Fukuoka Airport embarks on a new 11-storey project, aimed at expanding retail and hospitality offerings to meet growing demand
Work begins this month on a new large-scale commercial complex at Fukuoka Airport in northern Kyushu, part of the ongoing expansion of the hub amid an increase in passengers.
Fukuoka is Japan’s fourth busiest airport, handling 25 million passengers in fiscal 2023, following Haneda, Narita, and Kansai, according to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism.
Fukuoka Airport embarks on a new 11-storey project, aimed at expanding retail and hospitality offerings to meet growing demand
The new runway will primarily be used for international flight take-offs. A new airport control tower, along with a renovated international passenger terminal, were also completed last month.
Now, efforts are focused on the new complex, scheduled to open in summer 2027. The 11-storey facility will feature 180 new shops, bringing the total number of shops at the airport to about 270, making it one of the largest retail centres of any airport in Japan.
With the theme of a “travelling airport,” the F&B offerings will showcase Fukuoka’s local delicacies and Asian cuisine, reflecting the city’s role as a gateway to the continent.
The upper floors of the building will house the 165-room Solaria Nishitestu Hotel, a boutique brand focused on business and leisure travel, with direct airport access.
“This will truly be a year of growth,” said Shinji Tagawa, president of Fukuoka International Airport.
Hussain: New offices in Shanghai, Taipei, and Seoul, plus enhanced operations in India and Indonesia, will support rising demand across the region
UK-headquartered travel and events solutions provider ATPI is bolstering its presence in the Asia-Pacific region with the launch of several new offices.
The company is establishing four new locations across India and one in Balikpapan, Indonesia. Further strengthening its regional network, ATPI is also opening new offices in Shanghai, Taipei, and Seoul.
Hussain: New offices in Shanghai, Taipei, and Seoul, plus enhanced operations in India and Indonesia, will support rising demand across the region
In Indonesia, the new office in Balikpapan positions ATPI in the heart of the oil, gas, and mining industries, while Chennai’s expansion taps into southern India’s booming IT sector.
Meanwhile, the company’s insights in tech-driven industries in mainland China, for example, will help boost travel demand in its AI, electric vehicle and renewable energy sectors. Taiwan is a technology-led, export-focused economy, while South Korea is ranked sixth among 133 economies featured in the 2024 Global Innovation Index, making both markets ideal for corporate travel.
Ali Hussain, managing director, ATPI Asia, said: “Our growth underlines ATPI’s longstanding commitment to Asia’s rapidly evolving travel and events landscape. The new markets are of strategic importance as they permit us to fully cater to our regional clients, share our know-how on domestic market essentials and support them with customised, industry-leading solutions”.
The scaling-up supports the company’s long-term vision to better serve both regional and international clients through a robust global network and local partnerships. This comes at a time as the Asian corporate travel market is steady regional growth – valued at US$737.1 billion in 2024 and projected to reach US$848.2 billion by 2025, according to a GBTA report.
“Our expanded presence in Asia enables us to sharpen our objective and ensure our strengths and strategies are in line with any challenges and opportunities that lie ahead. They allow us to be closer to our clients and be ideally positioned to meet regional business travel needs with agility, precision and confidence,” he added.
ATPI operates across a variety of specialist sectors, with core service offerings in corporate travel, marine & energy, and event management.
Tākina Wellington Convention and Exhibition Centre; photo by Phoebe Mackenzie
Wellington will host the 21st WONCA (World Organisation of Family Doctors) World Rural Health Conference in 2026, the first time the conference is heading to New Zealand.
Themed Whānau Ora: Integrating mātauranga Māori indigenous knowledge with rural health for a thriving future, the event is expected to deliver an economic impact of NZ$2.7 million (US$1.5 million) to Wellington. It will be held at Tākina Wellington Convention and Exhibition Centre.
Tākina Wellington Convention and Exhibition Centre; photo by Phoebe Mackenzie
Fiona Bolden, chairperson of Hauora Taiwhenua, said: “Hosting Rural WONCA 2026 in Wellington provides an unparalleled platform to highlight the innovative and community-driven strategies we’ve developed to support rural and Indigenous health.
“We will be working closely with our rural Māori members and health colleagues to share our success stories and extend this opportunity to our rural health peers across the South Pacific and other first nations peoples around the world, to join these conversations and learning opportunities; it’s about fostering global conversations that drive equity and inclusivity in healthcare systems worldwide.”
The successful conference bid was led by Hauora Taiwhenua Rural Health Network with support from its Te Tiriti partners Te Rōpū Ārahi. Effective advocacy from Business Events Wellington and Tourism New Zealand Business Events, and endorsement from the New Zealand health sector and government ministries, led to a winning proposal.
