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When a destination’s narrative shifts—whether due to a wildfire, a sudden political controversy, or a blow to its public reputation—the first 24 hours are the most critical. In this high-stakes session, leaders from Chicago and Santa Monica pull back the curtain on what it actually takes to move from "crisis mode" to "community-first" action in less than half a day. 

We’ll explore how Chicago launched a massive brand platform in under 12 hours and how Santa Monica balanced resident safety with global destination reputation during a regional emergency. We will discuss the evolution of the PR mandate: the shift from defensive statements to a "trust-first" model that activates residents and partners as primary narrators. Attendees will leave with a readiness playbook designed to build stakeholder trust, maintain transparency, and turn urgent disruptions into enduring platforms for recovery.

Takeaways: 

• Reframing PR as a Leadership Function: Move communications from a "support role" to a strategic driver, equipping teams to align visitor promotion with community priorities in real-time.
• The Stakeholder Trust Architecture: Analyze the engagement tactics that keep local leadership and residents on your side, ensuring the destination emerges stronger and more resilient post-crisis.
• Turning Urgency into Endurance: Learn how to transition a rapid-response campaign into a lasting brand platform (e.g., social, PR, and long-form content) that continues to drive value for years.
• Failure Analysis from the Crisis Vault: A candid review of past "missteps"—from misinformation gaps to misaligned KPIs—and the specific tactical shifts made to build today’s resilient frameworks.

Most travel is driven by an invitation, not advertising. Before a visitor ever steps foot in your destination, your residents have already set the tone. If local perception lags behind reality, your biggest marketing asset—the community—remains untapped. This session explores how Philadelphia and Buffalo moved beyond traditional tourism ads to build "place brands" from the inside out. Using Philadelphia’s "sports-fandom" strategy as a blueprint, we’ll hear how to treat a city like a team to unlock genuine resident advocacy. Then, we’ll dive into the tactical execution from Buffalo’s rebrand, showing how to secure community buy-in through high-visibility, locally rooted activations—from ice sculptures and murals to transit wraps and temporary tattoos. Learn how to transform your residents from skeptics into a mobilized force of brand ambassadors who invite, energize, and advocate for your destination.

Takeaways: 

• Master a practical framework that connects resident pride directly to visitor growth. We’ll show how shifting your focus inward improves the visitor   experience on the ground and turns locals into a high-conversion "invitation engine" that outperforms traditional advertising.
• Learn a repeatable method to uncover your destination’s “shared local truth” — the emotional connector that locals already rally around   (Philadelphia’s is fandom; each destination’s may be something entirely different).
• We'll provide examples of scalable, low-to-mid-cost activation ideas that can be adapted by destinations of varying sizes to build community buy-in and visibility.
• We'll provide guidance on how to track shifts in resident price and downstream performance.

By 2030, accessibility will no longer be a niche consideration—it will be a defining factor in how travelers choose destinations. As the population ages and traveler expectations evolve, destinations must move beyond isolated initiatives and begin embedding accessibility into planning, marketing, visitor experience, and destination development. This interactive session will explore how destination leaders are preparing for this shift and what it means for their organizations today. Through expert insights, peer discussion, and real-world examples, attendees will examine how accessibility influences destination competitiveness, visitor trust, and long-term growth. Participants will leave with practical ideas for advancing accessibility within their own organizations, regardless of budget, staffing, or current level of maturity.

Takeaways: 

•  Understand the demographic and traveler trends driving accessibility as a strategic priority.
• Learn how leading destinations are integrating accessibility into planning, marketing, and visitor     experience.
• Explore practical approaches for advancing accessibility within real-world budget and staffing constraints.
• Identify opportunities to build trust and serve a broader audience without tokenizing accessibility efforts.

If your community is asking, “Why are we doing another tourism plan?” or “Is this just going to collect dust?”, then it’s time to reset the conversation. Creating the plan matters, but implementation is what actually drives change. This roundtable session is infused with a panel to help participants focus on how to move beyond the document and use the strategic plan as a practical, everyday tool to align partners, guide decisions and actually get s**t done.

