ITB Berlin 2026 celebrates its 60th anniversary: Invitation to the opening press conference and other important press events
At the opening press conference on 2 March 2026 in the CityCube Berlin, the focus will be on current trends, markets and strategies. The day will be complemented by a new exclusive behind-the-scenes media tour of selected exhibitors and the UN Ministers’ Summit at ITB Berlin, where high-ranking tourism ministers will discuss the future of international tourism.
M.Z.I. Dalton Zahir |From TravellerTimes Desk : ITB Berlin will be 60 years old and will kick off the new trade fair year from 3 to 5 March 2026 with a special anniversary edition. The official kick-off will be the opening press conference, one day before the start of the fair, on Monday, March 2, 2026, at 10 a.m. in the CityCube Berlin, Room A3 (site plan). It offers media representatives a compact overview of key industry trends, strategic developments and the focal points of the world’s leading travel trade fair.
Dr. Mario Tobias, President and CEO of Messe Berlin, will present the highlights, topics and trends of the 60th anniversary edition. This year’s Guest of Honour Angola will be represented by Márcio de Jesus Lopes Daniel, Minister of Tourism of the Republic of Angola, and will provide insights into the country’s tourism highlights and prospects. Apostolos Tzitzikostas, European Commissioner for Sustainable Transport and Tourism, will talk about the new EU Sustainable Tourism Strategy and the current priorities of European tourism policy. Mitra Sorrells, Senior Vice President Content at Phocuswright, provides up-to-date market data and trend analysis, including global market growth in the so-called growth regions (Middle East, Latin America, India) and the growing use of AI in the travel sector. Albin Loidl, President of the German Travel Association (DRV), gives an outlook on the development of German outgoing tourism and key trends in the German travel industry for 2026.
Following the press conference, media representatives are invited to an exclusive behind-the-scenes tour. Even before the official start of the fair, they will gain insights into selected stands and central trade fair areas. In the afternoon, at 4 p.m., the UN Ministers’ Summit at ITB Berlin will follow. The opening day will conclude with the newly designed ITB Berlin Opening Gala with the official Guest of Honour Angola. All events can already be viewed online in the ITB Berlin event overview as well as in the ITB Navigator and in the ITB App, including the ITB Berlin Convention sessions.
Every year, ITB Berlin attracts around 3,000 media representatives who report live from the world’s leading tourism trade fair. © ITB Berlin
Press dates: Monday, March 2, 2026 , Opening press conference of ITB Berlin 2026
Participants:
Dr. Mario Tobias, President and CEO, Messe Berlin
Márcio de Jesus Lopes Daniel, Minister of Tourism, Republic of Angola
Apostolos Tzitzikostas, EU Commissioner for Sustainable Transport and Tourism Mitra Sorrells, Senior Vice President Content, Phocuswright
Albin Loidl, President, German Travel Association (DRV)
10:00 – 11:00 a.m., CityCube Berlin | Room A3
Exclusive behind-the-scenes tour for media representatives before the start of the trade fair
Stops at the new ITB Späti, ITB Berlin Guest of Honour Angola, Premium Partner Airbnb, Adventure Travel Partner Peru, Trip.com, Airalo and others.
Safety note: Please note that the tour passes through an active construction site environment. We recommend sturdy shoes. Watch out for potential trips, loose screws, or other obstacles. Participants are asked to behave cautiously on their own responsibility.
If you are interested, please register by e-mail to: presse-itb@messe-berlin.de
11:30 am – 1:00 pm Start: CityCube Berlin | Room A3
UN Ministers’ Summit at ITB Berlin
The focus is on the practical foundations for sustainable growth in tourism – from effective governance and the development of skilled workers to other key fields of action. Numerous tourism ministers from all over the world will discuss political framework conditions and future strategies for the industry.
4:00 – 5:00 p.m., CityCube Berlin | Room A3
ITB Berlin 2026 Opening Gala
By invitation only.
6.30 p.m., CityCube Berlin | Hall B above the main entrance
Press dates: Tuesday, March 3, 2026
Official opening tour of ITB Berlin
including opening ceremony at the stand of ITB Berlin – Guest of Honour Angola
from 09:30 a.m., Hall 21 | Booth 112
Press conference – alltours
Organized by: alltours flugreisen GmbH
09:30 – 10:30 am, hub27 | Room Beta 8
Press conference – Austria at ITB Berlin 26
From the lecture series “Events at the booth” | Registrations until February 27, 2026 at medien@austria.info
10:00 – 10:45 a.m., hub27 | Booth 106
Press Conference – Costa Rica
Hosted by: Costa Rica Tourism Board – ICT
10:00 – 11:00 am, hub27 | Room Beta 9
LGBTQ+ Media Brunch
Hosted by: Turespana, Seville
Registration at: LGBTQ+ Media Brunch. Only with valid press accreditation.
