As May quickly approaches, so too does IPW 2018 – the largest global trade show on U.S. soil. And for this flagship industry event, Visit California and Golden State delegates will be out in full force in Denver May 19-23.

Kicking off Visit California's week at IPW is the annual California Caucus, which will be held 12-2 p.m. on Sunday, May 20. This event allows for California partners to take a break from setting up their booths with a free lunch and an opportunity to come together as the Golden State's tourism industry.

Following the networking lunch, Visit California's new, freshly approved two-year FY18-20 Marketing Work Plan will be unveiled and detailed to allow California partners to learn about all the ways to leverage and engage with Visit California's activities around the world.

International representatives will also be in attendance, serving as resources to engage with and learn from prior to the week's schedule of meetings with global providers of travel. Lastly, Visit California will be distributing some iconic "California swag" items, which include Visit California's staple California Dreamin' Tour T-shirts and poppy lapel pins. 

The largest platform Visit California has at IPW each year is the extremely popular California Dreamin' Tour. The can't-miss concert and reception invites California suppliers and global buyers to be a part of an epic musical experience with top-tier talent — and this year certainly does not disappoint.

This year's edition will feature Southern California singer-songwriter Julia Michaels. Known as “one of pop’s most sought-after hitmakers,” Julia Michaels has written songs for countless artists including Selena Gomez, Justin Bieber and Gwen Stefani. But she saved her breakout hit, “Issues,” for her own 2017 minialbum, “Nervous System,” and as a result scored two Grammy Nominations.

In anticipation to IPW 2019's return to Anaheim, Visit California is partnering with Visit Anaheim as the Dreamin' Tour reception sponsor and will feature Anaheim's "Uncommon Characters," which will bring the Southern California destination to life through Orange County's best culinary offerings.

Attendees are invited to mark their calendars for what is sure to be an unforgettable event at the Denver Center for Performing Arts, Seawall Ballroom – directly across the street from the IPW main site at the Denver Convention Center – from 6-8 p.m. on Tuesday, May 22.

Visit California looks forward to welcoming the largest state tourism delegation to IPW 2018 and bringing the quintessential Golden State spirit to the Mile High City.

With California Tourism Month quickly approaching, Visit California is well underway in planning a robust statewide media and stakeholder outreach effort throughout all of May, amplified through partnerships with industry leaders like you.

Visit California will release its 2017 Economic Impact Report to media at 10 a.m. May 7. The comprehensive report provides detailed breakdowns of the economic impacts of tourism across industry sectors, regions and counties. You can find last year’s report here.

The following materials will help you share your region’s tourism story with your local networks of stakeholders and media contacts. You can find Visit California's comprehensive industry toolkit on the dedicated California Tourism Month page.

These pieces enable you to highlight report findings specific to your county or region in your next newsletter, pitch or post. The toolkit includes:

• A sample press release to send to local media contacts on or after 10 a.m. May 7. Customize and complete the release with your organization’s information and economic data;

• Facebook and Twitter messages to distribute the report’s findings for your area;

• Talking points to provide additional background on the value of tourism and Visit California’s marketing activities; and

• An international arrivals data collection overview sheet to provide an update on the status of national overseas arrival data collection processes.

ECONOMIC IMPACT REPORT WEBINAR

Join Visit California and its research vendors for a webinar at 11:30 a.m. April 27 to discuss both messaging framework around the report and the methodology behind it. Register here to participate.

If you are planning outreach around the report release and would like to coordinate efforts, or if you have any questions, contact Visit California Public Affairs Manager Kayla Woods at kwoods@visitcalifornia.com or (916) 233-0257.