Trade & Media Events Calendar

ESTO – U.S. Travel Association

Date: August 17-19, 2025

Location: Phoenix, AZ

AOT Division: Trade & Media

Participants: Travel Industry Education – State and City DMO representatives

Cost: ESTO is self-registration. More information at: esto.ustravel.org

Program Summary: ESTO (Educational Seminar for Tourism Organizations) is the premier annual learning and knowledge-sharing forum for destination marketing professionals.

Informa - Connect Marketplace

Date: August 25-27, 2025

Location: Miami, FL

Participants: Participation is open to any tourism supplier 

Cost: $1,950.00 – $5,650.00

Website: https://informaconnect.com/connect-marketplace/

Audience: Receptive tour operators based in North America

Program Summary: Signature AI-powered, one-on-one business meetings and unforgettable networking experiences designed to foster meaningful connections that last long after Connect Marketplace. Informa invites bold speakers and industry leaders to share the latest trends, strategies, and insights you won’t find anywhere else. With 200+ exhibitors showcasing their cutting-edge solutions, you’ll find everything you need at Connect.

AOT Contact: Deanna Nunemacher, dnunemacher@tourism.az.gov

Travel Classics International

Date: October 13-16, 2025

Location: Quebec City, Quebec

AOT Division: Media

Audience: U.S. and Canada-based freelance travel writers and editors.

Program Summary: Travel Classics West is a premier travel writer conference that allows freelance travel writers the opportunity to meet with the industry’s top editors and freelance writers.

AOT Contact: Kim Todd, ktodd@tourism.az.go

Brand USA Travel Week UK & Europe

Date: October 20-23, 2025

Location: London, England

Participants: This event is self-registration at https://thebrandusa.com/travelweek

Cost: $9,500 – Trade / $2,000 – Media

CoOp Mktg Program: Cap on Trade $1,500

Audience: UK & European Tour operators / Media component

Program Summary: Brand USA Travel Week is an immersive celebration of the United States showcasing the diverse range of travel experiences available in the U.S. The event will consist of three major components: The Brand USA Travel Expo B2B event, the Enrichment Series with educational sessions and the Brand USA Consumer Event.

AOT Contact: Trade: Joanna Tejeda, jtejeda@tourism.az.gov

Media: Kim Todd,  ktodd@tourism.az.gov

27th American Indigenous Tourism Conference

Date: October 27 – 30, 2025

Location: Pearl River Resort, Choctaw, Mississippi

AOT Division: American Indian Program

Participants: Participation is open to all Arizona tourism entities.

Cost: Costs vary depending on the level of participation. All registration information is available at https://www.aianta.org/aitc/  or call 505-724-3592 for more information. This conference will be offered in rural co-op for up to 5 individuals and is self-registration.

Audience: U.S. and Arizona Tourism partners and Tribal entities that provide products and services to the domestic and international travel market.

Program Summary: This national conference focuses on tourism in Indian Country and shares knowledge, experience and best practices from tourism programs around the United States.

AOT Contact: Dawn Melvin, dmelvin@tourism.az.gov

AAA National Travel Conference

Date: October 27-29, 2025

Location: Scottsdale

AOT Division: Trade

Participants: Self-Registration – open to statewide tourism receptive operators, hotels and attractions

Cost: Club delegates are $449.00 per person until September 5th and $499.00 per person after September 5th. The fee for suppliers/partners who are attending and have elected not to sponsor is $5,000 per company. Attendance for non-sponsoring companies is limited to one registered representative per organization.

Program Summary: AAA’s annual event that helps support travel options for their 65+ million members. AAA Travel executives from all AAA clubs in North America and CAA clubs in Canada and representatives from all of their travel partners will be in attendance. By connecting with this influential group during dedicated networking sessions, meals, and interactive evening events, you will be able to showcase your destination and collaborate on future partnerships.

AOT Contact: Deanna Nunemacher, dnunemacher@tourism.az.gov

Mexico Trade & Media Mission

Date: November 3-7, 2025

Location: Guadalajara and Mexico City

AOT Division: Trade and Media

Participants: Participation is open to statewide tourism suppliers. Preference will be given to Arizona CVBs, Chambers, and DMOs.

