Presidents from Brand USA, the US Travel Association and Choose Chicago, joined the Mayor of Chicago and a Board executive of the Chicago Cubs to welcome some 500 media delegates from around the globe to this year’s IPW at an event at Wrigley Field in the city’s north on Sunday morning.

Geoff Freeman, President and CEO of the U.S. Travel Association, says existing screening and Customs processes for visitors to the United States of America continue to lag behind other nations, and needs urgent attention.

The US Travel Association has highlighted its commitment to the industry and inbound travellers to the United States through its creation of the Commission on Seamless and Secure Travel. The Commission was established, in part, to tackle a range of inefficiencies with visa and customs processing times and baggage rescreening on entry to the United States, viewed as major pain points for international travellers.

The US Travel Association’s annual mega tourism summit, IPW – held in partnership with Premier Sponsor Brand USA – kicked off in grand style this morning in Los Angeles with a takeover event held at the Getty Center in the foothills of the Brentwood area of LA.

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 3-7 May 2024.

Tourism officials in the United States say inbound tourism volumes coming out of the pandemic will skyrocket beyond those of expert opinions.

After several weeks of uncertainty, the US Travel Association has confirmed this year’s IPW (International Pow Wow) travel trade show has been cancelled for 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic. IPW Las Vegas had been earmarked to run from 30 May to 3 June 2020 at the Las Vegas Convention Centre.

“The goal of Visit US is to work with the White House to promote a simple and achievable idea: the US should be the most secure and the most-visited country in the world,” said Roger Dow, US Travel Association President and CEO.