Lisa Ling, Rick Steves, Adam Richman and Arthur Frommer to Headline Los Angeles Times Travel Show at L.A. Convention Center

LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Los Angeles Times Travel Show returns January 27-29 with a first-class programming upgrade and a new all-day industry conference for travel professionals. The 14^th-annual event, recently named one of BizBash’s “Top 10 Southern California Trade Shows and Conventions,” will once again be held at the L.A. Convention Center. Matching wanderlust with thousands of possible destinations, the weekend promises to provide the inspiration, practical information and insider tips needed to maximize the experience of traveling. Tickets are on sale now at www.latimes.com/travelshow.

“Top 10 Southern California Trade Shows and Conventions”

Lisa Ling (“Our America”), Rick Steves (“Rick Steves’ Europe Through the Back Door”), Adam Richman (“Man v. Food Nation,” “America the Edible”) and Arthur Frommer (Frommer’s travel guides) are scheduled to headline over the weekend. Travel personalities Johnny Jet (JohnnyJet.com) and Leon Logothetis (“Amazing Adventures of a Nobody”), Times’ award-winning Travel editor Catharine Hamm, and vacation value experts Gabe Saglie (Travelzoo) and Doug Miller (LivingSocial Escapes) are also scheduled to speak, with more to be announced in the weeks ahead.

The five-acre show floor will be filled with exhibitors from around the world, including domestic and international tour operators offering show-only pricing and trip giveaways. Specially-themed areas will entice attendees to see travel in a new way, including:

Kid’s World, featuring family-friendly travel ideas and hands-on activities
Xtreme Adventure Zone, offering destinations and live sessions for hardcore thrill-seekers
Travel in Style Pavilion, catering to luxury and leisure travelers
Culinary Stage, showcasing regional and exotic flavors through cooking and wine demonstrations

The inaugural industry conference, produced in collaboration with MSE Management and leading global, national and regional travel organizations, is a trade-only event designed to address key issues and current trends in the tourism business. The day will include presentations from industry organization leaders, topical panel discussions, a preview of the show floor, one-on-one meetings with exhibitors and networking opportunities.

Los Angeles Times Travel Show’s sponsors include Best Western, Taiwan Tourism Bureau, China National Tourist Office and Tourism Authority of Thailand. Media partners include KTLA, PBS SoCal, KCET, 106.7 KROQ, K-Earth 101, 94.7 The Wave, Hoy and LA Inc. – the Los Angeles Convention & Visitors Bureau.

Tickets for the weekend show, January 28 and 29, are $10 each. A complimentary Los Angeles Times limited-edition reusable shopping bag is available with ticket purchase for a limited time (use code “LATPR”). Registration for the January 27 industry conference is $30 per person and will open on November 2. Additional details, including ticket purchase and industry conference information, are available at www.latimes.com/travelshow. Connect on Facebook.com/LATimesEvents and @LATimesEvents (#travelshow) to stay up to date.

Members of the media are invited to cover the industry conference and weekend show. Registration is available at http://events.latimes.com/travelshow/press.

About the Los Angeles Times Media Group

The Los Angeles Times Media Group (LATMG) businesses and affiliates include the Los Angeles Times, The Envelope, Times Community News, LA, Los Angeles Times Magazine and Hoy Los Angeles and reach approximately 5.1 million or 38% of all adults in the Southern California marketplace. LATMG also owns and operates California Community News as well as Tribune Direct’s west coast division and is part of Tribune Company, one of the country’s leading media companies with businesses in publishing, the Internet and broadcasting.

The flagship Los Angeles Times is the largest metropolitan daily newspaper in the country, with a readership of 1.9 million Monday through Saturday and 2.9 million on Sunday, more than 17 million unique latimes.com visitors monthly and a combined print and online local weekly audience of 4.4 million. The Pulitzer Prize-winning Times has been covering Southern California for more than 129 years. Additional information is available at http://latimes.com/aboutus.