The Modern Hotelier #252: 2026 Hospitality Conference, Trade Show, & Events Guide | with John Burns
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David Millili: Steve, let everyone know about today's program. 
Steve Carran: Yeah, David excited about today's conversation. We're joined by John Burns, the President of Hospitality Technology Consulting. Thanks for joining us, John. How you doing today? 
John Burns: Steve, a pleasure. Doing well, thank you. 
Steve Carran: Good, good. So for today's episode, we're gonna do something a little different. We're gonna review some of the events for 2026 and talk about who's going, who they're best for, and a little bit of overview for all of those. So let's dive in. The first one on our list here is ITB in Berlin, David, John both gonna be going to that. John, I'll start out with you. What do you think about ITB? I'm sure you've been before, tell us a little bit about it. 
John Burns: ITB is one of a kind. It brings together a global crowd. A lot of people who don't necessarily come to corresponding hotel shows like HITEC in the United States. So it brings together a worldwide crowd that really showcase European and Asian technology as well as the global vendors. It is a good catch up on what's happening that we in North America might not be aware of. It's also a great meeting place you invariably encounter people that you haven't seen in a long time and have some great conversations.
David Millili: Yeah, I agree. I mean, it's huge. And two, it's a great event where actually business gets done. And, you know, having been there as CEO of a couple companies, you know, we actually signed contracts or renewals and got deals done, which it is great, and that's why you love to go to those events. And so next up March 16th, 18th is the Hunter Conference, which we're excited to be partnering with that's in Atlanta, Georgia. Steve, what are you looking forward to at Hunter? 
Steve Carran: Yeah, never been to Hunter. One thing that really stuck out last year, aside from the great networking for hotel owners, developers, and investors, was their keynote speaker, they always have a really, really big keynote speaker last year was Jesse Cole. So excited to see who they have this year, but I've heard great things. 2000 hospitality professionals getting together to do network and do business together. So excited to be a partner of theirs, John. What do you think have you been?
John Burns: I haven't, I've been to some of its peer conferences like Alice, that in Los Angeles. These are important conferences. They're difficult for someone like me in technology 'cause they tend to talk very little about technology. But having relationships and having conversations with owners, senior executives of the brands and investors is important. So, hunter and its similar conferences are very important to the whole ecosystem. 
Steve Carran: Absolutely. And one that you are going to March 25th to the 27th in Fort Worth is the HFTP Executive Vendor Summit. John, can you tell us a little bit more about that? 
John Burns: This is a really unique event because it pulls the CEOs of hotel technology, vendor organizations. People who usually, if they see each other, are usually a competitor booths at a trade show. In this case, they're able to come together and talk about industry-wide issues, opportunities they're together to make deals. It's a very unusual format and has been very successful in fostering good communication between CEOs.
David Millili: So April 8th and 10th, AAHOA in Philadelphia, which makes me excited 'cause I just wanna get a cheese steak. Steve, I think you've been, what has your experience been with AAHOA? 
Steve Carran: Oh my goodness. It is an awesome trade show, it's been a couple years since I've been, but AAHOA, I'm pretty sure it accounts for over 60% of the nation's hotels. So it is a awesome event to go to they have over 18,000 members as well, so it is one of those events where it's the, the trade show floors jam packed, and they have some really good educational sessions as well. John, have you been to AAHOA account at all? 
John Burns: I haven't, but I deal with a lot of hotels who go and they are very positive about it. You're right. It caters to a constituency that's important in the hotel business and becoming more and more important as future generations or successful generations of hotels come along who have started in family businesses, they're becoming important executives of big hotel companies, this is a vital occasion or opportunity to find out what the sector's doing and to establish longstanding relationships. 
Steve Carran: Absolutely. Well said John. So David, this one I'm excited about something new we're doing this year. I've never been in kind of a different market for us. We're going to the Sea Trade Cruise Summit in Miami, Florida, April 13th to the 16th. David, why are you excited about this one? 
David Millili: Yeah, I think we've both talked about, you know, having really not been on cruises, I mean, a cruise ship is really a floating hotel. And so when you look at the way the cruise industry has evolved and with a lot of hotel brands, especially high-end, trying to get into their own kind of cruise side of things. To me, I'm just really excited to learn. John, what are you have any experience with cruise lines? 
John Burns: I do some work with cruise lines and I take cruises myself and enjoy them. You're right. In some respects, cruise liners are hotels, cruise lines have been under a great deal of pressure to develop effective technology and to apply CRM and guest relationship management technology effectively so we can learn from what they're doing, they're good at revenue management, they're good at people skills, they're good at HR. Shame on us if we're not talking to them and learning from 'em. I think you being there is a very smart move. 
