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Nearly 5,000 attendees from more than 60 countries gathered in San Antonio, Texas, May 20-24 for the 54th IPB.
“The thousands of visitors we received this week is an indication of the strong demand we’re seeing for travel to America,” said Geoff Freeman, president and CEO of the US Travel Association.
IPW brings local travel professionals together with international tour operators, buyers and wholesalers under one roof at the Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center for 90,000 scheduled business appointments over three days, drawing future travel and tourism businesses to the U.S.
The delegation also included around 500 members of international and local media. Reporters covered the event firsthand and met with travel trade and destination leaders in the media marketplace to report on the trip to the US.
In a press release Tuesday, Freeman—in his first IPW since joining the association in September 2022—touted U.S. Travel’s efforts to address barriers to international travel growth, while also highlighting opportunities to grow the sector.
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“As a country, we need to be competitive; to see and anticipate challenges that weren’t even on our radar five or 10 years ago,” Freeman said in a press release.
Steps to increase inbound traffic
Freeman lists four examples of how the US federal government can improve and increase immigration:
- Reducing visitor visa interview timeFirst-time applicants spend an average of more than 500 days in the 10 top visa-requiring markets (except China, which has not fully resumed outbound flights).
- Current average wait times are 527 days in Brazil, 406 days in India and 647 days in Mexico.
- resolving entry delays at US Customs;
- Last month, international visitors at major U.S. airports experienced an average wait of more than an hour.
- Improving the air travel experience A 10-year strategic vision; And
- Increase competitiveness In the international travel market.
This is the first time San Antonio has hosted IPW and the first time the Texas city has hosted the event in Dallas since 2000.
Brand USA is back as a title sponsor of IPW. American Express is the official card of the US Travel Association.
The 55th annual IPW will be held May 3-7, 2024 in Los Angeles.
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