2026 Program

Start your day with a refreshing run or walk alongside fellow attendees. Meet at Palm Court, 2nd Level (next to the Registration & Attendee Services Desk) before setting off. Choose your pace - running or walking - and enjoy a scenic start to the morning.

Reserve your spot via the conference app.

Begin your day with a refreshing yoga session for all levels. A water station and hotel towels will be provided. Mats are available on a first-come, first-served basis. Come ready to relax, breathe, and reset before the day begins.

Reserve your spot via the conference app.

Check in at the Phocuswright Reception, grab your materials, and dive into a buzzing showcase packed with innovators and exhibitors ready to connect.

Meet with attendees, innovators and exhibitors one-on-one! The showcase is open for business and abuzz with activity.

(Private event - by acceptance only.)

Innovation is the lifeblood of any industry. The Startup Program is a curated networking platform to connect startups with corporates and investors to foster real innovation.

Light breakfast will be available.

Details here!

(Private event - by acceptance only.)

Each year, Phocuswright brings together the industry’s best and brightest travel leaders aged 35 and under to be part of this elite group. This private program during The Phocuswright Conference is a launching pad for the next generation of travel luminaries to connect, debate and collaborate.

Light breakfast will be available.

Learn more and apply here!

Supported by: Flex Pay by Upgrade

A concise cruise industry session covering market insights, AI and expert perspectives, bringing together cruise leaders, innovators and technology partners.

This special session delivers actionable insights, strategic discussion and high-value networking - all within the broader Phocuswright Conference experience.

Details here! The Cruise Summit is included with your Phocuswright Conference registration at no additional cost.

Immerse yourself in an intimate, interactive environment to learn about hot topics impacting today's travel marketplace.

For individual breakout details, click here!

Immerse yourself in an intimate, interactive environment to learn about hot topics impacting today's travel marketplace.

For individual breakout details, click here!

Immerse yourself in an intimate, interactive environment to learn about hot topics impacting today's travel marketplace.

For individual breakout details, click here!

Immerse yourself in an intimate, interactive environment to learn about hot topics impacting today's travel marketplace.

For individual breakout details, click here!

Purpose and Learning Goals:
AI is transforming every part of hospitality—from operations and revenue management to marketing, distribution, and guest engagement. But the biggest question facing the industry isn't where to use AI. It's where human judgment still creates the greatest competitive advantage.

As an NYU professor, Google Higher Education AI Fellow and author of The Power of Perseverance, Richie Karaburun works with the next generation of hospitality leaders while advising organizations on how AI is changing work. His conclusion is simple: the winners won't be companies that replace people with AI—they'll be the ones that pair people and AI to create better decisions, better service and better business outcomes.

Using the "centaur" model—human plus machine working together—this session explores how hospitality organizations can identify the work AI should own, the moments that must remain human, and how to redesign teams around the strengths of both.

Whether you operate hotels, build technology, support distribution or invest in the sector, you'll leave with a practical framework for applying AI without sacrificing the human experiences that define hospitality.

Learn More

(Space is Limited. Secure your spot by bookmarking this session in the app!)

This opening reception kicks off the evening and gets everyone networking and buzzing about the coming days' sessions and speakers.

Join travel industry professionals for a relaxed, after-hours networking event to discuss trends, share ideas, and spark new collaborations.

Start your day with a refreshing run or walk alongside fellow attendees. Meet at Palm Court, 2nd Level (next to the Registration & Attendee Services Desk) before setting off. Choose your pace - running or walking - and enjoy a scenic start to the morning.

Reserve your spot via the conference app.

Begin your day with a refreshing yoga session for all levels. A water station and hotel towels will be provided. Mats are available on a first-come, first-served basis. Come ready to relax, breathe, and reset before the day begins.

Reserve your spot via the conference app.

Check in at the Phocuswright Reception, grab your materials, and dive into a buzzing showcase packed with innovators and exhibitors ready to connect.
Then, meet with innovators and exhibitors one-on-one! The showcase is open for business and abuzz with activity.

Kicking off the conference, this opening session brings attendees together to highlight the key themes shaping travel and set the stage for the conversations ahead.

