Opening in Berlin on 25 April 2026, the Germany Travel Mart (GTM) gathered more than 500 tour operators and corporate travel buyers for its first fully in-person edition since the pandemic. TravelTradeNews highlights that the German National Tourist Board (GNTB) used the platform to showcase visa-free Schengen access for 63 markets and promote new rail-and-fly bundles introduced after Lufthansa’s capacity cuts. Speakers emphasised that Germany remains open for business despite geopolitical headwinds, pointing to the new Frankfurt Terminal 3 and the gradual rollout of biometric border technology as evidence of investment in traveller experience. International buyer meetings focused heavily on corporate meetings & incentives, with secondary cities like Leipzig and Bremen pitching themselves as lower-cost alternatives to traditional conference hubs. For global mobility functions the main takeaway is that demand for German entry visas is rebounding to pre-2020 levels, putting pressure on consular appointment queues in growth markets such as India and South Africa. The GNTB confirmed that it is sharing weekly visa-wait-time data with major chambers of commerce to improve travel planning. The fair runs through 28 April and includes site inspections of new hybrid-meeting venues equipped with 1 gigabit broadband — a selling point for companies orchestrating distributed workforces and regional off-sites.
Source: TravelTradeNews