10:00 – 11:30 a.m., Hall 4.1 | ITB LGBTQ+ Tourism Stage
Press conference – Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania
From Sea to Sound: Season highlights in the holiday destination of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania
Organised by: MV Tourismus GmbH
11:00 – 12:00 hrs, hub27 | Room Beta 2
Official Opening of the LGBTQ+ Tourism Pavilion
11:30 – 11:45 am, Hall 4.1 | ITB LGBTQ+ Tourism Stage
Opening of the exhibition “Destination Europe: A Journey in Posters”
Vibrant exhibition featuring iconic tourism posters showing how Europe has invited the world to travel across generations.
Participants: Dr. Mario Tobias, CEO of Messe Berlin
Dr. Eduardo Santander, Executive Director and CEO of the European Travel Commission (ETC)
Alberto Bosque Coello, Coordinator of the Museum of Tourism
12:00 – 13:00, hub27 | Booth 300
Official Opening ITB Medical & Health Tourism Pavilion
12:00 – 12:15 hrs, Hall 4.1 | ITB Medical & Health Tourism Stage
Medical Media Networking Lunch
Registration at: MEDICAL MEDIA NETWORKING LUNCH
12:15 – 13:30, Hall 4.1 | ITB Medical & Health Tourism Stage
NextGen- The pitch competition for young talents
1:30 – 2:00 p.m., Hall 4.1 | ITB Lighthouse Stage
Pitch East African Community (EAC)
14:00 – 14:30, Hall 7.2c | ITB Späti
Press conference of Visit Angola
H.E. Márcio de Jesus Lopes Daniel, Minister of Tourism of the Republic of Angola
Press contact: Anke Möller (anke.moeller@klebergroup.com) and Aline Vitzthum (aline.vitzthum@klebergroup.com)
14:00 – 15:00, CityCube Berlin | Hall A1
Press Conference – Visit Maldivess Hosted
by: Visit Maldives Corporation Limited
14:00 – 15:00, hub27 | Room to be announced
Pitch Comune di Genova: Journey through the wonders of Genoa Sandra Torre, General Manager Tourism Promotion for Genoa
14:30 – 15:00, Hall 7.2c | ITB Späti
Pitch Mexico, Secretaria del Turismo: México como potencia Turistica Dra. Nathalie Desplas Puel
15:30 – 16:00, Hall 7.2c | ITB Späti
Pitch Tajikistan: With Love from High Altitudes
15:30 – 16:00, Hall 7.2c | ITB Späti
LGBTQ+ Networking Reception
Registration at: Link.
5:00 – 7:00 p.m., Hall 4.1 | ITB LGBTQ+ Tourism Stage
ITB Medical & Health Networking Reception
Registration at: https://medical-health-networking-reception.eventbrite.de/
17:00 – 19:00, Hall 4.1 | ITB Medical & Health Tourism Stage
NextGen- The Pitch Competition for young talents Award
17:30 – 18:30, Hall 4.1 | ITB Lighthouse Stage
ITB Afterwork Party: “Cheers to 60 Years of Legacy”
Organised by ITB Berlin
17:30 – 19:00, Entrance Messe Süd
ITB Chinese Night 2026
Exclusive networking event with 300 international tourism professionals, Chinese cultural programme and dinner.
Registration until February 25, 2026 at: https://www.itb-china.com/chinese-night-2026/
6:30 p.m., Berlin-Zentrum (the address will be provided in the registration confirmation letter)
Press dates: Wednesday, March 4, 2026
Press Conference – DTS Incoming Hellas
Hosted by: DTS Incoming Hellas
10:00 – 11:00 am, hub27 | Room Gamma 8
Youth travel in the media spotlight: quality standards, safety and the responsibility of an entire industry
10:30 – 11:00, Hall 4.1 | Booth 222
Presentation of the ADFC Cycle Travel Analysis 2025
11:00 – 12:00, hub27 | Room Beta 8
Pitch Antonina Turizm: Trans Siberian Express: The Trans Siberian Luxury Rail Expedition
Attila Tuna, CEO
11:30 – 12:00, Hall 7.2c | ITB Späti
Pitch Nepal: Paving Paths for Responsible Tourism and Product Diversification
Deepak Raj Joshi, CEO at Nepal Tourism Board
12:00 – 12:30, Hall 7.2c | ITB Späti
Pitch The Bahamas: Seven reasons why The Bahamas should be on your bucket list
Mikala Moss, Director Global Sales, Bahamas Ministry of Tourism
12:30 – 13:00, Hall 7.2c | ITB Späti
Pitch Turkey: Go Cycling Go Türkiye, Cycling through History and Nature
Türkiye Tourism Promotion and Development Agency Serhan Sari, Product/Sports Marketing Manager
13:00 – 13:30, Hall 7.2c | ITB Späti
Press Conference – Sri Lanka
Hosted by: Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau
14:00 – 15:00, hub27 | Room Beta 9
Pitch Worldia GmbH: AI – Booking Platform for Travel Agencies
Erwan Corre, CRO & Co-Founder
2:00 – 2:30 p.m., Hall 7.2c | ITB Späti
PATWA World Tourism Leaders Summit
The Future of Tourism’ & PATWA International Travel Awards 2026