David Millili: Alright. And so April 22nd, 23rd in Boston will be an ILC event. I'm looking forward to it because there's so many independent hotels in Boston and we have so many interactions with independent hotels. Steve, what's been your experience with ILC events? 
Steve Carran: My current experience is a lot of fomo. They are having their event right now in Puerto Rico and man, I'm seeing all the pictures come across my LinkedIn and it looks like another awesome event in a great location. I love ILC events. The network. I've said this before, it's like going to a class reunion almost. You walk in and you see all your old friends and it's just a really, really incredible community. John, have you been to any of the IOC events? 
John Burns: I have not. And in part that's because I tend to work at the brand level rather than with independence. But you make a very good point in terms of this conference and the conferences we're talking about being a really important forum for people just to meet and talk to one another. We tend to be so busy, our heads down at our desk doing conference calls and so on. So often the opportunity to get together face-to-face is really, really useful.
Steve Carran: Absolutely, David, you, me, the team are headed to Mexico City in the middle of May 12th and 13th for the direct booking summit. We helped produce the event last year and we are partnering with them again this year. Tell us a little bit about the partnership and why you're excited about it.
David Millili: I think this is a great event because, you know, Triptease really kind of, you know, kind of stood up and said, Hey, you know, we're all talking about trying to get more direct business. How do we actually pull on an event that actually is, is solely focused on that? The whole, you know, I guess war for lack of better term, with trying to get more business away from the OTA. So I loved our involvement. We were on a panel with Anthony Melchiorri, their speakers were great. As you said, Steve, we helped manage the videography and production. John did it and his team did a great job in editing and we did pre and post promotion for the event. So for me, I just think it's important 'cause hoteliers need to continue to evolve in getting more direct business, have you been John? 
John Burns: I haven't, but a lot of my clients go on a regular basis and they tell me that this is useful because every conference talks about the importance of direct bookings, but few really drill into it and talk about how it can be accomplished. So this with its singular focus on direct bookings, which as you point out are incredibly important. We're trying to rest bookings away from OTAs and have them come directly to our brand.com websites, this is covering important territory, all the more so because of the emergence of AI. And of course, we had to talk about AI at some point. It threatens to disrupt the whole shopping and booking process, so opportunities for hotels to come together and talk about what's happening and how we respond really important. 
David Millili: Yeah. And so just when you thought you couldn't have any more HITEC, HSMAI, the commercial Strategy Conference, and now they're adding the Hospitality Creator Summit. This is gonna be in San Antonio, June 15th to the 18th. I'm excited about this. I'm on the Council for the Hospitality Creator Summit. We'll be there as usual. Steve, you probably, you know, John and I probably, you know, have would really, you know kick your butt here was how many high techs we've been to. But tell us your experience in with high tech. 
Steve Carran: Yeah. I mean, I love HITEC. It's the granddaddy of 'em all right, everybody's always going. A lot of exhibitors are big one of our bigger events that we go to for the year. So if you're listening. You've probably been to a HITEC before but really excited about it. Always good to go and HSMAI as well, and super excited about the Hospitality Creators Summit. It's really not only gonna be fun to see a bunch of new podcasts out there, but also contribute as well. So interested in that, that first time event there, John, let's hear it. What do you gotta say about HITEC? 
John Burns: I've been going to HITEC for years and years and consider it the most important event I go to during the calendar. It is an opportunity to catch up on what vendors are offering, what the promising, what they're delivering, who is where, and what innovation is taking place. Great chance to talk to peers and catch up on what various companies are doing, and at the same time to talk about what's happening across the hall at HSMAI. They had become the home for hotel revenue managers and revenue management, an incredibly part of hotel important part of hotel operations. So all in all, it becomes a week of absolutely great communication and catch up. 
Steve Carran: Well said, John, you're attending the HTNG Tech Summit August 19th and the 20th in Redwood City, California, I've never been. Can you tell us more about that one? 
John Burns: HTNG? Which is now part of AHLA attempts to bring together hotel companies to talk about technology, especially in the area of standards and common issues, common solutions. This is another opportunity where they bring their work groups together to talk about progress, to talk about deliverables. It’s technical, but we're increasingly dependent upon technology and technology working together, inter integrating various systems. So this is a very worthwhile opportunity for the techies to convene and talk.
David Millili: Alright, so September 16th to the 17th in Miami is the fourth year of the independent hotel show. We are excited to be partnering with them for our second year as The Modern Hotelier. Steve, what was your experience like last year in Miami? 