Takeaways:

• Apply best practices to build implementation steps into the strategic planning process.
• Institute steps to hold strategic planners, the destination organization, and community stakeholders accountable for delivering impactful results.
• Establish communication and follow-up to report success stories and challenges as part of the effort to strengthen community involvement and support.

Destinations face pressure to justify tourism funding but rely on outdated metrics that miss full community value. The Arizona Office of Tourism shares real-world experience transforming impact into data stories that win support from boards, officials, and residents. Attendees will co-create communication plans for scenarios like overtourism, resident sentiment, or political headwinds—leaving with actionable frameworks to implement immediately in their own communities.

Takeaways: 

• Connect their current strategy to measurable tourism objectives.
• Identify other sources of data to include in their reporting beyond social media impressions and taxes.
• Develop a draft communications plan tailored for different audiences with specific storytelling tactics.

AI has become the loudest word in travel marketing, but underneath the buzz, DMO leaders are wrestling with real questions that rarely get honest answers. What actually changes when a visitor types a question into ChatGPT or Perplexity instead of Google? Does your content structure matter to a language model? Can you influence how AI platforms answer questions about your destination? And is your agency actually equipped to help… or just repackaging old deliverables with an "AI" label?

This roundtable cuts through the hype. Facilitated as an open, practitioner-level discussion, we would tackle the myths DMO marketers hear most — in vendor pitches, conference keynotes, and board rooms — and replace them with ground-level clarity. The goal is for attendees to bring their skepticism, their unanswered questions, and their real experiences and leave with actual clarity. 

Takeaways: 

• A clearer framework for evaluating AI vendor claims.
• Practical content and GEO strategies grounded in what LLMs actually respond to.
• Peer perspectives on what other DMOs are testing, investing in, and walking away from.

Destination marketing is evolving rapidly — but many organizations are still investing time, budget and energy into tactics, channels and reporting practices that no longer drive meaningful value. As traveler behavior, technology and stakeholder expectations continue to shift, destination leaders are being forced to make harder decisions about where to focus, what to prioritize and what to leave behind. 

This peer-to-peer roundtable will bring destination leaders together for a candid discussion on the strategies, metrics and legacy practices that may no longer serve the industry. From outdated reporting habits and overused marketing tactics to channels losing effectiveness and investments that no longer differentiate destinations, attendees will openly discuss what they are rethinking, reducing or walking away from entirely.

Takeaways: 

• Identify outdated marketing tactics, reporting practices and investments that may no longer create meaningful value for destination organizations.
• Explore how destination leaders are reevaluating channels, content strategies and success metrics in response to changing traveler behavior and stakeholder expectations.
• Exchange candid peer-driven Data & Insights on what organizations are cutting, evolving or deprioritizing — and where they are choosing to reinvest instead.

Events are often judged by attendance numbers, but attendance alone doesn’t tell the full story. As destinations face increasing pressure to justify investments, recruit the right opportunities, and demonstrate value to stakeholders, many are asking: Which events create the greatest value? How should success be measured? And what information is needed to make smarter event decisions?

Join this interactive roundtable discussion as we explore how destinations are evaluating event performance, defining event value, and identifying opportunities that align with their goals. Participants will share challenges, best practices, and emerging approaches to event measurement and strategy.

Pre-registration required through the ESTO app. Limited to 35 people.

Recharge before the conference with a guided Wellness Walk through the vibrant streets surrounding Philadelphia's historic City Hall. This relaxed, accessible experience blends local storytelling with moments of mindful movement, including gentle stretching, breathing exercises, and opportunities to pause and reset. It's the perfect way to experience Center City, make new connections, and begin your day feeling refreshed, focused, and energized.

Check-in: 6:30 a.m.

Signed waiver required.