms around high-growth sectors that are reshaping the Indian travel market. Segments such as destination weddings, wellness tourism, sports tourism, and spiritual, cultural, and heritage tourism continue to gain momentum, and we aim to provide specialised content, networking opportunities, and business matching that support these evolving markets.

Most importantly, we will continue listening to the industry and adapting to its changing needs. As traveller expectations, technology, and business models evolve, ITB India will remain focused on providing a relevant, results-driven platform that helps businesses identify new opportunities, build lasting partnerships, and contribute to the sustainable growth of India’s travel and tourism ecosystem.

 

TFT: Lastly, what message you would like to give to our readers?

DS: India’s travel industry is entering a remarkable period of growth and transformation. As traveller expectations evolve and new opportunities emerge across leisure, MICE, corporate travel, and travel technology, collaboration has never been more important.

My message to industry professionals is to view this as a time to build new partnerships, embrace innovation, and explore markets with a long-term perspective. The businesses that succeed will be those that remain adaptable, invest in meaningful relationships, and continue to evolve alongside changing consumer preferences.

ITB India 2026 is designed to bring together the people driving these conversations. Whether you are a destination, hotel group, airline, travel tech ITB India 2026 is designed to bring together the people driving these conversations. Whether you are a destination, hotel group, airline, travel technology provider, tour operator, or buyer, the event offers an opportunity to exchange ideas, discover new business opportunities, and connect with partners from across India, South Asia, and the international travel community. nology provider, tour operator, or buyer, the event offers an opportunity to exchange ideas, discover new business opportunities, and connect with partners from across India, South Asia, and the international travel community.

We look forward to welcoming the industry to Mumbai from 1 to 3 September 2026 and continuing to support the growth of one of the world’s most dynamic travel markets. The future of travel will be shaped through collaboration, and we are excited to be part of that journey.

 

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