The Travel & Adventure Show wrapped up its 2025 series in Washington, DC, March 29-30—nine shows after the first event of this year in Atlanta back in January. At the final three-day trade show in the nation’s capital, attendance soared 10.6% overall year over year, according to John Golicz, the founder and CEO of the Travel & Adventure Shows. 

Benefitting from B2B 

Golicz told TSNN that when he founded the Travel & Adventure Shows back in 2003, it was a business-to-consumer event. However, when the trade show series transitioned to a “hybrid” format—in this case, meaning a business-to-business format that also welcomes consumer attendees—he said he “could never go back [because] the margins are just too good.” 

The proof is in the stats: Aside from increased overall attendance, the Washington, DC, iteration reported an 11.4% increase in trade attendees from last year. Fitting, considering that the city was one of five that experienced record-sized trade show floors in 2025. (The Washington, DC, Travel & Adventure Show took place in the Walter E. Washington Convention Center’s 128,000-square-foot Hall C.) New York, Chicago, Denver, and Dallas were the other record-breakers. 

Because the show floor grew, it comes as no surprise that the number of exhibitors did too, from 842 unique companies across all shows in 2024 to 997 in 2025—an 18.4% uptick.  

Golicz said the planning team spends a lot of time on curating the show floor and has found that the “proper mix of exhibitors” is “45% domestic, 45% international, 10% suppliers and related products.” 

The B2B travel advisor community, meanwhile, “is served by the floor and specific programs we generate just for them,” Golicz said. Still, some 95% of exhibitors who attend the show serve consumers. 

Among the travel enthusiasts, advisors, and media who attend the Travel & Adventure Show—produced by leading trade show organizer Unicomm, LLC., where Golicz also serves as the CEO—Golicz touted: “By means of having a world-class show floor and speakers, we now attract more travel advisors across the ten shows than any B2B travel event—and we monetize them. In fact, the B2B aspect grew 350% over the three-year period.” 

New & Noteworthy Show Features 

The Travel & Adventure Shows debuted “State & Country Pavilions” this year, where a “country or state buys a large space and, in turn, re-sells to private and regional partners,” Golicz explained. “It increases sales volume without having to increase sales force,” he added of the pavilions, noting that they will return for Travel & Adventure Shows’ 2026 slate of events. 

Though not new this year, all ten of the Travel & Adventure Shows featured three main “Content Theaters” built into the show floor—because “I never want a body to leave the main floor,” Golicz said. They included: 

1. The main Travel Theater: Here, up to 1,000 attendees could hear from “celebrity travel luminaries,” including renowned travel writer Rick Steves; Phil Keoghan, host and executive producer of CBS’ “The Amazing Race”; and Discovery Channel presenter-actor, producer, and host Josh Gates, just to name a few. 

2. The Savvy Traveler Theater: This 250-seat area featured subject-matter experts who educated travelers on jet-setting more efficiently— with tips on “how to pack to using travel tech, hacking travel points, and even insuring their trips,” Golicz shared. 

3. The Destination Theater: At this speaker stage, destination-specific sessions packed information about where to go, what to do, how to get there, and how to budget to do so within 30 minutes. “These are exhibitor-paid sessions and sell out each show,” per Golicz. 

Across the 2025 series, these primary themes became clear, according to Golicz: 

• “Travel has become an important part of people's lives since the pandemic,” he said. “Previously taken for granted—then taken away—travel remains a key area of discretionary spending.” 
• Speaking of the pandemic, since travel restrictions were lifted, “we have seen an increase in higher spend, multigeneration trips, [and an] increased desire for cultural immersions.” 
• Though “sustainability plays a role” in travel, it “is not a driver.” 
• “The Shows are accelerating along the consumer trend of placing more value on experience than possessions.” 

It’s also worth noting that for the first time, the 2025 Travel & Adventure Shows went “completely digital for all ticketing, admissions, and lead retrieval. All via smartphones,” Golicz said.  

He noted that digitizing the event may not seem new for many attendees, but “it has taken quite some time to source a vendor who could handle the volume of our shows.” After all, there’s a robust programming of ten shows across consecutive weekends, which have been known to boast lines of up to 2,000 guests waiting to get in at the start of the day. 

First-Class Spenders 

Among the most impressive stats, each of the 10,000-30,000 guests that attend Travel & Adventure Shows spend anywhere from $2,000 to $10,000 on their trip, Golicz said. The return on investment benefits more than just Golicz: “74% of attendees find a trip they buy from an exhibitor within six months,” he said.  

Exhibitor spending cruised 16% higher this year too after rising 17% in 2024, which Golicz attributed to incentivizing returning partners with “significant re-sign discounts for exhibitors who can (and do) re-contract at shows and pay in full.” There’s also discounts for firms that show up at multiple shows in the series, and “we strategically discount to grease deal velocity—a metric we actively measure," Golicz said, calling himself a “zealot” for time to close. “In this I think we are pretty unique versus other show companies.” 

On the Radar 

All ten shows for the 2026 Travel & Adventure Show have already locked in dates. As per usual, the regional events “focus on the top DMAs (Designated Market Areas) in the country,” explained Golicz, who believes the show series has seen so much success because “it brings the show to the people.” 

Future enhancements include plans to implement artificial intelligence to facilitate onsite services, sales and prospecting calls, and sales performance improvements, Golicz said.  

Mark your calendar for the following: 

• Seattle, Wash.: Jan. 10-11, 2026 
• Washington, DC: Jan. 17-18, 2026 
• New York: Jan. 24-25, 2026 
• Phoenix: Feb. 14-15, 2026 
• Chicago: Feb. 21-22, 2026 
• South Florida: Feb. 28-March 1, 2026 
• Los Angeles: March 7-8, 2026 
• Bay Area: March 21-22, 2026 
• Dallas: March 28-29, 2026 
• Denver: April 11-12, 2026 

Don’t miss any event-related news: Sign up for our weekly e-newsletter HERE, listen to our latest podcast HERE and engage with us on X, Facebook and LinkedIn!