Destinations International Announces New Canadian Alliance and Destinations Showcase Dates

June 4, 2021

As the tourism industry gears up for a bullish recovery, Destinations International, the global trade association for destination organizations, has been busy forming a new alliance while shoring up an existing partnership in preparation for better times ahead. Before and during its hybrid CEO Summit, which took place May 25-27 at the JW Marriott Tampa Water Street in Tampa, Florida, the association announced the launch of its newly formed Canadian Alliance as well as the dates of its Destination Showcase, produced in partnership with PCMA.

Formed this year following the dissolution of the Destination Marketing Association of Canada, the Destination International Canadian Alliance comprises destination organization executives from north of the border, providing a forum for them to meet regularly throughout the year to coordinate on key industry issues including advocacy, resourcing, policy and marketing. The Alliance is also designed to provide strategic guidance to the association and recommendations for how it can best serve its Canadian members, including the development of educational content, programs and research.

“By aligning with Destinations International, Canadian destination organizations are laying the foundation for a strong recovery of the tourism industry and working together to strengthen Canada to be one of the top destinations in the world,” explained Kathleen Trainor, president of the Destination Marketing Association of Canada. 

Membership in the Canadian Alliance is open to any Canadian destination organization that is a member of Destinations International, of which there are currently 23 Canadian members.

Then on May 26, DI and PCMA announced dates for the 2021 Destinations Showcase, an annual event created to connect business event professionals with destination organizations. Scheduled for Oct. 6 at the Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center in National Harbor, Maryland, this year’s focus will be to re-envision the event for 2022 as well as to “re-engage the industry in new and authentic ways,” according to PCMA officials. 

“We could not be more thrilled to reconvene with our destination partners and business event strategists,” said Sherrif Karamat, president and CEO of PCMA. “Now is the time to safely get back to business, network with colleagues and collectively develop a plan for the future of the business events industry.” 

Originally announced in 2019, the Destinations International and PCMA partnership was formed to further elevate and enhance Destination Showcase’s impact to event planners and destination organizations.  

“We know that nothing truly replaces face-to-face meetings,” said Don Welsh, president and CEO of Destinations International. “We look forward to bringing together PCMA and Destinations International members to safely celebrate the power business events bring to communities around the world.” 

 

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