We’ll also recognize the recipients of the Philip C. Wolf Memorial Scholarship Award. Philip, Phocuswright’s founder, was an entrepreneur, travel advisor, consultant and mentor to many. His influence on the travel industry and the people within it was profound, and his guidance continues to resonate today.

This year’s two scholarship recipients reflect Philip’s passion for mentorship, embodying his values and demonstrating a commitment to tackling meaningful challenges facing the travel industry.

Hotel distribution is entering another period of upheaval as brands push direct, owners scrutinize channel economics and platforms expand their role in hotel discovery and booking. At the same time, AI is reshaping how travelers find and compare stays. This session examines where incremental demand is really coming from, how channel economics are changing and who will hold the strongest relationship with the guest as the path to booking fragments.

In a travel industry that's constantly being redefined, staying ahead requires a complete re-imagining of what's possible – and a fierce commitment to winning. Our Changemaker sessions shine a spotlight on the companies deploying cutting-edge technology to create transformative experiences and to challenge the status quo. Join us for a dynamic presentation and interview as these leaders share their insights into the strategies and opportunities shaping the next era of travel and setting the game’s new rules.

The battle for traveler loyalty is expanding beyond traditional travel brands. Airlines, financial institutions, membership organizations and other players are using data, rewards, personalization and AI to deepen relationships and influence where consumers search, book and spend. This session examines the changing traveler relationship and how companies are competing to earn loyalty, influence decisions and deliver value as expectations and discovery channels evolve.

Where would you put your money in travel today? This year, Street Talk gets a new twist as investors spanning public markets, venture capital and growth equity make the case for where they see the strongest opportunities across the sector. From AI and infrastructure to consumer platforms and emerging business models, our investment committee will weigh risk, defend its convictions and reveal what it believes the market is getting right — and wrong.

Hear from one of PhocusWire’s Hot 25 Travel Startups for 2027.

Steve Hafner helped define the metasearch era. Now, after more than two decades leading KAYAK, he has stepped into a new role at Booking Holdings focused on advancing AI innovation. As conversational interfaces and AI agents begin to reshape how travelers discover, compare and act, Hafner shares what he is building, his perspective on what comes after traditional search, where AI can create real advantage and how travel companies should prepare for the next shift in digital distribution.

In a travel industry that's constantly being redefined, staying ahead requires a complete re-imagining of what's possible – and a fierce commitment to winning. Our Changemaker sessions shine a spotlight on the companies deploying cutting-edge technology to create transformative experiences and to challenge the status quo. Join us for a dynamic presentation and interview as these leaders share their insights into the strategies and opportunities shaping the next era of travel and setting the game’s new rules.

Join us for an exclusive lunch where you’ll have the opportunity to meet our analysts, connect with fellow subscribers and explore the resources available through your Phocuswright subscription.

Engage directly with our experts to gain deeper insights, share ideas and discover new strategies to maximize the value of your research access. It’s the perfect setting to learn more about Phocuswright’s offerings. Plus, get your hands on some Open Access Subscriber merch. We can't wait to see you there!

Innovation is the ultimate level-up - and not just for startups. Scaleups and established players are also breaking new ground and pushing the limits of travel technology. Launch puts them all in the arena, where each demonstrator has just minutes to wow the audience and prove they’ve got what it takes. With the Travel Innovation and People’s Choice Awards on the line, the stakes are high, the clock is ticking and the pressure is on to make an impact.

Fareportal Travel OS turns Fareportal’s proven B2C travel stack into a configurable OS for brands to launch, operate and scale travel.

Postra is a modular API that automates post-booking workflows — refunds, rescheduling and ancillary — across GDS, NDC and LCC.

See how Pintours' AI layer turns any venue, tour, or event into a personalized, AR- and expert-guided experience (transport, dining, personalization).

Voyani manages the rest of the trip for your customer, and turns it into revenue and cost savings for travel partners.

AI assistants are the next big channel. Your members are already there. Is your loyalty program? See how to get it in.

AI sped up writing code, not understanding it. Interlace maps your system, so teams ship 35% faster on top of AI gains.

Following the Launch competition, longtime entrepreneur and investor Steve Singh reacts to the business models and themes emerging from this year’s presenters. Drawing on decades of experience building, scaling and backing technology companies, he shares his perspective on where innovation is creating real opportunity, how AI and new technology platforms are reshaping travel and what it will take for the next generation of companies to break through.