Steve Carran: Miami in September. Never gonna complain about that. Last year was my first time attending and I was blown away. I thought it was a overall great event. Had the great trade show floor and some really good educational sessions. We were able to be on a panel, David about content with hotels, so that was awesome. But overall, it was just a great place and it was a great event to see so many independent hotel years there as well. So, overall, I love it, it's become one of my favorite events throughout the year. John, have you I know you work more on the branded side, but gonna venture down to Miami for the Independent Hotel show this year. 
John Burns: Sadly, no. Another commitment will keep me away from that one, but I watch it from a distance with great interest in many cases while the big brands manage and carry on in the hotel business, it's the independents who are disrupting, who are bringing new ideas, who are leading in personalization and recognition of our guests and guest satisfaction. So, understanding what those progressive independents are doing and cherry picking their good ideas is always worthwhile.
Steve Carran: Well said. And David, we're partnering with destination AI in Washington DC on September 29th and 30th. This is gonna be a first year for us attending and partnering with them. What are your thoughts on destination AI from what you heard so far? 
David Millili: Well, I mean, of course we gotta go 'cause AI is in the title of the event and we've been talking about AI for two years straight now. So excited about the partnership, excited to really just, you know, listen and also be educated. I mean, I think it’s important obviously a very important topic for the industry as a whole, so I'm glad to be part of it and I'm glad for us to be partnering. John, what are your clients saying about this event?
John Burns: They're saying that it is unique in terms of its depth of focus on AI, just like the direct booking summit concentrates on one topic. This AI meeting does the same thing. People come back from it, very pleased. I'm looking at it as a possibility for myself in some respects. It should happen more than once a year with AI changing the environment so quickly. But at least this brings together the principles for a good discussion. And we in the hotel business can't stand on the sidelines and watch AI. It's going to disrupt shopping and booking. We have to understand it and be part of it. This is a forum where we can bring things to action. 
David Millili: Yeah, I agree. Alright, so this was the one that kind of blew me away last year, which was IMEX Las Vegas, October 13th to 15th this year, I think when I called Steve, he probably thought I was having a panic attack 'cause I'd never been before and I've never seen so many hotel groups, so many destinations, and for us in our hotel experience offering our MTV like cribs, tours of hotels. It just is a great place for us to be, again, great destination in Vegas. John, have you been in, what do your clients think about this event? 
John Burns: Sadly this one isn't on my radar. I can't say much about it. 
Steve Carran: That's fair, John. I don't think it was on my radar too much until David called me last year from the trade show floor and I think we're on the phone for about 15 minutes and he was telling me all the exhibitors as he walked by overall, seems like a great event has a lot of destinations there, a lot of hotel, a lot of hotel groups, so overall, I don't think this is on a lot of people's radar, but I think it should be. So I'm excited to do a little recap once we go to, to give it a little bit more visibility. 
David Millili: One quick thing I'll add, which is important, is that it's one of those shows where it's free to attend. So if you need an excuse to go to Vegas and, you know, some of these events can be pretty expensive. So this is one of those where, you know, the entry for hoteliers and vendors is free. 
Steve Carran: Which is always nice always nice. So, we are gonna wrap up the year at the hospitality show, November 2nd to the fourth in Miami, Florida.
David, this has become also another one of our favorite shows. Tell us a little bit more about this one and why you're excited to go to Miami. 
David Millili: Yeah. Well I think Denver was a good show last year. Obviously, you know, I'm just gonna say it. We're very happy that they are not doing the event the same time as high tech because that really kind of was a big stumble out of the gate. So this is unique 'cause it's got a little bit of the high tech flare, but it's got the restaurant and the food and beverage side, which we don't have a lot of, we don't personally, I think is The Modern Hotelier. You go to a lot of events like that where there is the food and beverage side. So for me, I think it's a great event. Again, it's in Miami, a lot going on in Miami this year. John, what did you think about last year and what are you looking forward to this year? 
John Burns: This is a revival of a show that used to happen in New York decades ago, and it, it had everything from frying pans to property management systems. It was a one stop shop. This incarnation of it isn't terribly deep on technology. There's enough to interest me, but for hotel operators, it's a one stop shop to see a great deal in terms of vendors and products that they'd have to search around all over for otherwise. So, it can be really useful to get an update on a whole range options and activities and products that are important to hotel, day-to-day operation. And so it's good to see. I'm glad to see the revival of it. 
David Millili: Well, that does it for this special episode of The Modern Hotelier, the most engaged podcast in hospitality. Whether you're watching or listening, we appreciate you. We hope to see you at one of these events, and we want to thank you, John for joining us today.
John Burns: My pleasure. 
Steve Carran: Thank you, John.