The 350-key Pullman Singapore Hill Street has recently launched Oculus, a new glasshouse-style meeting and event space.
The 205m2 venue is surrounded by lush greenery and natural lighting. It can accommodate up to 150 guests in theatre-style, 24 in U-shaped setting, or 120 banquet-style.
Oculus in U-shaped setting
Other event spaces include Shimbashi, good for 20 pax in a boardroom setting; and El Chido, an outdoor rooftop space next to the pool that can hold 100 pax cocktail-style.
Hong Kong, the world’s meeting place, is the destination of choice for large-scale international business events
With a busy first quarter heralding an auspicious start for the business events scene, Hong Kong’s MICE sector is set for another successful year, with a stacked events calendar packed with returning and debut events.
The city has already secured 56 large-scale international events for the year, including 16 which will be hosted for the first time. The events, which include fintech, innovation and technology, medical sciences, and aviation among others, are expected to attract about 260,000 participants, with 170,000 from outside of Hong Kong.
These numbers are built on last year’s strong momentum when the city received 1.42 million overnight MICE visitors, a 10 per cent increase year-on-year. About half of these MICE visitors came from overseas, which was 23 per cent higher than overnight visitors staying for other purposes.
According to the Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB), MICE visitors spend an average of HK$7,800 per capita, about 40 per cent higher than visitors of other categories.
“In 2025, Hong Kong not only will play host to prestigious high-yield business events but also stage a wide spectrum of mega art and culture, sports and entertainment events, especially with a number of newly developed tourism infrastructures, including the latest Kai Tak Sports Park. These events will definitely create the synergy of enriching the overall destination experiences for business events visitors, driving longer length of stay and delivering tremendous benefits to Hong Kong’s economy,”said Marilyn Tham, general manager, MICE & Cruise division, at HKTB.
A-list event, Economist Impact, returned on a bigger scale
March saw one of the busiest months for business events with a host of top tier international events.
Economist Impact’s Technology for Change Asia saw a gathering of leaders from the business and tech world exchange ideas in Hong Kong
For the second time in a row, Hong Kong hosted Economist Impact’sTechnology for Change Asia event from March 12 to 13. The fifth edition of the show saw more than 70 renowned speakers share insights on future-shaping issues with more than 700 business and tech leaders from around the world.
Asif Chaudhury, managing director, Asia of The Economist Group, said: “The success of last year’s Technology for Change Asia has reinforced our recognition of Hong Kong’s strength as the world’s meeting place. We upgraded the scale of this year’s summit and saw a 10 per cent year-on-year increase in attendees.”
US-based tourism show Connect Marketplace chose Hong Kong for its first Asian edition
Connect Marketplace sets foodhold in Hong Kong for Asia expansion
Another renowned event was Connect Marketplace, an established international tourism show from the United States that chose Hong Kong as the destination to expand to. Held from March 19 to 21 at the AsiaWorld-Expo, Connect Marketplace Hong Kong saw more than 5,000 industry participants and 600 buyers from 14 countries and regions in Asia-Pacific.
Margaret Ma Connolly, president and CEO of Informa Markets in Asia, which organises the event, said: “With its unique blend of Chinese and Western cultures, status as a global business hub, world-class infrastructure and extensive experience in hosting large-scale international MICE events, Hong Kong is the ideal destination for Connect Marketplace’s expansion from North America to Asia.”
The cryptocurrency industry’s long standing event, Consensus, made its debut in Hong Kong in February
Inaugural events with strong debut in Hong Kong
Other landmark events held in February included the debut of Consensus Hong Kong 2025, a long-running cryptocurrency event that saw nearly 10,000 attendees, while the inauguration of Sports Law Mega Event 2025 highlighted Hong Kong’s strengths in spearheading sports law against the backdrop of the One Country, Two Systems and Three Jurisdictions principle.
Exciting roster of events ahead
If the first quarter of the year got the city buzzing with global visitors and established events, the rest of the year is set to be equally exciting.
As a result of HKTB’s efforts in cross-sector bids for regional and international events, Hong Kong will play host for the first time to 16 new events.
Among them are Herbalife Asia Pacific Extravaganza 2025 in May; International Society for Stem Cell Research 2025 Annual Meeting in June; Routes World 2025 in September, and 9th World Congress of Pediatric Cardiology and Cardiac Surgery 2025 in December.
Sunway Hospitality Group has appointed Alex Castaldi as CEO to lead its expansion.
