Los Angeles to Host ‘Watershed’ Moment as U.S. Travel’s IPW Convention Returns

 Nation’s Largest Inbound Travel Show Descends on LA for First Time in 12 Years May 3-7, Generating Estimated $5.5 Billion in Future Business for U.S. Travel Economy

 LA to Welcome 5,700 Delegates with Key Events at Getty Center, Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum and Universal Studios Hollywood  

For the first time in 12 years, Los Angeles Tourism & Convention Board is proud to welcome the U.S. Travel Association’s IPW—the largest inbound travel trade show—to Los Angeles, from May 3-7.  The Los Angeles Convention Center will serve as the main backdrop for IPW with key events being held throughout the city, including the Getty Center, the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in Exposition Park and Universal Studios Hollywood. The announcement comes as Los Angeles Tourism, in collaboration with Tourism Economics, announces its 2023 year-end tourism performance, with 49.1 million total visitors—97 percent recovered to 2019, our benchmark year—including 43.3 million domestic visitors (100 percent recovered to 2019 levels) and 5.8 million international visitors (nearly 79 percent recovered to 2019), $40.4 billion in total business sales (106.9 percent of 2019 levels), and more than 530,000 tourism-related careers for Angelenos. Hotel demand grew to 30.2 million total room-nights sold last year with hotel occupancy rising to 71.7 percent and average daily hotel rates reaching $198.  In 2023, visitation to Los Angeles reduced the tax burden on Los Angeles residents by generating $3.2 billion in state and local tax dollars to fund essential City services, and as a result, each Los Angeles County household saved $965 in annual state and local taxes.

“Tourism continues to be an indispensable economic engine for Los Angeles, impacting the livelihoods of more than 530,000 tourism-related careers for Angelenos,” said Adam Burke, President & CEO, Los Angeles Tourism. “LA is one of the world’s most exciting, inclusive and ever-evolving destinations, and we are privileged to host IPW this year, a watershed moment for Los Angeles’ tourism industry. With sustained global interest in the City of Angels, and with more demand generators now than ever before, we are confident that LA will see the benefits of IPW for years to come.”

At IPW, the international travel marketplace comes to the US under one roof with the goal of increasing international inbound travel. This year’s show attendance will exceed 2019 levels for the first time since the pandemic and is expected to generate more than $5.5 billion in future travel to the United States. Throughout the show nearly 100,000 prescheduled business appointments will take place, connecting 1,700+ global travel buyers and press with 5,700 travel professionals representing nearly 70 countries.

Visitors to LA hail from the United States (43.3 million visitors) as well as from key international markets including the following Top 10 in 2023: Mexico (1.71 million visitors); Canada (780,000); China (400,000); the United Kingdom (310,000); South Korea (269,000) and Australia (266,000); France (264,000); Japan (230,000); Germany (190,000); and India (110,000).

“With its incredible diversity and global accessibility, Los Angeles is a perfect city to host U.S. Travel’s IPW and the thousands of travel professionals who are building back international travel to the United States,” said Geoff Freeman, President and CEO of the U.S. Travel Association. “It’s been more than a decade since this signature event has convened in LA, and it will lead to years of new visitation and benefits for the city, the state of California and the country overall.”

Los Angeles Tourism continues to focus on international tourism recovery. While domestic visitation has led the destination’s tourism comeback, overseas visitation continues to see a more staggered recovery, with another 24 months expected until every source market reaches full pre-pandemic levels. LA Tourism maintains a year-round presence in 15 global markets across four continents, including seven of its own LA Tourism overseas offices in the United Kingdom, Australia, China (four locations) and India.

During IPW, Los Angeles will host several events, including the Media Brunch on Saturday, May 4, at The Getty, in partnership with PST ART: Art & Science Collide; Opening Night at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, also on Saturday, May 4; and the Closing Event at Universal Studios Hollywood on Tuesday, May 7. The Los Angeles Convention Center will serve as the backdrop of the tradeshow itself, with Visit California providing programming at California Plaza.

As air service recovers in key source markets, LA Tourism continues to promote LA globally with its ‘Now Playing’ global advertising campaign, which released its most current and largest investment ever in February 2024. The unprecedented eight-figure investment targets visitors from the U.S., Australia/New Zealand, Canada, France, Mexico, South Korea and the United Kingdom. Since the campaign’s initial launch, ‘Now Playing’ has generated more than $2 billion in incremental direct spending in Los Angeles.   The ‘Now Playing’ campaign is expanding this month to reach drive and short-haul markets such as San Francisco, San Diego, Sacramento, Fresno, Santa Barbara, Palm Springs, Las Vegas, Phoenix and within Los Angeles to drive hotel room demand by leveraging major events throughout Los Angeles County.

“Los Angeles and all of California will be the center of attention for the global tourism community in the coming days, showcasing the abundance of experiences in the Golden State and the unparalleled resilience of the travel and hospitality community,” said Caroline Beteta, president and CEO of Visit California. “California is the ultimate playground for travelers from across the world, and offers every visitor an opportunity to play in a way that speaks to them.”

Los Angeles Tourism continues to elevate the City’s new product and developments, promoting all of What’s New under the banner of LA 2.0.  There is no shortage of demand generators including the ongoing  $30 billion modernization of Los Angeles International Airport (LAX); new stadiums such as the Intuit Dome opening this Fall; a vibrant culinary scene including more Michelin-rated restaurants than ever before; exceptional arts and cultural enhancements and openings including the debut of South LA’s Destination Crenshaw, the opening of NHM Commons—the new wing of The Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, nearing completion of the construction of the David Geffen Galleries at LACMA. Additionally, Los Angeles will host PST ART: Art & Science Collide, a landmark regional event that is an initiative of Getty with arts institutions across Southern California that explores the intersection of art and science, both past and present, coming September 2024 to February 2025, with 818+ artists and 60 exhibitions; and Universal Studios Hollywood Studio Tour’s 60th milestone anniversary, with a dedicated experiential program from April 26 to August 11, 2024, the City has no shortage of new demand generators.

LA Tourism Meetings and Conventions welcomed 21 citywide conventions to the Los Angeles Convention Center in 2023, drawing more than 390,000 attendees and generating nearly 182,000 room nights for LA-area hotels. In 2023, meetings and events generated nearly $422 million in total spending.

To learn more and discover Los Angeles and its many diverse regions, visit www.discoverlosangeles.com.

To view LA Tourism’s 2023 Community Benefits Fact Sheet, please click here.

To learn more about U.S. Travel’s IPW, visit www.ipw.com.