March 28, 2024 1:28 PM
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Attendance skyrockets at Los Angeles Travel & Adventure Show

Unicomm LLC, an independent business-to-business communications company specializing in originating and managing world class trade shows and conferences, announced that its ninth annual Los Angeles Travel & Adventure Show set a new attendance record.

Holding the title as the largest travel show in the U.S., the Travel & Adventure Show set a new record with over 33,000 travel enthusiasts and trade members attended with over 3,000 travel experts manning the show’s 450 exhibitor booths.

“We were simply blown away by the reception we received from the L.A. metro marketplace this year. We know L.A. travelers have a choice of shows and we are thrilled that they chose ours. It’s exciting to see the tens of thousands of travelers who come to hear speakers, talk to experts and gather information about the places they are interested in, especially since so many of them book great show-only trip deals,” said John Golicz, CEO, Unicomm.

Due to its specific location, the Long Beach show continues to bring in a higher quality demographic of consumers from both L.A. and Orange County. Many exhibitors expected future business and obtained hot leads and active bookings. Early survey results show an increase in median household income of 4 percent to $115,323, with over 89 percent of attendees finding a vacation option to book, or that they intend to book, with an exhibitor at the show.

Time spent at the show increased to 4.93 hours per attendee with a record 1,300 person standing room only attendance at many main stage sessions.

“This has become the nation’s ‘go-to’ event for travel marketers and a valuable sales channel,” added Golicz.

For Unicomm, it is important not only to obtain new attendees but also to provide reasons to keep attendees coming back each year.

“Many of the Golden State’s own destinations return to the L.A. Travel & Adventure show year after year because of one thing – results! This is one of the best shows of the year and the Los Angeles show is not to be missed. The attendees seem to be the types that are ready to go on a vacation. All different ages were represented, and the Long Beach show seems to draw out a better quality and better educated consumer,” said Julie Fullmer, director of sales, Yosemite Sierra Visitors Bureau.

Quality of consumers is an asset and a benefit to both the attendees and the show itself.

“This was a brilliant show! The quality of leads and the audience have been great! We will be following up on hundreds of hot leads for people ready to travel to the South Pacific,” said Matt Greenham, Air New Zealand Vacations.

Many exhibitors increased booth size to allow for the increased attendee volume and interaction – ensuring the return of top quality travel providers, destinations and sponsors in 2015.

Reaching attendance capacity, the four stages were filled at every session, many with standing room only. The main stage, which held 1,000 seats, was sponsored by Travel Channel and was graced by legendary travelers Rick Steves, Samantha Brown, Peter Greenberg, Pauline Frommer, Patricia Schultz and Don Wildman who were available to offer inspiration and detailed travel information.

The Show Organizers announced that they have contracted the entire convention center floor for the 2015 L.A. Travel & Adventure Show.

“The exhibit floor sold out three weeks ago, and we simply could not add more exhibitors and left quite a few on a waiting list. We are very engaged with our attendees and exhibitors year round. They are asking for more exhibits from different parts of the world, more content, and even wider aisles to better navigate the show and exhibitors are asking for larger booths. So in 2015, our plans include an expanded show floor, new regional pavilions and an additional education theater geared to smart travel tips,” said Jim Forberg, COO, Unicomm.

With the largest floor in the U.S. and high quality speaker, the Los Angeles Travel & Adventure Show will return in 2015 to the Long Beach Convention Center on Feb. 21-22.

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