Penang Roadshow Strengthens Ties With India Ahead Of Visit Malaysia Year 2026

‘Simply Penang’ Highlights The Island As A One-Stop Destination For Leisure And Business

Held in Delhi on 21 January 2026, the 9th edition of the Penang Roadshow to India, led by the Penang Convention & Exhibition Bureau (PCEB) under the theme ‘Simply Penang’, highlighted Penang’s ongoing commitment to the Indian market while strengthening tourism and business event partnerships.

The roadshow, running from 19 to 27 January 2026, also visited Mumbai on 19 January, Kochi on 23 January, and Chennai on 27 January. It brought together more than 800 qualified buyers and over 100 media representatives across the four cities, providing direct engagement with key decision-makers in the leisure, corporate, incentive, and meetings sectors.

The Penang Roadshow to India aims to serves as a strategic platform for continued market engagement, business matching, and destination promotion. India remains one of Penang’s most important and resilient source markets, with strong demand across leisure travel, business events, and incentive travel.

As of November 2025, Penang had received over 42,367 visitors from India, marking a significant rise that has propelled India from outside the top 10 in 2024 to become one of Penang’s top six international source markets. This underscores India’s strategic importance as Penang intensifies its global outreach efforts ahead of Visit Malaysia Year 2026 (VM2026). 

The continued visa exemption for Indian nationals until 31 December 2026 further enhances accessibility and travel convenience, reinforcing Malaysia and Penang’s competitiveness as preferred destinations for both tourism and business events.

Penang’s strong performance extends beyond leisure tourism. Up to November 2025, the destination hosts more than 2,900 business events, generating an estimated economic impact of RM 1.3 billion, with final figures for December currently being consolidated. 

The continued growth of the business events segment demonstrates Penang’s capacity to support conferences, exhibitions, incentives and corporate events that contribute meaningfully to economic development, knowledge exchange and destination branding. 

The year 2026 marks a milestone for Malaysia’s tourism industry through Visit Malaysia Year 2026, a national agenda designed to elevate Malaysia’s global profile and accelerate tourism growth. For Penang, VM2026 presents a timely opportunity to amplify international market engagement, attract higher-yield visitors and reinforce its standing as a leading destination for both tourism and business events. 

Initiatives such as the Penang Roadshow to India 2026 play a critical role in advancing this agenda, strengthening market confidence, deepening partnerships and ensuring Penang remains front-of-mind among global travel and events decision-makers.

As Penang looks ahead, PCEB remains committed to strategic market development, sustainable growth and long-term value creation, ensuring that Penang continues to perform strongly on the global stage while supporting national tourism objectives under Visit Malaysia Year 2026.