For many travellers, the North Pacific remains unfamiliar territory. However, destinations such as the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM), Palau, Kiribati, the Republic of the Marshall Islands and Nauru are home to pristine marine environments, rich cultural traditions and unique experiences found nowhere else on earth. For tourism operators in these communities, the challenge has never been the quality of what they offer - it has been reaching the travellers looking for it.
Limited digital infrastructure, distance from major source markets, and few connections to international booking platforms have meant that many North Pacific operators remain largely absent in global tourism supply chains.
It is a challenge PTI Australia knows well. Through its Digital Tourism Program - which has been delivering workshops and technical support across the Blue Pacific for over a decade - PTI Australia works directly with accommodation providers and activity operators to build strong digital assets, establish online booking capability and gain visibility on booking platforms like booking.com and Expedia, where international travellers search and book. In 2025 alone, the program facilitated A$72.8 million worth of online bookings across the Pacific.
In 2026, PTI Australia is building on those foundations and going further - not only delivering workshops and digital support in the North Pacific, but expanding into trade connections, destination branding, influencer marketing and direct engagement between North Pacific operators and international buyers.
Tim Martin, PTI Australia's Trade Commissioner, said the work reflects a natural evolution.
"The Digital Tourism Program has proven what is possible when you equip Pacific operators with the right digital tools. What we are doing in the North Pacific now is building on that - connecting operators with travel sellers, developing bookable packages, supporting destination branding and aligning activity with the air routes that bring visitors to their doors."
In February, PTI Australia delivered face-to-face Digital Tourism Workshops in Palau and FSM, drawing 80 registrations across the two island states. Participants worked through practical topics from website optimisation and instant booking setup to connecting with online travel agencies and social media marketing — with the workshops also identifying new operators for enrolment in the broader program.
But digital capability is only part of the picture. For North Pacific operators, getting in front of international buyers matters just as much — and that means being present where the travel trade does business. PTI Australia supported FSM operator Jason Neth to attend the South Pacific Tourism Exchange (SPTE) in Fiji, connecting him directly with buyers seeking adventure and off-the-beaten-track experiences — the kind of travel the North Pacific is positioned to deliver. Neth arrived trade-ready, with bookable product and the backing of a broader network of FSM accommodation, tour, transport and dive operators behind him.
Neth said the pathway from workshop to trade floor made all the difference.
"Attending SPTE gave me the chance to sit down with buyers who had never considered the Federated States of Micronesia as a tourist destination. Our special thanks to Onorina Fugawai from Pacific Trade Invest for being able to do a two-day workshop at Pohnpei, FSM right before the SPTE event in Nadi, Fiji - it made it possible for me to learn about the event and attend. By the end, I had serious interest in packages that would bring divers and cultural travellers to our islands. Those were indeed unique buyer-seller conversations that could not have happened from home."
PTI Australia has supported the Tourism Authority of Kiribati — with funding from the ADB Pacific Private Sector Development Initiative (PSDI) — in the development of a new consumer-facing website and destination branding, ensuring that when potential visitors search for Kiribati online, they find professional, engaging content that reflects the uniqueness of the destination.
The second half of 2026 will see these threads come together further, with the Treasures of the South Pacific Roadshow — a six-city Australian program featuring a dedicated spotlight on five Small Island States that currently lack formal tourism representation in Australia - equipping travel professionals with the knowledge and tools to sell North Pacific experiences to their customers.
Martin said the individual activities are connected by a larger logic.
"When you connect digital capability with trade-ready product, link that product to distribution networks, and align distribution with air connectivity, each piece starts to reinforce the others. And at the centre of it all are the operators themselves - Pacific tourism operators building their own futures. That is what makes this work sustainable."
Pacific Trade Invest (PTI) Australia is an agency of the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat, funded by the Australian Government. PTI Australia facilitates trade, investment and tourism opportunities for Pacific businesses in the Australian market.
For more information, contact Onorina Fugawai, Tourism Manager, at onorina@pacifictradeinvest.com.