2:30 p.m. – 5:00 p.m., CityCube Berlin | Room A4
Pitch myclimate: How “Cause We Care” structures and digitalises sustainability
Maria Zieteman,Teamlead corporate partnerships myclimate
14:30 – 15:00, Hall 7.2c | ITB Späti
Announcement of the winner of the Guesbutler raffle
15:00 – 15:30, Hall 7.1c | Booth 112
Pitch Qualiday Travel: Breaking Language Barriers in Tourism: Real Time AI Voice Translation for Seamless Travel Experiences
Olga Thoma, Manager Qualiday Travel
15:00 – 15:30, Hall 7.2c | ITB Späti
Ocean Cruise Podium Cruise
Industry Meeting at ITB 2026
Organised by: Bremen + Bremerhaven
15:30 – 16:30, hub27 | Booth 303
Pitch IDeaS Revenue Solutions: Spotlight: A New Focus on Revenue Centric Hotel Marketing
Mike Chuma: Chief Marketing Manager
15:30 – 16:00, Hall 7.2c | ITB Späti
ITB Travel Tech Startup Scene
16:00 – 16:20, Hall 7.1a | Orange Stage
ITB Travel Tech Startup Pitches
16:20 – 17:00, Hall 7.1a | Orange Stage
ITB Americas Night – A New Meeting Point
The event offers a first opportunity to exchange ideas about ITB Americas, the new trade fair for the pan-American travel market, which will celebrate its premiere from 10 to 12 November 2026 in Guadalajara, Mexico.
Registration at: https://itb-americas.com/night/
17:30, Hall 7.2c | ITB Späti
Travelife Award Ceremony 2026
Recognizing outstanding achievements in sustainability in the travel industry
Organized by: Travelife
17:35 – 18:00, Hall 4.1 | ITB Lighthouse Stage
Press events, Thursday, March 5, 2026
River Cruise Podium Cruise
Industry Meeting at ITB 2026
Organised by: Bremen + Bremerhaven
10:30 – 11:30 am, hub27 | Booth 303
Official photo press event Maldives
Participants:
Thoriq Ibrahim, Minister of Tourism and Environment of the Maldives
11 a.m., Hall 5.2 | Booth 115
Pitch Vox S.p.A. : AI-Powered Live Translation for Multilingual Group Travel
John Boulding, Senior Industry Advisor
11:30 a.m. – 12:00 p.m., Hall 7.2c | ITB Späti
Pitch OneJourney: OneJourney™ launches the world’s first Hospitality Payment Card – SwiftPay™
Brian Dass, CEO
12:00 – 12:30, Hall 7.2c | ITB Späti
Pitch Pro Sky: Pro Sky Centralizes Group Air Travel for Events
Armin Truger, CEO
12:30 – 13:00, Hall 7.2c | ITB Späti
Pitch WONDERO Inc.: Wandero.ai – the agentic AI that handles daily operations at travel companies
Giorgi Akhalaia, Co-founder and Chief Commercial Officer
13:00 – 13:30, Hall 7.2c | ITB Späti
GENDER EQUALITY AWARDS
Moderated by: Prof. Stroma Cole, Director, Equality in Tourism, equalityintourism.org
2:00 – 2:45 p.m., Hall 4.1 | ITB LGBTQ+ Tourism Stage
Online accreditation for press representatives and bloggers/creators
You can now apply for accreditation online here. Please note the accreditation guidelines. After successful registration and examination, you will receive the accreditation and your badge with your personal QR code by e-mail as a PDF file attached. Please show your QR code at the entrance. Your ticket is non-transferable. Registration and accreditation will be possible online and around the clock during the entire duration of the fair.
Note: For reasons of readability, the masculine form has been chosen in some places in the text, but nevertheless the information refers to members of all genders.
About ITB Berlin and the ITB Berlin Convention and ITB 360°
ITB Berlin 2026 will take place from Tuesday to Thursday, 3 to 5 March, as a trade fair only. ITB Berlin has been the leading trade fair for the global travel industry since 1966 and will celebrate its 60th anniversary in 2026 under the motto “Discover the stories behind 60 years of legacy”. “Leading Tourism into Balance” is the motto of the ITB Berlin Convention, where 400 top speakers from business, science and politics will discuss the industry challenges of the present and future on 4 stages in a total of 17 thematic tracks. At ITB Berlin 2025, 5,800 exhibitors from over 170 countries and regions presented their products and services to almost 100,000 participants. As a year-round and globally present innovation hub, ITB Berlin offers the global tourism community valuable insights in the form of specialist articles, podcast episodes and other innovative formats all year round with ITB 360°.
More information can be found at www.itb.com and ITB News & Insights & Social Media.
Press releases online at itb.com – Press / Press Releases.
