Global Aviation Leaders Convene in Istanbul to Define the New Era of Airport Experience

Nearly 800 delegates will gather to shape a new chapter of human-centred travel and celebrate the world’s best airports for customer experience.

Istanbul, 02 September 2026 – Global aviation leaders, customer experience (CX) experts and travel professionals have convened in Türkiye as Airports Council International (ACI) World opens the eighth edition of the ACI World Airport Experience Summit. Hosted by iGA Istanbul Airport from 31 August to 4 September, this premier global event demonstrates the industry’s unified, global commitment to improving passenger experience.

Under this year’s theme, “Airport Experience: The New Era,” the Summit will examine the next evolution of human-centred travel. Agenda topics will explore the role of hospitality and ways more airports are placing people at the heart of their operations, organisational culture, and service delivery.

A cornerstone of the Summit will be a dedicated Gala and Awards Ceremony on 2 September, celebrating the best airports in the world for customer experience. During the Ceremony, ACI World will recognise over 100 top-performing airports receiving ASQ Customer Experience Awards as well as those earning Customer Experience Accreditation. This year’s ceremony also coincides with the 20^th anniversary of ACI’s ASQ programme, the world’s leading airport passenger satisfaction benchmark and the basis for the Awards.

ACI World Director General Justin Erbacci said: “As global passenger traffic is forecast to nearly double over the next two decades, building and investing in new infrastructure remains essential. However, our future also relies on infusing those spaces with genuine hospitality. As an industry, we are increasingly designing around human needs and wellbeing, moving beyond simply processing people to truly understanding them.

We are proud to open this Summit, in Istanbul, Türkiye, a vibrant global hub connecting East and West. iGA Istanbul Airport truly demonstrates how operational excellence and passenger experience coexist naturally. As the only airport in Europe to achieve the highest level of ACI’s Customer Experience Accreditation, it serves as a great example of an entire airport community aligned around a shared commitment to the traveller.”

iGA Istanbul Airport CEO Selahattin Bilgen said: “It is a pleasure to welcome the global aviation community to iGA Istanbul Airport for the Airport Experience Summit, in partnership with ACI World. As Europe’s busiest airport by passenger volume, passenger experience remains at the heart of our vision. Understanding how passengers travel, interact and feel throughout their journey guides how we design, operate and continuously evolve our services to meet the needs of travellers from around the world.

By bringing together industry leaders from across the aviation sector, this Summit provides a unique platform to share insights, inspire innovation, and shape the future of airport experience. Together, we can help set new standards for the industry and ensure every journey is as efficient and enjoyable as possible.”

Summit highlights include:

• Keynote address by Florent Bayle-Labouré, Chief of Staff and Strategy at Cirque du Soleil, on designing emotional impact at scale.
• Over 60 industry-leading speakers from leading hub airports, regional gateways, and the broader travel technology and hospitality sectors. Sessions will explore critical topics including employee experience, traveller stress reduction, improved wayfinding, accessibility, embedding local culture and identity, and technology enablement.
• Curated CX workshops featuring unique insights from Cirque du Soleil on elevating the passenger journey and building exceptional experiences.
• The Talent & Growth Seminar focused on future workforce development and building resilient, high-performing teams.
• Global recognition celebrating the world’s most customer-centric airports from the ASQ Customer Experience Awards, sponsored by SITA, and Airport Customer Experience Accreditation.

About ACI 

Airports Council International (ACI), the trade association of the world’s airports, is a federated organization comprising ACI World, ACI Africa, ACI Asia-Pacific and Middle East, ACI EUROPE, ACI Latin America and the Caribbean and ACI North America. In representing the best interests of airports during key phases of policy development, ACI makes a significant contribution toward ensuring a global air transport system that is safe, secure, efficient, and environmentally sustainable. As of January 2026, ACI serves 811 members, operating over 2,200 airports in more than 160 countries worldwide.

About iGA Istanbul Airport

iGA Istanbul Airport is Türkiye’s gateway to the world – and the largest infrastructure project in the history of the Turkish Republic. Established on October 7, 2013 to construct and operate Istanbul Airport for 25 years, iGA has been welcoming passengers since April 6, 2019. Built on a 76.5-million-square-meter site, the airport is being developed in four phases. The first phase already features a terminal with a 90-million-passenger capacity, and once all phases are complete, iGA Istanbul Airport is set to serve up to 200 million passengers annually – cementing its place as the region’s most important global transfer hub.

Vision: To offer the airport experience of the future, from today.

Mission: To be a global hub delivering the most comfortable and impeccable travel experience to every guest, passenger, and stakeholder around the world.

Recognized on the world stage, iGA Istanbul Airport was named the “World’s Best Airport” in 2025 by both Travel + Leisure and Condé Nast Traveler.