Chicago Travel & Adventure Show

This is a Travel and Adventure «Show» Promoter. They are a business that makes their money allowing other travel/​adventure businesses into their «show». It does not matter who the vendors are, just as long as they are in the Travel Industry, or have something to do with it. They sale the booth spaces to Vendors. The public buys tickets to attend and see the vendors. Their is entertainment and some food. It’s a typical formula. My family did the same thing with Arts and Crafts shows years ago in Houston, Texas. They are in the business of making money, as were we. I see no problem with that, just buyer beware. You must check out all the vendors that you are interested in using and you won’t have problems. As far as speakers showing up to their show, dancers, food vendors and the like, they can cancel, and legally I am not sure if they are under any obligation to let you know before you go in. «Morally» maybe, but then again the speakers are the «icing» on the cake, so you can’t really get angry if they don’t show! You are there to find out about travel, after all and you are getting what you asked for-​no more no less.

DO NOT GO! This company is unscrupulous and they are liars. I just left the venue. I purchased tickets specifically to see Cheryl Strayed speak. She did not attend. That was the only reason I went. I demanded my money back. They refused. Her lecture was prominently featured on the signs and web site and they KNEW She cancelled.
The show is running today 1÷17÷15 and tomorrow 1÷18÷15. DO NOT go.

My dance group and I performed on the Global Beats Stage at this year’s Travel and Adventure show. It was great to see such a diverse line-​up of dance troupes representing a variety of cultures. This year’s stage was a lot bigger than last year. It needed to be since this usually draws quite a crowd!
Other stages featured information about food as well as Rick Steves himself. I wish I had more time to hang out there.
International and domestic travel information was plentiful. If only I had budget that was too! One of my favorite booths is the dogsled adventure because they usually have retired huskies with them. Hopefully, I will be able to check that off my bucket list in the near future!
Overall, I had a great time. And if they invite Isla Pacifika back next year, I’m definitely in!

I honestly wasn’t impressed for the most part but hey it wasn’t a bad experience. I really just went to have something to do. The other reviews were pretty accurate. The few places that stood out for me were: Red Wing Minnesota booth-​Kathy Silverthorn was an absolute delight to chat with. I definitely will be planning a trip there; The Celebrity Villa Jamaica Booth-​I really enjoyed speaking with Ord and Chariece! I could have just stayed with them the entire time. I look forward to staying at the Villa. I also stopped by to sample the DelGrosso vodka celebration pasta sauce. It was very delicious. Those three stations by themselves would get 4 stars but again, my overall experience was just okay. I probably wouldn’t attend another show.

I was disappointed by this event. I was able to score some free tickets and thought, «why not?» My fiancé and I are always looking for trip ideas plus we were thinking about a honeymoon in the next couple years. The place was packed when we arrived. It was almost wall to wall people in certain regards.
One thing we noticed was that few major tourist cities/​attractions had a presence. Also, many of the people working the booths were either too busy to talk to you or were just plain unfriendly. We also noticed a lack of destinations in Europe. You would think that a fair like this would have destinations from around the world, but it was noticeably lacking. The greatest presence I noticed was from AAA, and they were masquerading as cruise lines and tour companies. The deals they were offering were not that great either.
Was it worth the price of admission? Yes. Would I ever pay to come back? Probably not. It is better just to contact a travel agent for a one on one consultation or do research yourself.

I love to travel so I was thrilled to hear that the Travel & Adventure show was coming to Chicago. The event usually lasts two days (on a Saturday and Sunday). This year there were a ton of exhibitors, including my usual travel group Gate 1 Travel. The best part about coming to this convention is that many tour agencies and tour companies will offer special discounts just from this event. You wont be able to find these discounts anywhere else.
There were four separate stages/​theaters where people could sit, enjoy and learn. The four stages were:
Travel and Adventure Theater – guest speakers mainly well known media celebrities. I was fortunate enough to listen to Rick Steves talk on this stage
Destination theater – guest speakers speak about specific travel destinations
Culinary Stage – chefs cooking specific dishes and offering samples for tasting
Global Beats stage – dancers share their dances from their culture
The exhibitors give out a lot of tour books, pamphlets, and even offer bags/​candies/​key chains/​pins/​dvd from their company. I snagged a lot of free stuff during my one day visit. The companies also offered a lot of drawings to win free trips. I snagged a lot of free stuff and information from this visit.
The event also had penguins, sled dogs, segway tours, and even scuba diving lessons!
Tickets are $ 9 pre-​purchased and $ 15 at the door. I recommend purchasing tickets ahead of time.
I purchased my tickets through Goldstar which offered free tickets and tickets for $ 9 for two people (instead of one). You can find it here:
The convention center is really easy to get to by CTA blue line. Get off at Rosemont CTA station, when you exit the station (there is only one exit), turn left, then turn another left, walk 10 minutes and you are there!
Can’t wait to come here again next year!