Log in
Oops! Something went wrong while submitting the form.
Create an account
Oops! Something went wrong while submitting the form.
X. Design Week 2026
The AI event the tourism industry
has been waiting for.
Brussels · 2nd - 4th June 2026
X. Design Week returns this year with a completely reshaped model. We have redesigned our flagship event to focus entirely on AI to create a dedicated space where destination organisations can advance their AI strategies and explore the most pressing conversation about where this technology is heading.
This is an intensive, collaborative programme built around hands-on experimentation and high-level expertise. You will join a community of peers to solve specific problems, test new workflows and build a practical roadmap tailored to your organisation's needs.
A clear picture of AI's trajectory and the steps needed for the next 3–5 years.
Frameworks, templates and approaches ready to implement on return.
Direct experimentation with different AI tools and techniques.
Clarity on legal implications, policies and how to tackle them.
Synthesised conclusions from structured debates and shared challenges.
The programme ensures that every attendee will return home with the specific capabilities and knowledge to implement an AI strategy.
We have replaced our traditional design thinking workshops with four zones to create a dynamic village for experimentation and AI-focused discussions. Each zone offers a different perspective on AI implementation. The new layout allows you to move freely between spaces, choosing the sessions and formats that best match your priorities.
Where the industry's hardest questions get unpacked in the open.
Hands-on with the tools, workflows and prompts shaping destination work.
Build the frameworks and roadmaps you take home to your team.
Bring a real problem. Leave with a route forward from experts and peers.
X. Design Week integrates specialist expertise with practical application. Each day follows a clear sequence where expert perspectives inform the agenda before you transition into the parallel zones. Within these spaces, you will test tools and develop strategies while debating the most pressing issues and resolving specific organisational challenges.
Day 1
2nd June
The programme focuses on developing robust internal AI capability. This includes the automation of workflows and the enhancement of team skills alongside the creation of governance frameworks and internal knowledge systems. The sessions provide a clear path for integrating these technologies into the core of your daily operations.
Day 2
3rd June
We also examine how your destination or brand sits within an evolving AI landscape. This involves integrating AI into visitor experiences to improve visibility and discovery. You will refine your content strategy and strengthen your destination presence to ensure your organisation remains prominent as search and discovery habits change.
Day 3
4th June
The final day features intensive sessions dedicated to specific use cases with the support of our experts. You are invited to bring a particular challenge from your own organisation and develop a functional approach to resolve it. Please note that places for this deep-dive laboratory are limited to ensure every participant receives dedicated support.
Limited PlacesDay 1 · Internal Transformation
Most DMOs are in a tactical phase of AI adoption. Tools are being used individually by curious staff, but there are no shared frameworks or structured knowledge systems. This segment addresses the groundwork that allows AI to scale beyond experimentation and become part of day-to-day work routines. We will examine what AI readiness actually looks like when tools, skills, workflows and structure are working together.
There is a widening gap between AI ambition and strategic clarity. For DMOs the gap looks different because the direction is destination stewardship, but the problem is the same. Ambition is high and governance is thin. This segment will reframe governance as the foundation that gives you the confidence to move faster, covering the regulatory landscape DMOs shouldn't ignore and how our AI Transparency Framework supports responsible use.
Day 2 · Competitive Positioning
Travellers are no longer searching for your destination by name. They are searching for experiences and very specific itineraries, with AI answering these questions before they ever see your website. The landscape has shifted from clicks to answers and the destinations that get the visibility are the ones providing the clearest and most trustworthy responses.
This segment will cover how AI Overviews surface content, why preparing content for AI systems also drives organic SEO performance and what strategic principles matter most when visibility depends on technical markup, authority voice and specific content structures.
AI is becoming a functional layer that sits between inspiration and booking. Visitor behaviour is shifting rapidly and destinations are experimenting with AI interfaces embedded at the top of websites, compact AI tools on social platforms, conversational tools in-destination and third-party platforms that handle the full journey from inspiration to planning. This session examines where DMOs should invest and what good looks like, exploring how AI acceptance varies globally, why native integration matters more than plug-and-play experimentation and how to think about brand safety when AI interfaces become the primary point of contact with your destination.
The DTTT AI Transparency Framework is an open-access disclosure and governance standard for the tourism sector, giving destinations a common language for how AI is used in their work.
It shapes XDW from start to finish, and the governance committee convenes for the first time in person at XDW 2nd-4th June 2026.
The Programme
Governance, the Transparency Framework and disclosure practice sit at the heart of Day 1 Afternoon. You will apply it to a real piece of work in the Lab and draft your own AI guidelines.