AI is becoming a more familiar part of trip planning, but travelers are not relying on technology alone. Drawing on new U.S. consumer research and Phocuswright’s latest survey of travel advisors, this session examines how travelers are using AI alongside human advice, where each plays a role in planning and booking and how travel advisors themselves are incorporating AI into their work.

AI and automation are taking on more of the travel-planning, booking and servicing process, but that does not make human expertise less relevant. It changes where that expertise matters most. This session examines which parts of the traveler experience benefit from judgment, relationships and advocacy, how technology can make those capabilities more scalable and what the most effective hybrid models may look like as travel advice is redefined.

Travel demand is being shaped in new ways, from social content and AI-powered discovery to search behavior, pricing and real-time signals of traveler intent. But generating interest is only part of the challenge. As travelers concentrate around the same places and experiences, destinations and operators increasingly need to think about how demand can be redirected as well as created. Erik Blachford opens with a data-driven provocation, then joins industry leaders to examine who influences where travelers go, how inspiration turns into actual travel and how destinations can use technology and smarter marketing to shape that demand more strategically.

In a travel industry that's constantly being redefined, staying ahead requires a complete re-imagining of what's possible – and a fierce commitment to winning. Our Changemaker sessions shine a spotlight on the companies deploying cutting-edge technology to create transformative experiences and to challenge the status quo. Join us for a dynamic presentation and interview as these leaders share their insights into the strategies and opportunities shaping the next era of travel and setting the game’s new rules.

The Bridge Series convenes brings together executives from across the globe to examine how travel businesses are adapting to changing markets, technologies and traveler behavior. This year’s conversation crosses regions and segments to explore where pressures are intensifying, how products and distribution models are evolving and which strategies translate across borders — and which do not — as companies pivot and compete in an increasingly dynamic global marketplace.

As more businesses look to travel as a way to create value for their customers and drive growth, B2B is becoming an increasingly important strategic battleground. With Booking Holdings bringing its B2B capabilities across Booking.com, Agoda and Priceline closer together under Omri Morgenshtern, this conversation examines the strategy behind the move, how its scale, technology, and expertise are being combined in new ways and what it reveals about how Booking sees the future of B2B travel.

Find out the winner of the Travel Innovation and People's Choice Awards!

Join us for drinks and enjoy networking with your fellow attendees, speakers, and the Phocuswright team!

Join travel industry professionals for a relaxed, after-hours networking event to discuss trends, share ideas, and spark new collaborations.

Start your day with a refreshing run or walk alongside fellow attendees. Meet at Palm Court, 2nd Level (next to the Registration & Attendee Services Desk) before setting off. Choose your pace - running or walking - and enjoy a scenic start to the morning.

Reserve your spot via the conference app.

Begin your day with a refreshing yoga session for all levels. A water station and hotel towels will be provided. Mats are available on a first-come, first-served basis. Come ready to relax, breathe, and reset before the day begins.

Reserve your spot via the conference app.

The tools are everywhere. The transformation isn’t. Access to AI has surged, budgets are increasing and confidence is high, yet most workers who have the tools barely use them and most companies are bolting AI onto old workflows instead of redesigning around it. The gap between what leaders say about AI and what’s happening on the ground has never been wider.

This working roundtable closes that gap through candid small-group conversation instead of another panel of success stories. Including fresh data from Phocuswright’s “Rebuilt or Bolted On: Travel's Agentic AI Divide” research and cross-industry benchmarks, this session will be run under Chatham House rules so leaders and participants can speak plainly. Each table takes on one dimension of the AI leadership challenge led by a mentor who provokes rather than presents.

The session opens with a leadership reality check that frames three tensions every leader is navigating including: confidence vs. candor, speed vs. trust, adoption vs. transformation , and puts one question to the room: what does AI require me to do differently as a leader? The room then reconvenes to surface where we disagree and what we’re doing differently come Monday.

Key areas of discussion:

Culture & the Say-Do Gap
ROI & Measurement
Governance & Accountability
Leading Human-AI Teams
Customer Experience & Trust
Talent & the Pipeline

This session is built for the executives, founders, operators and curious people ready for a real conversation about leading through the transformation.

