A Trade Show, Educational Sessions, An Entertainment Showcase And An After-Party To Help You Learn, Connect, Sell & Grow!

AON Grand Ballroom at Navy Pier | April 19

Connect

Build your network with Chicago's top attractions, venues, restaurants, concierges, retailers, and fellow hospitality professionals during the trade show. Don't miss a contact, download the event app, and get connected! 

Stay Current

Enjoy a selection of educational sessions from our lineup of industry leaders that will cover tourism trends, social media influencers, creating safe events, and more! 

Invest In Yourself

Find the attractions, restaurants, hotels, and tourism influencers that you really want to meet with to grow your network. Don't forget, by attending our education sessions you may earn CE credit towards your CMP designation.

About The Summit

Celebrating 21 years, the Hospitality & Tourism Summit is where concierges, meeting and event professionals, hotel sales teams, and industry professionals connect before the busy Summer season. This one-day event brings together over 1,100 people in the tourism, groups, and private events space including a veritable "who's who" in the hospitality, events & tourism industries, and businesses like yours that are looking to grow!

3 Education Sessions

General Session: The Future of Hospitality, Events & Tourism in Chicago | 12:30 PM

This insightful panel led by Choose Chicago Interim CEO Jim Meyer, will explore the state of the industry and what to expect in 2022 and beyond. Panelists include MPEA CEO Larita Clark, Navy Pier President & CEO Marilyn Gardner, Illinois Hotel & Lodging Association President & CEO Michael Jacobson, and Illinois Restaurant Association President & CEO Sam Toia. Also, enjoy some magic from the Magic Parlour's Dennis Watkins, this session's emcee.  Sponsored by Skydeck Chicago

Tourism Panel: Today's Approach to Hotel Guest Services & Experiences | 11:30 AM

This dynamic panel, led by Ateema CEO Tim O'Malley, will explore how hotels serve guests, how operations have changed due to the pandemic, and how businesses can best participate in the process. Panelists include Nabil Moubayed, General Manager, The Kimpton Gray Hotel, Alex Yu, Concierge, Pendry Chicago Hotel, and Beverly Johnson, Guest Services Representative, Silversmith Hotel Chicago Downtown.  The Magic Parlour's fabulous Dennis Watkins, will emcee this session.

Meetings & Events Session: Take The Fear Out Of Team Building At Your Next Meeting | 11:00 AM

Join Premier Team Building's Matt May as he explores why team building has such a negative connotation to so many and how to overcome that speed bump to build better relationships. Based on his research, Matt will share his findings and solutions from his book, TAKE THE FEAR OUT OF TEAM BUILDING. Team building is more than zip lining, trust falls, and slide show presentations and this session will highlight positive team building experiences and what they entail. Still feeling skeptical? It’s time you participated in this interactive, informative, and engaging presentation.  Planners you don't want to miss this!

Benefits of Attending

-Learn about industry trends, hacks and insights
-Meet leads, partners, suppliers and influencers
-Sell your services and educate the industry on your offerings
-Enjoy sampling great food, drinks, activations and entertainment
-Celebrate the industry rebound at the after-hours party
-Do your part to support Chicago's rebuilding efforts
-Build your personal network

Don't Miss The Entertainment Showcase

Sponsored By Magnificent Events & Entertainment

2:00 PM - Opening by ArtBeat Live

Live Art International presents speed painter Elliot From of Artbeat Live 

2:30 – 3:00 PM â€“ Magnificent Events Retro Hour Featuring Mystique Productions, The Magnificent Rat Pack,  Maggie Speaks’ Retro Music Revival,  Sam Thousand’s Soul Vortex,  Talk of the Town Big Band DJ ANT 

3:00 PM - The Second City LIVE

Live show by the world’s premier comedy and improv club 

3:30 – 4:00 PM â€“ Magnificent Events Pop/Top 40 Hour

Featuring Maggie Speaks, Spoken Four, Final Say, Shout Out, Radio Gaga, Spot My Photo, Mystique Productions, Art Beat Live & DJ ANT

4:00 PM - Lips Live on Stage

Live performances by Chicago’s only true and complete LaCage Drag Show experience

4:30 – 5:00 PM â€“ Magnificent Events Presents Celebrity Hour #1

Featuring Maggie Speaks’ Talk of the Town Big Band, Randall Hall (formerly of Lynyrd Skynyrd), Theo Peoples (former lead singer of the Temptations and Four Tops), & DJ ANT

