Bangkok will become the meeting point for some of the world’s most travelled people when the Extraordinary Travel Festival (ETF) returns to the Thai capital from 22–25 October 2026.
The four-day event, known as ETF III, will take place at the Ambassador Bangkok Hotel. Organisers now expect more than 40 speakers, along with a global crowd of explorers whose travel records make the average bucket list look decidedly modest. In an August 14 update, Gazarian said more than 190 people had already committed to attending.
Award-winning travel photographer, podcaster, filmmaker, and GlobalGaz founder Ric Gazarian created the festival. Its aim is simple: bring together people who love ambitious travel and give them a place to share what they have learned. Visit the Extraordinary Travel Festival website.
Bangkok’s global explorers gather, swapping passports, stories, ambition.
“The Extraordinary Travel Festival is more than just an event; it’s a celebration of global exploration and human connection,” Gazarian said. “Following the tremendous success of our previous gatherings, we are excited to bring together this unique community once again in a city that truly embodies the spirit of adventure.”
Bangkok is a logical host. The city hosted the sold-out second ETF in November 2024, after the first festival in Yerevan, Armenia, in 2022. Bangkok also gives visitors easy access to Thailand and the wider region before or after the event.
Thailand’s tourism appeal adds another layer. Travel + Leisure named Thailand its 2025 Destination of the Year, while Bangkok remains a major draw for food, hotels, culture, nightlife and transport links. Put plainly, it suits people who consider staying home an alarming waste of a passport. Travel + Leisure: Thailand, Destination of the Year 2025.
ETF III is not only for travellers who have already visited all 193 United Nations member states. It also targets people who want to travel further, tackle harder journeys, and learn from those who have already dealt with difficult borders, visas, logistics, and remote destinations.
The program is expected to include keynote talks, breakout sessions, panel discussions, networking, film screenings and social events. The NomadMania Travel Awards are also scheduled for the final evening on 25 October. Optional trips before and after the festival will allow visitors to build a wider Asian journey around the conference.
The speaker list contains some extraordinary travel résumés.
Seasoned travellers listen closely, plotting their next frontier.
Panamanian explorer Jaime Alemán is billed by ETF as the first person to complete what it calls the “Grand Slam of Travel”: all 193 UN countries, both the North and South Poles and space. His flight aboard Blue Origin’s New Shepard in May 2025 completed the final part of that quest.
Jason Wang brings a different kind of altitude. The former technology entrepreneur has completed the Seven Summits, including Mount Everest. He is also pursuing a wider goal involving all 193 UN countries and both poles.
Kach Medina Umandap is another headline name. ETF describes her as the first woman from the Global South travelling on a Philippine passport to visit all 193 UN countries. That achievement also highlights the very different visa and border hurdles travellers face depending on the passport they carry.
Denmark’s Thor Pedersen offers perhaps the ultimate lesson in patience. His Once Upon A Saga journey took almost a decade. He reached every country in an unbroken trip without flying, travelling by land and sea before finishing in the Maldives in May 2023.
“Imagine the world’s modern-day Marco Polos gathered in a single location,” Gazarian said. “The energy, enthusiasm, and vast knowledge exchanged about travel and country-collecting at our previous events were truly transformative.”
Global explorers unwind, swapping stories over Bangkok drinks.
For the travel industry, ETF III is more than a gathering of people with heavily stamped passports. Tourism boards, specialist operators, travel brands and technology companies are being invited to connect with a highly experienced group of travellers.
Major communities expected to be represented include Every Passport Stamp, Travel Massive, Most Travelled People and NomadMania. Their membership figures are measured differently, but together they reach tens of thousands of travellers and travel professionals worldwide. Travel Massive currently cites 80,000 member connections, Most Travelled People reported 40,000 registered users at the end of 2025, while NomadMania’s website now connects more than 60,000 global travellers.
That gives ETF III clear business value. Many attendees travel beyond the usual tourist circuit and have deep knowledge of emerging destinations, remote regions and complex journeys. For destinations and brands trying to reach credible advocates, that is a rare audience to find in one room.
Tickets are available through the official Extraordinary Travel Festival website. The current ticket page lists attendee and industry ticket categories, and organisers continue to promote the code BANGKOK for a registration saving on ETF III Bangkok tickets and registration.
There will no doubt be plenty of discussion about country counts, visa stamps and obscure border crossings. Yet the festival’s wider message is less about keeping score and more about curiosity, resilience and the value of seeing the world with your own eyes.
And in Bangkok this October, there should be enough collective mileage in the room to make even the most seasoned travel professional wonder whether they have been staying home a little too often.
By: Kanda Limw – © 2026.
Read Time: 4 minutes.
Author Bio:
Kanda Limw is one of those rare people every office quietly depends on. She doesn’t fuss or fanfare her way through the day; she simply notices what needs doing and gets on with it, often before anyone else has drawn breath.
Years behind the scenes have taught her that good administration isn’t about control; it’s about care. Diaries align, tensions soften, loose ends disappear. When the day threatens to tilt, Kanda steadies it without drama.
There’s something reassuringly old-fashioned about her reliability. She listens properly, remembers the small things, and does what she says she will.
Kanda has no appetite for the spotlight. Yet ask anyone who works alongside her, and they’ll tell you that when she’s there, everything runs just a little smoother.
