Business travel across the Asia-Pacific is on a strong upward trajectory, with the region projected to surpass US$700 billion in spending by 2026.
Revealed at the GBTA APAC Conference at Marina Bay Sands by Suzanne Neufang, CEO of GBTA, this growth firmly establishes Asia-Pacific as the world’s largest business travel market.
While China is expected to lead the region at US$408 billion, companies are operating under a cloud of geopolitical tension.
Neufang noted that China is actively working to mitigate this by reducing the friction to enter. “Fewer European countries now need visas for short-term stays, and I think that will be paid attention to by meeting planners, as well as by others who can choose where to hold their meetings,” she elaborated.
This regional growth comes as the definition of essential business travel evolves. Neufang defined it as travel that is “revenue generating” or necessary for “customer management” and “operational travel to fix a machine in a plant”. She noted that while optimism has dipped slightly due to rising costs around the globe, business travel remains a vital tool for achieving “meaningful business and diplomatic outcomes”.
The integration of artificial intelligence was a major talking point during the conference, specifically regarding the future of travel managers. While Neufang was clear that AI will handle data insights, she noted that interpreting human intent is still far off.
She told TTGmice: “AI will help their jobs to be easier, but I don’t see it taking over the strategic aspects of what travel managers should be doing. Having a seat at the table with the C-suite, it’s hard to have AI answer, ‘what should we be doing?’ Strategically, the role becomes so much more important during a crisis; that’s when people literally have to work together to solve it.”
Geopolitical risks in other regions are also causing a shift in event planning, with nearly a quarter of organisations rethinking their meeting strategies. This shift could benefit stable Asia-Pacific hubs like Singapore, which generated US$8.1 billion in business travel revenue in 2024.
Neufang suggested that “now is the time to be bold” for safe, low-friction destinations to differentiate themselves and capture international traffic looking for reliability.
The corporate travel industry also faces challenges regarding sustainability and the high cost of jet fuel. Neufang observed an odd coincidence that with rising oil prices, sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) “doesn’t look that bad” by comparison, though she cautioned that it is “just too early” for SAF to drive down market costs.
Despite these pressures, the rise of the blended traveller offers a new opportunity, with 62 per cent of Asia-Pacific business travellers adding leisure to their trips.
“Economies can do much more to realise there is a multi-purpose traveller at their doorstep. We need to encourage them to stay longer and bring their families, as there is a significant economic impact when a work trip becomes a leisure extension. It’s a human component our industry hasn’t quite figured out how to measure yet, but the potential is there,” Neufang said.
