If ever there was a moment for New Zealand’s business events sector to stride confidently onto the world stage, it is happening next week in Auckland.
The industry’s flagship showcase, MEETINGS 2026, will open its doors at the impressive New Zealand International Convention Centre (NZICC), bringing together more than 600 buyers and over 250 exhibitors from 18 regions across the country in what promises to be one of the most significant gatherings in the sector’s history.
Running from 16 to 18 June in Tāmaki Makaurau, Auckland, the annual showcase is expected to attract more than 1,500 attendees and facilitate around 6,000 pre-scheduled business appointments. That is a formidable number of handshakes, networking and deal-making packed into three days.
For New Zealand’s tourism and events industry, the timing could hardly be better.
The opening of the NZICC has been years in the making, and its arrival finally provides New Zealand with a purpose-built venue capable of competing with major convention facilities throughout the Asia-Pacific region.
Business Events Industry Aotearoa (BEIA) Chief Executive Lisa Hopkins believes this year’s event represents a watershed moment.
“This year the opening, trade show and celebration events are all being held under the one roof at the NZICC, within walking distance of most host hotels, creating a totally connected experience,” she said.
That sense of connectivity extends well beyond Auckland.
International buyers are arriving from Australia, Southeast Asia, China, India, Japan and North America, eager to discover what New Zealand destinations can offer conference organisers, incentive planners and corporate event specialists.
More than 105 hosted buyers and media representatives are crossing the Tasman alone, supported by Air New Zealand and Tourism New Zealand.
Perhaps most importantly, many will be experiencing Auckland and the NZICC for the first time.
“At least half of our buyers are new to MEETINGS this year, and are yet to experience Auckland and the NZICC,” Hopkins noted.
That represents a significant opportunity not only for Auckland but also for regional New Zealand.
With support from Air New Zealand and seven regional convention bureaux, Australian buyers will be encouraged to extend their journeys and explore destinations beyond the main event. Familiar favourites and emerging destinations alike stand to benefit from the exposure.
Meanwhile, Auckland Convention Bureau has arranged dedicated city tours before the official opening ceremony, offering buyers and media a firsthand look at the city’s attractions, hospitality and event capabilities.
For the NZICC team, hosting MEETINGS during its inaugural year carries special significance.
Prue Daly, General Manager of NZICC, described the occasion as one of the venue’s defining milestones.
“Hosting MEETINGS 2026, New Zealand’s premier business events showcase, is one of the most meaningful milestones in NZICC’s opening year,” Daly said.
“After years in the making, welcoming our own industry, clients and friends to share our venue, purpose-built for connection, creativity and collaboration feels especially significant – and powerfully reinforces why NZICC was created in the first place.”
Those words reflect the broader optimism now sweeping through New Zealand’s meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions sector.
Business events may not generate the glamour of blockbuster tourism campaigns, but they deliver substantial economic benefits. Delegates stay longer, spend more and often return later as leisure visitors. In short, they are the kind of guests destinations love to welcome.
The exhibition component of MEETINGS will take place on 17 and 18 June and remains open to anyone involved in organising conferences, product launches, incentive programmes, roadshows, exhibitions and corporate events throughout New Zealand.
Industry Hours will operate from 2.30 pm to 4.00 pm on both exhibition days, creating additional opportunities for networking and business development.
For Auckland, MEETINGS 2026 is more than a trade show. It is a showcase of ambition. For the NZICC, it is a coming-of-age moment. And for New Zealand’s business events sector, it is a powerful reminder that when the world comes knocking, it helps to have a front door worthy of the occasion.
For registration and event information, visit the official MEETINGS website at MEETINGS New Zealand or learn more about the New Zealand International Convention Centre (NZICC).
By: Octavia Koo – © 2026.
Read Time: 3 minutes.
About the Author.
Octavia Koo arrived in Australia in the early eighties with little fuss and a good eye. Sydney suited her. At UNSW, she studied Arts, then found her footing in graphic design before drifting, quite naturally, into the digital side of things, building websites and shaping words that made people want to stay.
Singapore followed, and with it, the fast pace of tourism platforms and ITB Asia. Long before SEO became a buzzword, Octavia understood how stories travelled online. That’s where she met Stephen, and the seed for something more was planted.
A few years later, she joined Global Travel Media.
Today, Octavia works with quiet assurance, blending art, instinct and experience to produce stories that don’t shout; they simply work and linger.
