MEETINGS 2026 is underway at the New Zealand International Convention Centre (NZICC) for the first time, with 253 exhibition stands – including a piece of The Shire from Hobbiton™ Movie Set – on show to over 700 buyers from across New Zealand and key international markets.
Business Events Industry Aotearoa (BEIA) Chief Executive, Lisa Hopkins, says the 29th annual industry showcase comes at a time when international business event arrivals in New Zealand are rebounding strongly.
The business events sector delivered a NZ$925 million boost to New Zealand’s economy last year, according to BEIA research. More than 16,500 international delegates arrived in Q1 2026, up over 50% year-on-year and only 4% below pre-COVID 2019 levels. April was another strong month, 21% ahead of April 2025. During MEETINGS 2025, NZ$110 million of business bookings were generated for New Zealand.
Business Events Industry Aotearoa (BEIA) Chief Executive, Lisa Hopkins
“Business events are one of New Zealand’s most valuable visitor segments. Delegates
travelling here bring global expertise, networks and knowledge into New Zealand, and
support our venues, hotels, hospitality, transport and regional economies,” Hopkins says.
“At MEETINGS, all of New Zealand comes together under one roof to keep the momentum high, converting interest into confirmed events. It’s exciting to see so much business happening in one dynamic space.”
Among the activations on the MEETINGS 2026 exhibition floor, Hobbiton™ Movie Set is transporting delegates straight to The Shire with an authentic, full-scale Hobbit Hole complete with living grass, flowers, and the lush vegetation of Hobbiton’s gardens, built by the same team of carpenters, scenic painters, landscapers, and craftspeople who maintain the iconic Matamata set.
MEETINGS is supporting Garden to Table as its chosen charity this year. The Garden to Table team is on the show floor, showcasing their work teaching children to grow and share fresh seasonal produce. More than 32,000 students at 309 schools across Aotearoa took part in their program last year and enjoyed more than one million vegetable-based meals.
One people, many cultures. – Opening of MEETINGS 2026
The 2026 Celebrity Speakers NZ Showcase features two lunchtime sessions with leading voices from business, innovation, and community sectors.
Day Buyers can still register online or on-site. Other visitors are invited to MEETINGS during Industry Hours from 2.30 pm to 4.00 pm on either Wednesday, 17 June, or Thursday, 18 June.
Edited by: Peter Needham at MEETINGS 2026 in Tāmaki Makaurau, Auckland – © 2026.
Read Time: 2 minutes.
About the Author.
With more than 35 years in travel journalism, Peter Needham has filed stories from Fleet Street to Fiji, and just about everywhere in between. As Managing Editor (Australasia) for Global Travel Media, he shapes industry coverage with the steady hand of someone who’s seen fashions come and go and knows what lasts.
Since going freelance in 1993, his byline has appeared in the Sydney Morning Herald, the Australian Financial Review, Reader’s Digest, and Qantas’ in-flight magazines. He edited Inside Tourism for seven years, wrote the long-running Travel Tales column for Vacations & Travel, and even crafted copy for Tourism Australia ahead of the Sydney 2000 Olympics.
A Reuters, Guardian and AAP veteran, Peter has travelled widely from South American backpacking trails to a Saudi military hospital, gathering stories the old-fashioned way: by being there.
