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.
Focused on the international inbound market, IPW is a national showcase of America, and lures travel buyers and media from 70 countries each year. The event drives US$5.5 billion in future travel to the United States.
Overnight [15 April, 2020], IPW’s General Manager Malcolm Smith confirmed that after a “thorough decision-making process” that explored all possibilities, it was decided the 2020 event would be shelved.
“We are saddened with the circumstances of the coronavirus pandemic including global travel restrictions, flight reductions, mandated social distancing and stay-at-home orders both in the US and abroad have made this year’s event impossible to execute,” Smith said.
Smith acknowledged that COVID-19 has raised “challenges” in all parts of the world, with the “travel community being especially hard-hit”.
Details on the process for credits and refunds for delegates and investors would be disclosed next week, along with further information on IPW 2021, which has previously been flagged for Chicago (24-28 April 2021).
“Until we are able to convene again face-to-face at IPW, we are exploring ways to keep our industry connected and engaged,” Smith concluded.
Lead image: IPW 2017 / Image credit: David Keith
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