5:00 PM - Chicole

Chicole is a unique act comprised of a husband and wife. The lead singer, Nicole, is from Maggie Speaks and the guitarist, Chad, is from Spoken Four

5:30 – 6:00 PM â€“ Magnificent Events Presents Celebrity Hour #2

Featuring Maggie Speaks’ Talk of the Town Big Band, CoverGirls Violin Show, Blues Brothers Tribute, Randall Hall (formerly of Lynyrd Skynyrd), Theo Peoples (former lead singer of the Temptations and Four Tops) & DJ ANT

On average, attendees started working with 17 businesses 

as a direct result of attending the Summit

"Once again, Ateema surpassed my expectations.  I look forward to HTS every year. They gave the attendees a great platform with relevant content that made it extremely easy to focus and keep engaged.  I'm happy to say that this year's event will be checked off as another success and great use of my time."
Valerie Luporini
The Inland Real Estate Group of Companies

Don't miss the single most impactful event all year

Join hundreds of fellow hospitality, tourism and event industry professionals to grow your network and learn the latest research and trends in the industry all in one afternoon.

Do you need to reconnect with the industry to build your business after two years of life in a pandemic?

Are you a hospitality professional that likes to have a pulse on the latest industry trends, hacks and insights?

Do you need to build up your sales funnel or database due to industry turnover and transition caused by the pandemic?

Do you want you and your business to be seen as part of the solution for rebuilding Chicago and our industry?

Do you want to enjoy some of Chicago's best food, drinks, and entertainment plus some fun, innovative booths and activations?

Do you want to celebrate the industry's comeback with your industry colleagues and friends?

What Do Past Attendees Say?

"I saw this as a great opportunity to network with local Chicago vendors and people I've seen at past networking events and now I get a chance to meet them in person"

Kate Postle

Meeting Planner

Bucom International

Best industry event out there! I never miss it!

Christie Springer

Sales Manager, Special Events

Museum of Science and Industry

"I had a wonderful, wonderful time! There were many friendly familiar faces that I happened to run into at the event and so many new connections that I'm happy to explore"

Melissa Franada

Marketing & Events Coordinator

Edgewater Chamber of Commerce

"The summit has given me the resources to succeed in my career. Thank you Ateema!"

Stacy Kruczek

Executive Administrative Assistant

Deloitte

Who Should Attend?

-Concierges
-Meeting & event planners
-Industry professionals 
-Group or tourism salespeople 
-Social media influencers
-Marketing professionals
-Industry leaders

The Summit is the Platform You Need to Rebuild

Connect with 100+ exhibitors that cater to the tourism, hospitality, and meetings industries

Have fun while you attend the Summit with some of the best food and drink in the city

Learn the latest industry knowledge through educational sessions led by industry leaders

Grow your network of fellow meeting and event planners + decision-makers from Chicago businesses

Expand your Rolodex of attractions and event service providers through our entertainment showcase and new venues and vendors at the trade show

Invest in yourself and find the vendors and venues you really want to use to grow your client base

Sponsors

Commonly Asked Questions

I'm a Concierge or perform concierge duties at my hotel, should we attend?

Yes! The Hospitality & Tourism Summit has been the single most impactful day in the industry for growing your networking and building your relationships in the industry.  We understand that the landscape of customer service roles at hotels changed drastically due to the pandemic, so if you are a concierge or you perform concierge duties in your position you should join us in person on June 8.

Can you tell us more about the new venue?

To host the Hospitality & Tourism Summit in the safest way possible, we have partnered with Navy Pier to utilize several spaces along the East end of the pier for ample social distancing. We will be utilizing the Aon Grand Ballroom, Recreation 1 and 2, Lakeview Terrace, and the East End Plaza which has a collective capacity of over 13,000 people. With the size of our event and new ticket/exhibitor limits, we will utilize less than 15% of the overall capacity which falls under current government regulations on trade shows. 

What types of businesses exhibit at the Summit?

The Summit features businesses that offer services or event space for group activities, meetings, events, corporate outings, and more. Planners can expect to come and meet with decision-makers from event venues, catering companies, hotels, transportation, entertainment, event rentals, event technology, audio-visual providers, and more. Check out the exhibitor listing on HTS.Events for the current list of exhibitors to plan your visit.

Contact

[email protected]

312-360-1770

c/o Expansive Coworking

405 W. Superior St. Suite 706

Chicago, IL, 60654

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