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Smart Travel: MICE Industry’s Positive Impact on Business Travel, Wynn Resorts’ Bigger Better UAE Plans Revealed, Indigenous Tourism Booms and More

Smart Meetings

and China Drive Business Travel Recovery A new report by the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) predicts business travel spending will reach a new height of $1.5 While virtual meetings kept people connected during the pandemic, in-person engagements are proving more critical than ever.” trillion by the end of 2024.

Tourism 242
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Proposed Florida Tourism Tax Bill Could Impact Event Infrastructure

Smart Meetings

April 25, 2025 On Friday, the Florida House of Representatives passed a pair of bills that could change how tourism taxes are used in the state. The bill made allowances for 1% higher taxes in high tourism impact counties if taxable sales exceed $6 million in the previous calendar year or were at least 18% of the countys total sales.

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MICE professionals

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Refract Seattle: The Power of Connecting Events to Local Community

Smart Meetings

Refract Seattle 2024 was the largest yet, in the festival’s sixth year—and it’s a shining example of an opportunity for business meetings and events, from citywides to VIP groups, to get connected with the locale of their chosen destination in an unforgettable way.

Events 246
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LA Tourism President: ‘Host an Event to Support the City’

Smart Meetings

In a quest to better understand what is really happening in Southern California after the well-publicized fires last month, we asked Los Angeles Tourism President and CEO Adam Burke what meeting professionals can expect when they arrive. Read More: Los Angeles, a Planner’s Paradise What should meeting professionals know?

Tourism 130
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Louisville Tourism Meeting Profs Share Trends, Secret to Meaningful Experiences

Smart Meetings

With new meetings come new trends. After the great halt that is Covid-19, meetings are coming back and with them, novelties and shifting interests meeting professionals are looking to incorporate in their meetings. Courtney Pickett. Pickett has seen increasing interest in downtime exploration. Lauren Johnson.

Trends 237
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Smart Travel: Chase and Travelport Team Up, Ottawa Airport and Light Rail Transit Connect, New Security Screening Wows in Frankfurt and More

Smart Meetings

Have an upcoming meeting in Ottawa? As always, Smart Travel is here to bring you the latest cant-miss news in tourism and travel. For meeting profs, this means more seamless access to competitive airfares, hotel accommodations and car rentalsall curated through Travelports AI-driven Content Curation Layer.

Travel 228
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Business Events Industry Week 2025 Focused on Celebrations That Work

Smart Meetings

Events Industry Council (EIC) , National Coalition of Black Meeting Professionals (NCBMP), International Congress and Convention Association (ICCA) and The Center for Association Leadership (ASAE) joined the founding partners and kicked off the event at Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center in 2022. “Be like U2,” he said.

Fashion 207