Nearly 5,000 attendees from more than 60 countries including a strong delegation from Ireland gathered in San Antonio, Texas, May 20-24 for the 54th annual IPW — the travel industry’s premier international marketplace and the largest generator of inbound travel to the United States.
Ireland well represented
As always, Ireland was well represented by the trade and media, who joined in their fair share of the 90,000 scheduled business appointments over the three days – as well as plenty of unscheduled ones in and around the various restaurants and bars of San Antonio.
This is the first time San Antonio has hosted IPW, and the first time a Texas city has hosted the event since 2000 in Dallas.
And the general consensus was that the Texan city did a wonderful job, giving everyone a warm Texas welcome and showcasing the city at its very best.
Remember the Alamo!
The IPW closing party was a spectacular event, with the whole plaza in front of the historic Alamo reserved for a proper Texas-style fiesta that included music, lasso demonstrations, (fake) bull riding, barbecue and a spectacular drone show to close out the night.
“The thousands of attendees we welcomed this week is indicative of the strong demand we are seeing for inbound travel to the U.S.,” said newly appointed U.S. Travel Association President and CEO Geoff Freeman, who has taken over from Roger Dow, who retired after 17 years at the helm.