In his new role, Castaldi will focus on expanding Sunway’s global presence and integrating hospitality with other Sunway Group sectors. He also oversees Sunway Travel and is committed to talent development, serving as an adjunct professor of practice at Sunway University’s School of Hospitality & Service Management.
With extensive experience in luxury resorts across Asia and the Middle East, he previously served as senior general manager of Sunway City Kuala Lumpur Hotels, where he oversaw the transformation of Sunway Resort Hotel.
Prior to joining Sunway in 2017, Alex held senior roles at luxury resorts in Bali, Thailand, the Philippines, Seychelles, and Dubai, working with renowned brands such as Shangri-La, Banyan Tree, Anantara, and the Jumeirah Group.
Conrad Singapore Orchard has appointed Thomas Hoeborn as its new general manager.
With over four decades of global experience, he brings expertise in luxury hospitality operations, talent development, and guest experience management.
Most recently, Hoeborn led operations at Conrad Maldives Rangali Island. His experience also includes senior roles overseeing multi-property portfolios across China, South-east Asia, and Japan.
Newer online platforms believe they provide a strong proposition to SMEs and associations, especially those that do not run many events; screenshot from the MiceLah website pictured
While OTAs and TMCs predominate in booking business and personal travel and accommodation, SMEs and associations can now look to small online platforms to book tours, venues, caterers, and transportation.
Singapore-based Equinox, a segment brand of Travel Trade Marketplace, is targeting SMEs and associations with a business model that does not rely on commissions or service fees typically charged by intermediaries.
Newer online platforms believe they provide a strong proposition to SMEs and associations, especially those that do not run many events; screenshot from the MiceLah website pictured
Equinox’s founder and CEO Fred Seow told TTGmice: “Equinox offers a lower cost of sale (and purchase) due to its low transaction-fee model instead of sales commissions.”
The fee is charged to sellers, who have full control of their online distribution, viewership and pricing by markets and business segments.
“Buyers are provided with tools for faster engagement with sellers, better recognition of support and more benefits and rewards directly from sellers. The platform recognises buyers’ purpose of use (business or personal travel) and rewards or cross-rewards accordingly,” Seow elaborated.
Enterprise accounts are co-branded private travel portals for staff, customers or members with annual prize rewards. Each company’s identity and database are fully protected.
In addition, Equinox negotiates better rates for volume and events. For instance, hotel rates can be locked in for staff who need to make several trips over a project’s duration and priced in the buyer’s currency.
“As an added benefit to SMEs and associations, we support their group movements and event management. This is usually process intensive. Although we currently support offline, when our system is fully developed, it will automate most of the work for clients and suppliers,” he said.
Equinox already has early-adopter travel agencies and independent hotels on board, with full launch by mid-2025 and secondary features in 4Q.
A director of a professional industry organisation said she used Equinox to offer overseas conference participants the option to book hotel rooms at special rates.
“Equinox negotiated for us, but because we couldn’t guarantee the numbers, they didn’t have much negotiation power,” she said, adding that this may be useful for corporate retreats.
Another Singapore player, micelah.com, positions itself as “a one-stop shop platform for the MICE industry”. SMEs, MNCs and a few government agencies and institutions of higher learning are its main users.
“We are strictly MICE; bookings must be 10 or more pax,” said Nim Bali, founder and CEO, MiceLah. “The most popular services currently are hotels as a venue, teambuilding, catering and transportation.”
The start-up received funding from Enterprise Singapore and is still in the early stages, with a webpage revamp to be completed by July. MiceLah plans to extend destination coverage to Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia and India in 3Q2025.
Delegates also have the option of booking hotel stays through OTAs, sometimes at lower prices. Since many OTAs restrict bookings to eight or 10 rooms, delegations can either book several room blocks, use wholesalers or even go directly to listed hotels, as has happened at large conventions.
For instance, the 25th World Congress of Dermatology held in Singapore in 2023 drew 12,000 pax. Despite a PCO handling reservations, booking.com was also visible on the accommodation webpage.
Booking.com for Business is a “free travel management platform” powered by booking.com and supported by CWT. It offers benefits such as corporate rates and free 24/7 travel support. Staff can book accommodation, flights and car rentals for work trips, and administrators can see itineraries and expenditure.
Indian corporate agents attending DSA standing alongside Business Events Adelaide's CEO Damian Kitto (rightmost)
In March 2025, Destination South Australia (DSA) hosted its first delegation of Indian corporate agents, who participated in a tradeshow alongside interstate agents at the Adelaide Convention Centre, before embarking on a post-familiarisation trip.
