Chief Minister V D Satheesan to open Global Travel Market on June 3
- Tourism Minister P C Vishnunath to be chief guest at GTM Expo
- Over 1000 stakeholders to converge at three-day event in state capital
The Voice of Chandigarh | Travel Trade Reporter
Chief Minister V D Satheesan will inaugurate the second edition of South India’s prestigious travel and trade event Global Travel Market (GTM 2026) on June 3 in the city, bringing together more than 1000 tour operators from the country and abroad.
Significantly, GTM 2026 is the first major convergence of tourism sector stakeholders after the present government assumed office.
To be held in multiple venues of the state capital and suburbs, the event is envisaged as a platform for exhibitors and buyers to build business partnerships with key global players in the travel and tourism industry, GTM office bearers told a press conference here today.
The inaugural ceremony of the three-day event will be held at Uday Samudra Leisure Beach Hotel, Kovalam, at 6 pm. M Vincent, MLA, will preside over the function.
Sri Lankan Deputy Minister of Tourism Prof. Ruwan Ranasinghe and Minister for Tourism and Culture, Andhra Pradesh, Kandula Durgesh, will be the Guests of Honour on the occasion.
Suman Billa, IAS, Additional Secretary and Director General, India Tourism, Government of India, will deliver the special address.
The B2B travel and trade exhibition is organised by South Kerala Hoteliers Forum (SKHF), Thiruvananthapuram Chamber of Commerce and Industries (TCCI), Thavass Ventures, and Metro Mart, in association with Kerala Tourism and India Tourism.
As part of the event, the Global Travel Mart Expo 2026 will be opened at Golden Palace Convention Centre at Amaravila near Neyyattinkara on June 4 at 10 am.
Tourism Minister PC Vishnunath, Prof. Ruwan Ranasinghe; Minister for Health, Family Welfare and Devaswom, K Muraleedharan; and Ajay Jain, IAS, Special Chief Secretary, Govt. of Andhra Pradesh, will be the Chief Guests at the expo opening ceremony.
On the second day, GTM Metro Expedition Award Night will be held at The Leela Kovalam, at 6 pm.
The event will have the presence of Union Minister of State for Tourism, Government of India,Suresh Gopi; Home Minister, Govt. of Kerala, Ramesh Chennithala; Tamil Nadu Tourism Minister Thiru S Rajesh Kumar; and Kandula Durgesh as Chief Guests. Shashi Tharoor, MP; Shri V Muraleedharan, MLA; Corporation Mayor V V Rajesh, and Suman Billa will also attend.
Minister for Transport C P John will deliver the inaugural address of the closing ceremony of GTM 2026 on June 5 at Kerala Arts and Crafts Village at Vellar near Kovalam.
The June 3-5 event will showcase different tourism circuits by combining the major tourism centres of South Kerala. It will also feature a project to introduce Ayurveda to global tour operators.
At the expo, more than 200 stalls will showcase innovative tourism products, and leading experts from the travel and tourism industry will address sessions on various topics. Corporate networking sessions with participation by company representatives will also be held. B2B sessions will be held on June 4 and 5.
Over 1000 domestic and international buyers and 300 corporate buyers will participate in the expo to generate new sales leads, launch new products, network with key decision-makers, increase brand awareness, and gather market intelligence.
The event will deliver a vibrant environment for B2B and B2C organisations and provide an opportunity for participants to meet, network, negotiate, find the right collaborators, conduct business, and gather new insights. In addition to showcasing a range of tourism products and services, the travel expo will provide an opportunity to connect with key players in the southern region’s travel and tourism industry.
The event will have over 200 stalls set up by major hoteliers and resorts, tourism boards and organisations, airlines, hotel suppliers, travel agents, tour operators, travel tech innovators, etc.
GTM 2026 will feature a dedicated HoReCa Pavilion to showcase products and solutions for hotels, restaurants, cafes and the catering industry. The pavilion will serve as a focused platform for business networking and sourcing. Besides, the Travancore Experience Zone will showcase the adventure, culinary, culture, food, hospitality, literature, social activities and many specialties of Travancore.
Also, pavilions featuring six themes, including inbound travel operators to Kerala, outbound travel operators (both B2B and B2C), Ayurveda, yoga and wellness operators, resorts, retreats and hospitals, wedding tourism, corporate road show, homestays and serviced villas, will be set up at the travel expo.
The expo is open to the public on June 5. For more details, visit www.gtmt.in or contact 9995139933. Email: info@gtmt.in
SN Reghuchandran Nair, President, TCCI; Narayanan MR, President, SKHF; Sisupalan Sagara, Vice President, SKHF; Pankaj Senan, Founder and Patron, SKHF; Shri Prasad Manjali, Secretary, SKHF; Siji Nair, CEO, GTM; and EM Najeeb, President, CKTI, were also present at the press meet.