Cost: $3,500 per DMO / 1 delegate per DMO. Contact AOT if you wish to bring more than one delegate.

CoOp Mktg Program: $1,750

Program Summary: AOT and its partners will host trade & media functions in Guadalajara and Mexico City to educate the travel trade and journalists about Arizona’s world-class tourism amenities. Additionally, we will schedule one-on-one appointments with travel trade and media.

AOT Contacts: Trade: Joanna Tejeda, jtejeda@tourism.az.gov

Media: Kim Todd, ktodd@tourism.az.gov

NTA TREX (National Tour Association Travel Exchange)

Date: November 9-12, 2025

Location: Ottawa, Ontario, CA

Participants: Participation is open to any tourism supplier

Cost: $1,595-$2,995

Website: https://ntatravelexchange.com/

Audience: Domestic tour operators and travel agents in the NTA network

Program Summary: Travel Exchange is the National Tour Association’s annual convention, where members get down to business. But it’s even more: It’s a chance to meet the travel world under one roof, a chance to share ideas and turn handshakes into partnerships and conduct one-on-one business appointments. TREX features the hottest travel product from every U.S. state, Canadian province and 30+ countries. If you don’t attend TREX, you’re missing 80% of our tour operators who only attend Travel Exchange.

AOT Contact: Deanna Nunemacher, dnunemacher@tourism.az.gov

German Media Mission

Date: November 16-21, 2025

Location: Munich, Germany and Zurich, Switzerland

AOT Division: Media

Participants: Participation is open to statewide tourism suppliers. Preference will be given to Arizona CVBs, Chambers, and DMOs.

Cost: $3,500 per DMO / 1 delegate per DMO. Contact AOT if you wish to bring more than one delegate.

CoOp Mktg Program: $1,750

Program Summary: AOT and its partners will host media appointments in Munich and Zurich to educate media representatives about Arizona’s world-class tourism amenities.  AOT’s media representative in Germany, Kaus Media, will coordinate media appointments in these key cities.

AOT Contact: Kimberly Todd, ktodd@tourism.az.gov

Brand USA India Sales Mission

Date: January 18-23, 2026

Location: Bangalore, India

AOT Division: Media Relations and Travel Trade

Program Summary: The program features a Trade Track for one-on-one meetings with targeted tour operators, online travel agencies (OTAs), and travel agents; a dedicated PR Track- designed specifically for U.S.-based PR representatives, for networking with senior media representatives; and a concluding Media Day, providing direct engagement between U.S. Delegates and key media representatives.

AOT Contact: Media: Kimberly Todd, ktodd@tourism.az.gov / Trade: Joanna Tejeda, jtejeda@tourism.az.gov

IMM TRAVMEDIA DAY NYC

Date: January 21-22, 2026 (Summit on the 1st day and appointments on the 2nd day)

Location: New York City

Participants: Open to all statewide DMO partners, CVBs & Chambers

AOT Division: Media Relations

Cost: Varies based on membership ($3,750 nonmembers / $3,250 members)

CoOp Mktg Program: $1875 nonmembers/$1625 members

Program Summary: IMM TravMedia is a self-registering event. Each delegate has their own table and set of media appointments to meet with top travel journalists, editors and broadcasters to discuss their news, events and developments. This is a networking and relationship-building opportunity and appointments are scheduled in the TravMedia portal. Visit https://travmedia.com/immusa/ for more info.

AOT Contact: Marjorie Magnusson, mmagnusson@tourism.az.gov

CANADA MEDIA MISSION

Date: February 2-6, 2026

Location: Toronto and Vancouver

AOT Division: Media

Participants: Participation is open to statewide tourism suppliers. Preference will be given to Arizona CVBs, Chambers, and DMOs.

Cost: $3,500 per DMO / 1 delegate per DMO. Contact AOT if you wish to bring more than one delegate.

CoOp Mktg Program: $1,750

Program Summary: AOT and its partners will host media appointments in Toronto and Vancouver to educate media representatives about Arizona’s world-class tourism amenities. A stop may be made in Calgary.

