About
Every January, ABA welcomes the travel and tourism community to the first conference of the year—the industry’s premier business event—Marketplace. More than 3,500 tour operators, suppliers and exhibitors come together to kick off a new year of business opportunity and growth. Marketplace is truly a market-place—an active, vibrant forum of buyers and sellers where business gets done. With more than 140,000 pre-scheduled appointments and 800 pre-qualified operators, Marketplace offers a year’s worth of sales meetings in one week. And with legendary networking and social events, attendees turn conversations from the conference floor into long-term business relationships. Couple this with leading education seminars and the industry’s largest exhibit hall, and Marketplace is really unmatched as the best industry event each year. More than a meeting, Marketplace is a valuable investment that pays for itself many times over, and a can’t-miss annual reunion with colleagues and friends, old and new.
Location of Marketplace 2017
Huntington Convention Center of Cleveland in downtown Cleveland
January 14-17, 2017
Statistics from Marketplace 2016
- 3500 people attended the show.
- 925 motorcoach and tour operators were in attendance
- 310 motorcoach and tour operator delegates took appointments all week
- 362 Associate service & product suppliers attended
- 46 associate product and service suppliers exhibited at MKPL
- Networking Floor offered 14 motorcoaches and 124 exhibitors
- More than 140,000 appointment slots
- 30 appointments on average were prescheduled for each seller
- DMO Delegates: 30 appointments
- Lodging Delegates: 31 appointments
- Attraction Delegates: 30 Appointments
- Associate Delegates: 24 Appointments
- Receptive Operators: 27 Appointments
- 256 sponsors
Justification
We understand in these economic times that many travel budgets have been modified. As a result, you may now need to provide justification for attending the 2017 ABA Marketplace. So here are some things you might want to consider:
- Focus on what you will specifically bring back to the organization as return for the investment from sales, business leads, relationship building and education.
- Offer to prepare and deliver a short presentation to your colleagues to share what you learned at Marketplace. You are also able to take this opportunity to communicate the value of this market, Motorcoach Group Travel and Tourism to your company.
- Share the industry and professional development education worth thousands of dollars that you can implement immediately.
- Be ready with a plan that shows who will cover for you while you are attending the conference.
Testimonials
Check out what past delegates have to say about Marketplace. View the Testimonials
Marketplace Gives Back
Since Marketplace 2007, Marketplace Gives Back has raised more than $333,000 for local charities. The Marketplace Advisory Committee selects a charity with a tie to the host city to raise funds for during the Marketplace week.
2017 Charity: Providence House
Volunteer
Volunteering at Marketplace is a great way to network and learn more about ABA. Hundreds of delegates each year volunteer in the service centers and education sessions.
Contact
meetingsdept@buses.org
P: 800-283-2877
F: 202-898-1575