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 where brands are filtered faster, compared harder, and chosen more cautiously. For marketers in Malaysia and Vietnam, the implications are particularly specific.
AI is reinforcing loyalty
Despite widespread assumptions that AI would democratise discovery, findings from the study reflect the opposite with:
• 57% of APAC travellers 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, prioritising brands that are already known, already trusted, and already top-of-mind. Those that 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 where 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.
Audrey Chong, CEO, Malaysia, dentsu, commented, “Travel marketing often assumes that more inspiration automatically creates more demand. Malaysia proves the opposite. Malaysian travelers have developed an unusually sharp instinct for separating perception from reality. Years of economic pressure and digital saturation have created consumers who are incredibly adaptive, knowing know how to navigate abundance without fully trusting it. That changes the role of branding entirely. This is where inspiration may open the door, but credibility is what gets a brand invited in.”
Vietnam: Travel With Purpose
Vietnam’s travelers are the most experience-oriented in APAC, prioritising activities and experiential travel, yet this market reveals a different tension where strong aspirations are held back by real-world constraints.
• Highest propensity to prioritise experiences (12 points above 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 neighbouring destinations dominate, reinforced by concerns around currency and regional tensions.
Thu Nguyen, CEO, Vietnam, dentsu, commented, “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 realise.”
Together, the findings from dentsu’s Consumer Navigator: The APAC Consumer Travel Landscape (Q1 2026) point 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, that is the real shift emerging from the study shows that the future of travel marketing will be won by emotional credibility, distinctiveness, and the ability to remain meaningful after the inspiration fades.