Interstate agents were shown around to business event venues and hotels in the city, as well as joined a fam to either the Barossa Valley or Adelaide Hills. Meanwhile, Indian corporate agents were brought on a separate fam and educational programme, with both groups coming together for showpiece occasions at Adelaide Oval and Morphettville.
Indian corporate agents attending DSA standing alongside Business Events Adelaide’s CEO Damien Kitto (extreme right)
Given that it was the first Australian visit for many of the Indian agents, they were introduced to a range of incentive experiences. These included viewing native Australian wildlife at Cleland Wildlife Park; exploring world-class wineries such as Seppeltsfield and Chateau Tanunda; enjoying a helicopter flight over the Barossa Valley; and go-karting at The Bend Motorsport Park. Another unique experience involved getting up close with lions during the Lions 360 encounter at Monarto Safari Park.
“This was the favourite part of the trip for many delegates, who said they couldn’t even get this sort of experience in Africa, so it was a surprise that it was on offer so close to Adelaide,” shared Business Events Adelaide’s CEO Damien Kitto.
“The Adelaide Oval, where Australia and India have battled each other on the cricket field, is a key product for this market. Another highlight for the delegates was doing the Roofclimb of the Oval, a site inspection of Oval Hotel, a behind-the-scenes tour and meeting former Australian Test cricketer Greg Blewett,” he added.
Kitto also detailed how the food offering was tailored throughout the fam. “Adelaide has a significant Indian community, and talented chefs from every region can provide authentic cuisine. Each of our venues ensured they showcased a menu tailored to suit groups from many regions of India.”
Vikas Mittal, director of Iris Global Vacations, said that the itinerary was “very well-designed”, with an “excellent selection of hotels, gourmet meals, and teambuilding activities”.
“Business Events Adelaide took the city beyond our expectations with their exceptional hospitality. Adelaide will be a regular feature in our upcoming itineraries for Australia,” he noted.
Kritika Kunden, general manager at Hyperlink Brand Solutions, agreed: “There were a lot of fun experiences we did not expect, and a lot of sights we had not seen before. Many of our clients are seeking new destinations and experiences, and I think that Adelaide ticks all the MICE checklists. The team at Business Events Adelaide has been extremely supportive, and I look forward to promoting Adelaide.”
When asked what the decision was behind inviting Indian corporate incentive agents for the 21st edition of DSA, Kitto told TTGmice that the market is a “new opportunity for South Australia”.
Still, Kitto emphasised that Greater China and South-east Asia remain Adelaide’s primary target markets for incentives and associations. To this end, Business Events Adelaide actively participates in Tourism Australia’s Greater China Showcase and will also undertake trade visits to Singapore, Malaysia, and Indonesia.
With more than 40 member exhibitors and 50 hosted guests, this year’s DSA was the biggest yet, with A$40 million (US$25.2 million) expected to be generated from attendees.
The International Travel Expo (ITE) Hong Kong 2025, recognised as a Mega Event by the government, will take place from June 12-15 at the Hong Kong Convention & Exhibition Centre.
The annual event, comprising the 39th ITE (Leisure) and the 20th ITE MICE, is in its fifth iteration. The first two days are dedicated to trade professionals, followed by two days open to the public.
ITE 2024 showfloor
ITE 2025 organisers are expecting greater international exhibitor numbers this year, with South Korea significantly expanding its presence with two pavilions. The event will also feature a diverse array of destinations from Europe, the Americas, Central Asia, and Africa.
Recognising the growing importance of the mainland Chinese market, this year’s trade seminar series on New/Niche Destinations & Products will feature English to Mandarin simultaneous interpretation. The programme will also include NTO presentations, exhibitor-led seminars, and an industry forum on sustainability.
Asian travel trade professionals are encouraged to apply online for a complimentary Trade Visitor Badge to ITE 2025. Beyond free admission, ITE’s subsidy scheme includes benefits such as free lunch/drink coupons and cloakroom services. Subsidised visitors will also have the opportunity to participate in dedicated B2B sessions.
ITE 2024 featured 515 exhibitors, a significant 87 per cent originating from outside Hong Kong, representing 68 countries and regions, with 36 per cent from beyond Asia. The event saw strong participation from approximately 70 National Tourism Organizations. There were also 7,023 buyers and trade visitors, with 46 per cent hailing from outside Hong Kong.
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With extensive experience in luxury resorts across Asia and the Middle East, he previously served as senior general manager of Sunway City Kuala Lumpur Hotels, where he oversaw the transformation of Sunway Resort Hotel.
Most recently, Hoeborn led operations at Conrad Maldives Rangali Island. His experience also includes senior roles overseeing multi-property portfolios across China, South-east Asia, and Japan.
