Atlanta Chosen as Site of 2016 Travel Exchange

LEXINGTON, Ky.; ALEXANDRIA, Va. (May 23, 2013) —NTA and the United Motorcoach Association have selected Atlanta as the 2016 site of Travel Exchange, their combined trade and appointment show. The event will take place at the Georgia World Congress Center, Jan. 31 through Feb. 4, 2016. In the host city, attendees will find $1.5 billion of new hospitality product that will open shortly before they arrive, said William Pate, president and CEO of the Atlanta Convention and Visitors Bureau.

“We’ll have a fresh face to welcome new and return visitors to our city, including the National Center for Civil and Human Rights, the Atlanta Streetcar, College Football Hall of Fame and the new Ponce City Market along the Atlanta BeltLine,” Pate said. “Atlanta’s position as one of the most accessible cities in the world and an unparalleled meetings package makes it a great location for NTA and UMA’s 2016 Travel Exchange.”

At the inaugural Travel Exchange, held in January 2013 in Orlando, Fla., NTA and UMA brought together more than 3,600 tour and travel buyers and sellers, including 1,176 buyers from 632 companies. Attendees came from 34 countries to attend Travel Exchange, which included side-by-side show floors, extensive education sessions and a variety of networking events in and around Orlando.

“NTA members conducted $114 million of business in both repeat and new bookings at Travel Exchange, so we know we’ve made the right decision to gather under one tent,” said Lisa Simon, president of NTA. “Both organizations wanted to get more buyers and sellers together, and that’s what Travel Exchange does: It doubles the size of both our shows and brings everybody more business.”

The two associations previously announced the sites and dates for the next two Travel Exchange events: Los Angeles, Feb. 16-20, 2014; and New Orleans, Jan. 18-22, 2015.

“The best news about Travel Exchange 2013 came out in our post-convention surveys: Attendees said the entire event far exceeded their expectations,” said Victor Parra, UMA president and CEO. “Our job is to help our members be successful, and with Travel Exchange, UMA and NTA deliver on the promise to our members to find new ways that help their business succeed.”