AOT Contact: Marjorie Magnusson, mmagnusson@tourism.az.gov

MIXED INT’L GROUP PRESS TRIP

Date: February (in conjunction with the Arizona Indian Festival)

Locations: TBD

Theme: Exploring Arizona’s Native American Lands and People

Audience: International Travel Writers (one from each market we have representation in including Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Mexico and the UK).

Program Summary: TBD

AOT contact: Kim Todd at ktodd@tourism.az.gov

FRANCE & BELGIUM TRADE & MEDIA MISSION

Date: February 16-19, 2026

Location: Paris, France & Brussels, Belgium

AOT Division: Trade and Media

Participants: Participation is open to statewide tourism suppliers. Preference will be given to Arizona CVBs, Chambers, DMOs first

Cost: $3,500 per DMO / 1 delegate per DMO. Contact AOT if you wish to bring more than one delegate.

CoOp Mktg Program: $1,750

Program Summary: AOT and partners will host trade & media functions in Paris & Brussels to educate the travel trade and journalists about Arizona’s world-class tourism amenities. Additionally, we will schedule one-on-one appointments with travel trade and media.

AOT Contacts: Trade: Joanna Tejeda, jtejeda@tourism.az.gov / Media: Kim Todd, ktodd@tourism.az.gov 

VUSA AUSTRALIA EXPO WEEK

Date: February 23-25, 2026

Location: Brisbane, Melbourne, Sydney 

AOT Division: Trade

Participants: Self-Registration – open to any Arizona Tourism Supplier

Info: https://visitusa.org.au/visit-usa-events/

Cost: $5,500

CoOp Mktg Program: $1,500 cap 

Program Summary: The ultimate travel expo for agents, featuring over 60 US exhibitors showcasing iconic destinations, hotels, cruises, experiences, and more.

AOT Contacts: Joanna Tejeda, jtejeda@tourism.az.gov

BUSA AUSTRALIA B2B DAY

Date: February 26, 2026

Location: Sydney 

AOT Division: Trade

Participants: Self-Registration – open to any Arizona Tourism Supplier

Info: https://www.thebrandusa.com/events/all/australia-b2b-day

Cost: TBD (waiting for BUSA to publish fee for 2026)

CoOp Mktg Program: up to $750 

Program Summary: The B2B sessions are an excellent opportunity to have one-on-one meetings with major decision makers: wholesalers, cruise operators and incentive companies in one venue. Buyers will be invited to attend from New Zealand as well as major cities throughout Australia.

AOT Contacts: Joanna Tejeda, jtejeda@tourism.az.gov

IMM BERLIN TRAVMEDIA DAY

Date: March 3, 2026

Locations: Berlin, Germany

AOT Division: Media Relations

Participants: Open to all statewide DMO partners, CVBs &

Chambers Website: https://travmedia.com/imm/

Cost: Varies based on membership

Program Summary: IMM is a self-registering event. Each delegate has their own table and set of media appointments to meet with top travel journalists, editors and broadcasters to discuss their news, events and developments. A single-day networking and relationship-building opportunity. Visit https://travmedia.com/immgermany for more info.

AOT Contact: Marjorie Magnusson at mmagnusson@tourism.az.gov

ITB BERLIN 2025

Date: March 4-6, 2026

Location: Berlin, Germany

Participants: Open to statewide tourism suppliers (Trade). AOT will have a presence at ITB this year and will allow Arizona DMOs and Suppliers to join based on interest.

Cost: TBD* (Depends on interest of Arizona DMOs and Suppliers)

Program Summary: The International Tourism Exchange ITB Berlin is known throughout the world as the leading trade fair for the global tourism industry. This makes ITB Berlin the main forum for communication and marketing for the worldwide tourism sector. It is an ideal opportunity for exhibitors to get their messages out to both trade visitors and the media. ITB is the world’s largest travel industry trade show with more than 10,000 exhibitors from more than 180 countries competing for travel business from this important European market.