The Outputs
Every piece of content we publish from XDW will carry a grade. The event report, the Use Cases Library and all session summaries will disclose AI involvement transparently.
The Committee
The governance committee convenes for the first time in person at XDW. Destinations shape where the Framework goes next.
Every attendee takes home a concrete set of outputs that feed directly into organisational work.
All published outputs from the event are AI-assisted, ensuring that the value of every conversation is captured and extended. You will leave with a record of the work produced through a follow-up report which will include strategies and recommendations you can immediately implement within your own team.
Participants will gain access to a searchable collection of authentic AI implementations from destinations worldwide. This library is developed from submissions gathered both before and during the event, providing a broad range of real-world examples to inform your own AI strategy.
Every participant will leave with a library of solutions for the most frequent challenges faced by destination organisations. These solutions provide practical guidance and clear frameworks that you can take back to your team to address similar challenges within your own organisation.
X. Design Week brings together a dedicated network of contributors to support your progress — practitioners who will share honest implementation experience and facilitators who guide your practical work.
Destination Leaders
Practitioners actively running AI programmes in their organisations — the people closest to the work.
Subject Experts
Expert voices invited to lead specific sessions, debates and advisory clinics.
Speakers will be announced on a rolling basis and the full programme will be published by May
At X. Design Week, AI is fundamentally embedded into the structure of the event. Rather than simply discussing the technology, we use it to enhance the depth and clarity of every session.
During the Event
Ambient AI recording captures the nuances of every discussion to produce comprehensive synthesis overnight. In the Debating Room, this technology is used to consolidate conclusions as they happen, allowing you to see immediate reflections of the collective expertise in the room.
During the Event
The Lab provides direct and immediate access to AI tools for live experimentation. This allows for a practical exploration of the technology in a supported environment where the focus remains on functional application.
You are invited to submit your specific AI challenges two weeks before we meet in Brussels. We will cluster these submissions by theme to ensure they inform the core of our Advisory Clinic sessions. This process ensures that the time spent with experts and peers is focused directly on the problems you need to solve.
We encourage you to share the AI implementations you have already trialled, including what worked and what proved challenging. The most insightful examples will be featured during our sessions and will form the foundation of the shared Use Cases Library. This collective knowledge allows every participant to learn from real-world application.
We will establish a baseline for the industry by polling attendees on the most significant questions surrounding AI before the event begins. The Debating Room will then tackle these issues directly, with post-event polling used to track how our collective thinking has evolved over the three days.
We have partnered with a selection of hotels near the venue to make your stay in Brussels simple.
All options are roughly a 10-minute walk from Silversquare Bailli.
A comfortable 3-star hotel on Rue Paul Spaak, a short walk from Silversquare Bailli. Fitness room, bar, 24/7 reception, free WiFi and underground parking.
A 48-room boutique hotel in a 20th-century Brussels mansion in the Art Nouveau district of Ixelles. Contemporary style with a Belgian art-de-vivre feel, a courtyard, and a popular breakfast.
Book & find out more →
An Art Deco-inspired hotel in the elegant Châtelain district. Cozy modern rooms with air conditioning and free WiFi, the ONO Bar with Belgian beers and gins, and a hidden green terrace for an urban-jungle break in the heart of Ixelles.
Book & find out more →In the heart of Brussels' Châtelain-Bailli district, a creative workspace designed around how this event actually runs.
XDW 2026 takes place at Silversquare Bailli, a striking creative workspace in the heart of Brussels' Châtelain-Bailli district. A dynamic venue designed around the four-zone format, where you move freely between The Lab, The Strategy Room, The Debating Room and The Advisory Clinic.
2nd – 4th June 2026
Find out more →Located on Avenue Louise, you are surrounded by the city's best restaurants, bars and concept stores. Brussels offers excellent European connectivity, making it one of the most accessible cities on the continent.
Destination
€595
Full access to Day 1 and Day 2.
Day 3 is exclusively for destination members.
Corporate
€1,495
Full access to Day 1 and Day 2.
Day 3 is exclusively for destination members.
DTTT Member
Min. 2 Tickets
If you're interested in becoming a member, click below to see the different plans.
All tickets
include
DTTT membership starts at €1,495 per year, giving your entire organisation full platform access, including on-demand training programmes and year-round intelligence on AI, sustainability and destination marketing strategy.
Our premium membership tiers provide access to our Knowledge Programme, consisting of quarterly research designed around our community's strategic priorities, in-house strategy sessions and advisory support.
