Scenic Balinese temple surrounded by tropical landscape representing Southeast Asia’s evolving travel and tourism industry. — A scenic temple in Bali, Indonesia (Unsplash/Hebert Kostan)

🎯 The Main Takeaway

The travel industry’s long-standing belief that more discovery drives more growth is being challenged, according to dentsu’s latest Consumer Navigator: The APAC Consumer Travel Landscape (Q1 2026).

The syndicated study of 3,000 respondents across five APAC markets revealed that travel has shifted from aspirational to intentional, and Southeast Asia is where that shift is most legible.

Travelers today are digitally engaged, economically cautious, and making deliberate choices shaped by familiarity and trust over discovery.

AI, social media, and economic pressure have combined to create a more compressed, high-scrutiny journey in which brands are filtered faster, compared more closely, and chosen more cautiously. For marketers in Malaysia and Vietnam, the implications are particularly specific.

📡 Why It Matters

AI is reinforcing loyalty

Despite widespread assumptions that AI would democratise discovery, findings from the study reflect the opposite:

57% of APAC travelers use AI for travel planning
53% rate AI recommendations as generic
42% say it makes them more likely to stick with familiar brands

AI is functioning less like a discovery engine and more like a validation filter, prioritizing brands that are already known, trusted, and top-of-mind. Those who are not face systematic exclusion.

Southeast Asia's travel consumer, in particular, is not a single profile. Data from the findings shows is a region where aspiration is high while channels are crowded.

🇲🇾 Malaysia: Influence is High, Trust is Low

Malaysia represents the most acute version of this shift, with travelers who are highly influenced by social content, yet deeply skeptical of it.

In this market,

67% rely on social media for inspiration
67% are choosing more affordable destinations
63% are influenced by geopolitical concerns

This creates a paradox: brands can easily get seen but struggle to get selected. In this market, inspiration triggers consideration, but without strong brand signals and proof points, visibility alone cannot convert.

“Travel marketing often assumes that more inspiration automatically creates more demand. Malaysia proves the opposite. Malaysian travelers have developed an unusually sharp instinct for distinguishing between perception and reality. Years of economic pressure and digital saturation have created consumers who are incredibly adaptive, knowing how to navigate abundance without fully trusting it. That changes branding's role entirely. This is where inspiration may open the door, but credibility is what gets a brand invited in.” — Audrey Chong, CEO of Dentsu Malaysia

🇻🇳 Vietnam: Travel With Purpose

Vietnam's travelers are the most experience-oriented in APAC, prioritizing activities and experiential travel, yet this market reveals a different tension: strong aspirations held back by real-world constraints.

Highest propensity to prioritize experiences (12 points above the regional average)
Highest trip postponement in APAC (31%)
63% are navigating geopolitical caution
40% see travel as an extension of everyday life

Travel here has become intensely intentional with every trip needing to count, which raises the bar for brands to demonstrate distinct, meaningful experiences rather than generic options.

Proximity and familiarity also anchor decision-making. Domestic and neighboring destinations dominate, reinforced by concerns around currency and regional tensions.

“Vietnam’s travel mindset today is incredibly revealing of where Southeast Asia is heading next. This is a market with enormous appetite for experience, self-expression, and personal enrichment, but also one that is acutely aware of constraint. Vietnamese consumers are simply becoming more selective about what deserves emotional and financial investment. That makes this one of the most emotionally intelligent travel markets in the region, but also one operating with far more nuance than many brands realize.” — Thu Nguyen, CEO of Dentsu Vietnam

Together, the findings from Dentsu’s Consumer Navigator

The APAC Consumer Travel Landscape (Q1 2026) points to a broader shift reshaping travel across Southeast Asia. Travelers are becoming more intentional, more emotionally selective, and far less easily persuaded by visibility alone.

AI may be accelerating discovery, but it is also compressing consideration. For travel brands across Southeast Asia, the study shows that the real shift is that the future of travel marketing will be won by emotional credibility, distinctiveness, and the ability to remain meaningful after the inspiration fades.

(BRZ/QOB)

🧳 🧭 Southeast Asia’s travelers are choosing…