AOT Contact: Joanna Tejeda, jtejeda@tourism.az.gov 

CANADA TRADE SALES MISSION

Date: March 9 – 13, 2026

Location: Toronto & Vancouver 

AOT Division: Trade 

Participants: Participation is open to statewide tourism suppliers. Preference will be given to Arizona CVBs, Chambers, DMOs first

Cost: $3,500

CoOp Mktg Program: $1,750

Program Summary: AOT’s trade representatives in Canada, GMS will coordinate a mission with one-to-one appointments in Toronto & Vancouver. 

AOT Contact: Joanna Tejeda, jtejeda@tourism.az.gov

GO WEST SUMMIT

Date: March 31 – April 4, 2026 

Location: Las Vegas, NV  

AOT Division: Trade

Participants: Self-Registration – open to any Arizona Tourism Supplier

Info: https://www.gowestsummit.com/

Participant Cost: $3,695 – This event is self-registration

CoOp Mktg Program: $1,500 cap on Trade

Audience: International Travel Trade & Receptive Tour Operators

Program Summary: Suppliers representing destinations, properties and attractions from the American West and tour operators from around the planet participate in multi-day appointment sessions.

AOT Contacts: Deanna Nunemacher, dnunemacher@tourism.az.gov

MIXED INT’L INFLUENCERS GROUP PRESS TRIP

Date: TBD

Locations: TBD

Theme: Route 66 Centennial

Audience: International influencers (one from each market we have representation in including Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Mexico and the UK) will explore Route 66 in preparation for the Centennial celebration.

Program Summary: TBD

AOT contact: Kim Todd at ktodd@tourism.az.gov

IPW GREATER FORT LAUDERDALE

Dates: May 17-21, 2026

Location: Greater Fort Lauderdale, FL

AOT Division: Trade & Media

Participants: Participation is open to anyone in the tourism industry. Visit https://www.ipw.com/ for more information and to register.

Cost: Varies by exhibit size and is self-registration

CoOp Mktg Program (Trade): $2,500 (Limit up to 4 DMOs MAX)

CoOp Program (Media): $1,000 for media marketplace (must be registered for a standard or island booth in order to register for media marketplace)

Program Summary: IPW, organized by the US Travel Association, is the premier international trade show in the US attracting nearly 1,200 international tour operators and 250 travel journalists from more than 70 countries each year. AOT attends with staff and international representatives conducting 20-minute, pre-scheduled appointments over three days. In addition to meeting with media at the Arizona booth, AOT also has the opportunity to meet with journalists at the Media Marketplace, which is typically held on the first day of the show.

AOT Booth co-op: AOT allows rural/tribal DMO’s to co-op in to sit in the AOT booth and share appointments with us at an affordable price. Space will be limited to one delegate per DMO (4 MAX) on a first come/first serve basis. Please refer to the Rural co-op selection sheet for more information.

AOT Contact: Trade: Joanna Tejeda, jtejeda@tourism.az.gov / Deanna Nunemacher, dnunemacher@tousim.az.gov / Media: Kim Todd, ktodd@tourism.az.gov

LOS ANGELES MEDIA EVENT - TBD

Dates: TBD 

Location: Los Angeles

AOT Division: Media

Participants: Participation is open to statewide tourism suppliers. Preference will be given to Arizona CVBs, Chambers, and DMOs

Cost: TBD

Program Summary: AOT and partners will host a function in Los Angeles with key media representatives based in the greater Los Angeles area. 

AOT Contacts: Media: Kim Todd, ktodd@tourism.az.gov 

STARLUX AIRLINES FLIGHT LAUNCH ACTIVITY - TBD

Dates: TBD (late 2025/early 2026)

Location: Taipei, Taiwan

AOT Division: Trade and Media

Participants: Participation is open to statewide tourism suppliers. Preference will be given to Arizona CVBs, Chambers, DMOs first

Cost: TBD

Program Summary: AOT and partners will host functions and/or trade and media appointments (TBD) in Taipei to celebrate the launch of Starlux Airlines’ direct Taipei/Phoenix flight in January 2026.

AOT Contacts: Trade: Joanna Tejeda, jtejeda@tourism.az.gov

Media: Kim Todd, ktodd@tourism.az.gov