KUCHING, Sarawak, Malaysia — One of Asia Pacific’s leading international travel trade events has concluded in Sarawak, marking the first time the Pacific Asia Travel Association’s signature travel mart has been held in Borneo.
PATA Travel Mart 2026, held at the Borneo Convention Centre Kuching from 18 to 20 August, brought together more than 1,100 tourism delegates from 48 countries and destinations, giving Sarawak a major international platform to demonstrate its credentials as both a tourism destination and a host for international business events.
The gathering carried additional significance as PATA celebrates its 75th anniversary in 2026 and Malaysia rolls out its Visit Malaysia 2026 campaign. Endorsed by the Sarawak Ministry of Tourism, Creative Industry and Performing Arts and hosted by the Sarawak Tourism Board, the Mart brought international buyers and sellers together through thousands of targeted business appointments over its two-day trade programme.
Sarawak Tourism Board CEO Sharzede Datu Haji Salleh Askor described hosting PATA Travel Mart 2026 as a milestone for Sarawak and an opportunity to showcase the destination’s cultural heritage, biodiversity and business-ready infrastructure to an international tourism audience.
But the significance of the event extends beyond the number of delegates or business appointments generated.
Bringing PATA Travel Mart to Borneo demonstrates how major international association and trade events can help reposition emerging destinations. For Sarawak, the Mart provided an opportunity not simply to tell international tourism professionals about the destination, but to bring them into the destination itself — allowing buyers, industry leaders and association executives to experience its infrastructure, culture and tourism assets firsthand.
That distinction matters as Asia Pacific’s travel and tourism sector continues to expand. International meetings and trade events are increasingly being used as instruments of destination development, dispersing business and visitor expenditure beyond established gateway cities while giving emerging destinations access to international networks, buyers and decision-makers.
PATA Travel Mart 2026 therefore leaves Sarawak with a potentially more valuable legacy than the immediate economic impact of hosting more than 1,100 delegates.
It has demonstrated that Borneo can compete for significant international tourism and business events — and given Sarawak an opportunity to convert three days of international attention into longer-term tourism partnerships, business leads and destination visibility.
For more information, visit https://www.pata.org/pata-travel-mart-2026.
