Proud wins for Phuket include the Global Sustainable Tourism Conference, InterPride General Meeting & World Conference and the Global Wellness Summit. Photo Credit: AdobeStock/Narong Niemhom
Phuket will host three major international conferences in 2026 following successful bids supported by Thailand Convention and Exhibition Bureau (TCEB), eager to prove the MICE potentials of the popular island destination and align ambitions with sustainability, wellness and DEI.
The three international conferences are:
- Global Sustainable Tourism Conference (GSTC) 2026, organised by the Global Sustainable Tourism Council, hosted locally by Sustainable Tourism Development Foundation (STDF) and supported by TCEB. The conference will take place 21–24 April at Royal Phuket City Hotel and Courtyard by Marriott Phuket Town.
- Taking place in Asia for the first time, the InterPride General Meeting & World Conference 2026 is organised by the International Association of Pride Organizers (InterPride) and co-hosted by Naruemit Pride, The Foundation for the SOGI Rights and Justice (FOR-SOGI) and Andaman Power Association Phuket (Phuket Pride). The event is scheduled for 28 October– 1 November at Duangjitt Resort and Spa.
- Global Wellness Summit (GWS) 2026, organised by the Global Wellness Institute and scheduled for 10–13 November. Key Thai partners driving the event include the Department for Thai Traditional and Alternative Medicine (Ministry of Public Health), TCEB, and the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT).
The three conferences are expected to attract around 2,100 attendees, generate economic impact of 351.40 million baht and create 484 jobs.
Supawan Teerarat, president of TCEB, said the conference wins reflect not only Phuket’s potential and capabilities, but also reinforces the city’s branding-driven development strategy.
“Phuket is a model MICE city that has effectively leveraged MICE events as a mechanism to elevate the city and create opportunities in trade, investment, and development, in alignment with TCEB’s targeted strategy to attract world-class events to Thailand,” Teerarat said.
“This also reflects the strategy of developing regional MICE cities with distinctive branding aligned to their respective city strategies, as well as the approach of decentralising international events to destinations across the country, not limited solely to Bangkok.”
Suwit Phansengiam, Phuket deputy governor added that MICE serves as a driver of “high-quality economic growth”, highlighting the benefits to local businesses and communities beyond tourism.
Teerarat added that TCEB, Phuket and Thailand are well-positioned to advance the conferences’ core agendas of sustainability, wellness and DEI – which reflect key values influencing choice of host destinations.
Phumkit Raktaengam, president of Sustainable Tourism Development Foundation (STDF) who took the private sector lead for Phuket in the bids for GSTC 2026 and GWS 2026, said that the aim was to leverage Phuket’s sustainability strengths and world-class wellness services to deliver tangible outcomes.