Annual Tourism Summit

Galveston Island Convention Center | 9 AM - 4 PM

Join Visit Galveston and island partners for the 2027 Tourism Summit, a gathering focused on the trends, data, and opportunities shaping the future of travel to Galveston. This year’s theme, Galveston on the Global Stage, explores how our destination fits into the evolving travel landscape and how local businesses can benefit from emerging opportunities.

Galveston Tourism Summit, Tuesday, May 13, 2027

The program brings together industry leaders, research experts, and tourism partners for a morning and afternoon of insights, discussion, and practical takeaways. Sessions will cover tourism performance, traveler trends, social media strategies, short term rental data, online reviews, and how artificial intelligence is changing how visitors discover destinations. The agenda also includes networking time, vendor exhibits, breakout sessions, and the Tourism Excellence Awards recognizing outstanding partners in our community.

Attendance is free for tourism partners and community stakeholders.

Tourism Summit Presentations

Cindy Decker — Tourism Economics

Tourism By The Numbers

Cindy Decker from Tourism Economics offered us a data-driven look at Galveston’s tourism performance, including visitation, spending, and industry trends, with comparisons to Texas and national benchmarks.

Tourism Economics Website

Galveston Market 2026

David Reichbach — Future Partners

The State of Galveston Travel

Future Partners joined us at the 12th Annual Galveston Island Tourism Summit for an engaging presentation, "The State of Galveston Travel," featuring actionable insights from Future Partners' key ongoing research studies, The State of the American Traveler and The State of the International Traveler.

Future Partners Website

The State of Travel

Will Wright — GHF

Sail 250

Elissa sets sail to New York this summer in celebration of America's 250th anniversary. Her participation in Sail250 is spoken on by Will Wright, CCO of GHF.

GHF Website

Sail 250 Tourism

Justin Gibbs — Miles Partnership

AI and the Future of Travel Discovery

AI is rapidly reshaping destination marketing—from Google’s AI Overviews disrupting traditional SEO and search traffic to new tools that are redefining how travelers discover and choose places.

Miles Partnership Website

Future Of Ai