by Pádraic Gilligan, Co-Founder, SoolNua | Head of Research & Consultancy, SITE

My great friend and SITE colleague in China, Raymond Qian, invited me to speak at a recent ITB China event about the Asia Pacific (APAC) region and its potential for growth both as a source market and destination for incentive travel experiences.

I was delighted to accept the invitation as the Incentive Travel Index, SITE and the IRF’s annual study of the global incentive travel marketplace, has been tracking changes there over the past few editions with some remarkable results beginning to emerge.

There are moments in our industry that feel epochal, tipping points when perception lags behind reality, and then suddenly, there’s a recalibration. The accelerating momentum of APAC within the incentive travel sector is one such paradigm shift. For years, conversations about incentive travel have revolved around the “next frontier,” the as-yet-unexplored region poised to disrupt and delight. Today, it’s time to stop talking about APAC as the next anything and recognize it as the very forefront of incentive travel’s evolution.

Just consider the scale. APAC is home to 60% of the world’s population—over 4.7 billion people—sustained by a burgeoning, aspirational middle class: in China alone, 40% of the population (up from 3% in 2000) now belongs to this vital segment, the engine driving consumption, ambition, and, crucially, the desirability of experiential luxury and recognition. No longer is incentive travel an imported Western concept; instead, it’s an intra-regional phenomenon, with Japan, Australia, Singapore, and South Korea rising as both sources and destinations, joined by the emerging stars of Thailand, Malaysia, Vietnam, and Indonesia.

The Incentive Travel Index shows that 37% of corporate end users and 46% of DMCs across APAC are planning for significant growth in incentive travel activity, figures outpacing global averages. What’s more, India and China are scaling the heights of recognition culture, pivoting toward employee-centric values that put people and community at the heart of business aspiration. More APAC programs are in the high-end categories, with 13.4% of APAC programs spending at least USD$7,500 a head on qualifiers, compared with 10.6% for the same categories in Europe.

Culture & Connectivity: Shaping Business Strategy

But numbers alone never tell the full story. The real growth catalyst is cultural. In APAC, retaining top talent is consistently cited as the top strategic driver for incentives. Executive leadership in the region doesn’t view travel simply as a trophy—it’s integral to shaping culture, fostering belonging, and multiplying productivity.

As the hybrid workplace proliferates, the “softer side” of business—community, connection, and culture—has become the hard edge of competitive strategy. More than just a reward, incentive travel becomes the connective tissue, weaving colleagues together in a tapestry of shared memory and motivation.

The region’s remarkable diversity shapes everything from destination appeal to program design. Global buyers continue to gravitate to the familiar superstars—Japan for its cultural depth and infrastructure, Australia for its natural brilliance and service ethos, Thailand, Malaysia and Vietnam for cost, accessibility, and a sense of the “new.”

Yet, beneath the surface, a new momentum builds: the rise of second- and third-tier destinations boasting short flight times and strong resort infrastructure. There’s a palpable hunger among buyers not simply for familiar territory, but for fresh narratives and novel experiences.

And that’s the artful balance—APAC delivers both novelty and reliability, scale and service, a sweet spot for incentive organisers and travellers seeking something delightfully unique yet operationally sound.

The Demographic Shift

The most profound generational shift is also playing out across APAC. Younger qualifiers—Gen Z and Millennials—are seeking purpose and personalization. They want travel that’s not just high touch, but high meaning; not just a reward, but a story they can inhabit and share. Older generations still favor prestige and exclusivity, naturally—but APAC’s successful program designers are mastering the blend, mashing up the local and the global, the traditional and the entirely new.

The key is deep localization. A winning program in Singapore or Seoul requires a completely different creative approach to one in Mumbai or Manila. Successful incentive travel here means a nuanced grasp of local culture, psyche, and aspiration—thinking globally, designing regionally, and executing hyper-local.

Programming for Connection

If the last few years have taught us anything, it’s that the most successful incentives in APAC are the ones that curate for connection, not just consumption. What’s in demand? Unstructured time, authentic dining, cultural immersion, and a rising (if unevenly distributed) commitment to CSR.

A glance at the data tells a striking story: in the top five industry verticals fueling incentive travel—Finance & Insurance, ICT, Pharma, Automotive, and Direct Selling—China’s current market size has already caught up with that of the United States. Both countries now engage approximately 19 million employees in these sectors, using incentive travel as a tool for reward and recognition. But here’s the extraordinary part: China has nearly four times the US population, meaning the potential headroom for growth is simply immense. As recognition cultures deepen and aspirations rise among the swelling Chinese middle class, the scale and sophistication of incentive travel programs here promise to reshape the global landscape, offering both challenges and opportunities for our entire industry.

Looking ahead: Complexity, Sustainability, Technology

Challenges persist, of course—climate concerns, rising costs, and recruitment woes, especially for suppliers and agencies. But APAC is uniquely positioned to lead on sustainability, with compact regional hubs ideal for short-haul incentives. Technology—particularly generative AI—will augment planning and personalization, but can never displace the emotional resonance and “human design” of incentive travel.

As we look to the horizon, the message is clear: Asia-Pacific is writing the future of incentive travel in the language of experience, aspiration, and belonging. For those who plan, deliver, and dream in our industry, there’s no better place to be.