The level of interest reflects the strength and resilience of the sector
From the Bahamas to South Korea, fifteen destinations across four continents have raised their hands to host the World Travel and Tourism Council's annual global summit, a gathering where the industry's most powerful voices come to set direction and forge alliances. The wave of bids, arriving in the wake of a well-regarded 2025 summit in Rome, speaks to something beyond mere hospitality ambition — it reflects an industry that, after years of turbulence, believes its best chapters are still ahead. Malta will hold the stage in October 2026, and from that stage, the 2027 host will be named, closing one competition while opening another.
- Fifteen destinations spanning four continents are competing for the right to host one of the travel industry's most consequential annual gatherings, signaling an unusually intense scramble for prestige and positioning.
- The surge in bids follows Rome's successful 2025 summit, which drew hundreds of executives, officials, and investors — raising the event's profile and making the hosting honor feel newly worth fighting for.
- The field is strikingly diverse: island microstates, emerging markets, tourism giants, and wealthy developed economies are all in the running, suggesting the summit has become a prize that transcends any single type of destination.
- Malta holds the immediate spotlight as October 2026 host, but the real suspense lies in the formal evaluation now underway, with the 2027 announcement set to land during Malta's own event.
- WTTC chief Gloria Guevara reads the competition as a confidence signal — an industry that once struggled to survive is now positioning itself as a driver of global economic growth.
The World Travel and Tourism Council has received formal bids from fifteen destinations across four continents, each vying to host the organization's flagship annual summit in the years ahead. The list spans remarkable geographic and economic diversity — from the Bahamas and Bahrain to Canada and Colombia, from Greece and India to Indonesia, Japan, Mexico (with two separate regional bids), Monaco, Morocco, Puerto Rico, South Korea, Turkey, and the United States.
The council traces this surge of interest to the momentum generated by last year's summit in Rome, which brought together hundreds of executives, government officials, and investors to shape strategy for one of the world's fastest-growing economic sectors. That event raised the summit's profile considerably, making the hosting role feel like a genuine prize.
Malta is confirmed as the 2026 host, with the summit scheduled for October. In parallel, the WTTC has launched a formal evaluation of the fifteen competing bids, with the 2027 host to be announced during Malta's event — turning that gathering into both a destination showcase and a competitive reveal.
Gloria Guevara, the WTTC's president and chief executive, described the volume of interest as evidence of the sector's underlying resilience. After years of pandemic-era disruption, the travel and tourism industry is projecting confidence — and destinations around the world are racing to place themselves at the center of what they believe will be a sustained period of growth.
The World Travel and Tourism Council has fielded formal bids from fifteen destinations spanning four continents, each hoping to host the organization's annual global summit in coming years. The surge in applications—from places as varied as the Bahamas, Bahrain, Canada, Colombia, Greece, India, Indonesia, Japan, Mexico (with two separate regional bids from Quintana Roo and Guadalajara), Monaco, Morocco, Puerto Rico, South Korea, Turkey, and the United States—signals something the industry reads as confidence in its own future.
The WTTC attributes this wave of interest directly to the success of last year's summit in Rome, which drew hundreds of executives, government officials, and investors to debate and shape the direction of one of the world's fastest-growing economic sectors. Each year, the council convenes this gathering as a kind of annual reckoning for the travel and tourism industry—a place where the people steering the largest companies and national tourism boards come to set strategy and make deals.
Malta will serve as host for this year's summit, scheduled for October. But the real competition is already underway. The WTTC has launched a formal evaluation process to determine which of the fifteen bidding destinations will earn the honor of hosting in 2027. That decision will be announced during Malta's event, giving the council several months to weigh the merits of each proposal.
Gloria Guevara, the WTTC's president and chief executive, framed the bidding competition as evidence of something deeper than mere hospitality ambition. The level of interest, she said, reflects the underlying strength and resilience of the sector itself. After years of disruption and uncertainty, the travel and tourism industry is signaling that it sees growth ahead—and that cities and countries want to position themselves at the center of that growth.
The geographic spread of the bids is notable. They come from established tourism powerhouses like Mexico and Turkey, from island nations like the Bahamas and Malta itself, from emerging markets like Colombia and Indonesia, and from wealthy developed economies like Canada and the United States. It suggests that hosting the WTTC summit has become a prize worth competing for across very different kinds of destinations and economies. The council's annual gathering has become, in effect, a marker of where the industry believes opportunity lies.
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The level of interest reflects the strength and resilience of the travel and tourism sector— Gloria Guevara, WTTC president and chief executive
La Conversación del Hearth Otra perspectiva de la historia
Why would a destination spend the effort to bid for hosting this summit? What's the actual payoff?
It's visibility and validation. When the WTTC comes to your city, you're signaling to the world's largest travel companies and investors that you're serious about tourism. You get hundreds of executives in the room, making deals, announcing expansions. The summit becomes a platform.
So it's not really about the event itself—it's about what the event brings after?
Exactly. The summit is the catalyst. You host it, you make connections, you attract capital. For a place like Colombia or Indonesia, it's a way to say: we're open, we're growing, we're worth betting on.
Fifteen bids is a lot. Does that surprise you?
It signals that the travel industry believes in itself again. After everything—the pandemic, the disruptions—these destinations are confident enough to invest in hosting. That's not nothing.
What does it say that Rome was successful enough to trigger all this?
It means the formula works. Rome showed that a major summit can draw real attention and real business. Now everyone wants their turn.
And the WTTC gets to choose from fifteen options. That's leverage.
Exactly. They can be selective. They can pick the destination that offers the most compelling vision for where tourism is heading next.