We’re seeking experienced executives, founders, and industry innovators to serve as leaders and facilitators at small group tables. Click here to apply!

Check in at the Phocuswright Reception, grab your materials, and dive into a buzzing showcase packed with innovators and exhibitors ready to connect.
Then, meet with innovators and exhibitors one-on-one! The showcase is open for business and abuzz with activity.

AI agents are starting to search, compare and book on travelers' behalf. That puts pressure on every player that has spent years building a direct relationship with the customer. Airlines want their content visible and their loyalty programs relevant. TMCs are already being bypassed by corporate booking and expense tools. Tech providers are racing to decide which side they're on. Leaders from an airline, the managed travel world and the technology side will each stake out their role in an agent-driven market, then debate what loyalty, personalization and payments look like when the "customer" might be software. Bring your questions: this is an interactive roundtable.

Welcome back to Day 3! Let’s kick things off by celebrating the newest Hall of Fame inductees and their impact on the travel industry.

Some of travel’s fastest-growing sellers may not look like travel companies at all. Banks, loyalty programs, retailers and other brands are increasingly embedding travel into their own customer relationships, creating new opportunities and new competition across distribution. As Expedia Group expands the technology and supply behind those partnerships, Alfonso Paredes examines what these new sellers need, where embedded travel is gaining traction and how this shift could reshape who owns the traveler relationship.

Travel demand remains strong, but the forces shaping it are becoming harder to predict. International visitation, consumer confidence, government policy, operating costs and geopolitical uncertainty are all influencing where and how people travel. U.S. Travel Association CEO Geoff Freeman sits down with Carnival Corporation CEO Josh Weinstein for a candid discussion about the pressures facing travel businesses, the competitiveness of the U.S. market and what industry and policymakers need to get right in the years ahead.

Travel companies have moved well beyond asking whether they should use AI. The questions now are where to deploy it, how much to invest and what results to expect. Drawing on Phocuswright’s latest industry survey, this session examines how companies are using and budgeting for AI, where implementation is gaining traction and what obstacles remain. It also looks at how startups are approaching AI and what the latest travel funding data reveals about where investors are placing their bets.

Travel companies know their technology stacks need to evolve, but transformation rarely happens on a blank slate. Legacy systems still power critical operations while new platforms, modular architectures and AI capabilities are layered in around them. This session examines the choices behind modernization: what to replace versus integrate, how to prepare teams for new ways of working, where AI is ready for core operations and how to build a more flexible technology foundation without disrupting the business.

In a travel industry that's constantly being redefined, staying ahead requires a complete re-imagining of what's possible – and a fierce commitment to winning. Our Changemaker sessions shine a spotlight on the companies deploying cutting-edge technology to create transformative experiences and to challenge the status quo. Join us for a dynamic presentation and interview as these leaders share their insights into the strategies and opportunities shaping the next era of travel and setting the game’s new rules.

AI, new interfaces and changing distribution models are reshaping who controls demand, customer relationships and competitive advantage in travel. Drawing on more than two decades as a founder and industry leader, Fred Lalonde offers a candid perspective on where the next shifts are coming from, which assumptions established companies need to rethink and where newer players still have room to disrupt the market.

In a travel industry that's constantly being redefined, staying ahead requires a complete re-imagining of what's possible – and a fierce commitment to winning. Our Changemaker sessions shine a spotlight on the companies deploying cutting-edge technology to create transformative experiences and to challenge the status quo. Join us for a dynamic presentation and interview as these leaders share their insights into the strategies and opportunities shaping the next era of travel and setting the game’s new rules.

As AI agents move from inspiration and planning into booking and servicing, the infrastructure behind the transaction becomes increasingly important. This session examines what agents need to shop and sell travel reliably, how traditional marketplaces, newer API models and shared industry infrastructure may evolve and where power shifts when the consumer interface, transaction layer and supplier relationship are increasingly separated.

Search is moving beyond answers and recommendations toward action. As conversational planning, personalization and transactions converge, the lines between search engine, travel planner and booking channels are beginning to blur. James Byers shares the latest on how travelers are using Google’s AI-powered travel tools, then joins us to examine what this shift means for visibility, distribution and the battle to influence the traveler from inspiration through booking.