Here are the most important updates this week:
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- Last call for Iowa Tourism Award nominations.
- 2026 Tourism Insider Meeting host communities and dates are set.
- 2026 Iowa Travel Guide is hot off the press!
- Iowa Tourism January Webinar recording revealing tourism trends is live!
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REGISTER NOW: 2026 Iowa Tourism Conference Details
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This is your chance to join industry leaders, network with peers and gain valuable insights into the latest trends and strategies in tourism marketing. Make plans today to enhance your knowledge and grow your connections. Conference break-out sessions will be designed to maximize learning with Intro, Intermediate and Advanced Tracks, and for the first time ever, a Hotel and Lodging Track. So, be sure to tell your hoteliers about this new opportunity. They may end up attending every year.
"As a boutique hotel general manager, I've attended the Iowa Tourism Conference for the past five years, and each year I walk away reenergized and full of new ideas. It's an incredible opportunity to connect with other hospitality professionals, share challenges, and learn practical strategies that truly make a difference. I'm especially looking forward to this year's new hotelier track - its exciting to see a dedicated focus on our industry's unique needs and opportunities." - Jackie Bohr, General Manager of The Hotel at Kirkwood Center
Sponsorship options start at $1,000 and include two registrations. Find out who the 2026 sponsors are and learn more about how your organization or business can benefit from becoming a sponsor.
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WHEN: March 12-13, 2026
RATE: Full Conference Registration - $285
Thursday Only Registration - $185
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WHERE: Prairie Meadows
1 Prairie Meadows Drive
Altoona, Iowa
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STAY: Prairie Meadows
Rooms start at $134 per night plus taxes and fees. Attendees are encouraged to book their rooms early as the room block is expected to fill quickly.
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Nominate Iowa's Best for an Iowa Tourism Award
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The Iowa Tourism Awards recognize communities, attractions, tourism businesses and the marketing professionals that promote them for excellence in raising the profile of Iowa as a tourism destination. Winners will have demonstrated creativity, innovation, collaboration and strategy grounded in research and results in their projects. The deadline for award nominations is Friday January 30 at 4 p.m.
Award winners will be announced during the 2026 Iowa Tourism Conference.
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Spotlight on Conference Session: Keynote Speaker Heather Physioc
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Global discovery expert, educator, trainer and international speaker Heather Physioc will be a keynote on the first day of the conference. Later that day, she will host a session in the Advanced Track - Using Search Insight to Understand Travelers: Turning Curiosity into Better Marketing Ideas.
Heather is the Chief Discoverability Officer at VML and has nearly 20-years of experience guiding multi-national enterprises through search shifts, including organic search, paid search and performance content capabilities. The Discoverability group has been recognized as the Best Large Integrated Search Agency, received the Integrated Search Agency of the Year award and the International Search Team of the Year award.
Heather was awarded the Drum Awards Search Leader of the Year. She is also an adjunct professor of digital marketing at the master's level at the University of Kansas and an award-winning outdoor, nature, wildlife and conservation photojournalist. Last year she photographed wildlife and landscapes in every hemisphere of the world, from Peru to Poland to Indonesia, and was presented six awards in the Outdoor Writers Association of America's 2025 Excellence in Craft Contest.
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Places and Dates for 2026 Tourism Insider Meetings are Set
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The Iowa Tourism Office has selected three communities to host Insider Meetings in 2026. Each will craft their own unique meeting agenda to maximize learning and sharing and provide opportunities for you to connect with partners from throughout the state. The Iowa Tourism Office will provide new travel industry insights and updates at each meeting and you will be invited to join in insightful discussion on a variety of topics. Save the dates and come ready to connect.
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- May 7, 2026 - Storm Lake
- August 25, 2026 - Independence
- November 18, 2026 - Centerville
| 28th Annual Iowa Farmers Market Association Conference February 7
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A report released by ISU Extension and Outreach in November 2025 details the Economic Contributions of Agritourism & Farmers Markets in Iowa. Funded in part by the Iowa Tourism Office, the report finds that "with strategic investments, support policies, and coordinated promotion and marketing", agritourism and farmers markets can "expand their role as engines of income generation, job creation, increased tax base and rural resilience".
The 2026 Iowa Farmers Market Association Workshop provides an opportunity for farmers market managers and vendors from around the state to gain valuable insight and learn strategies from industry experts. It will be held Saturday, February 7, 2026 at Crown Point Community Center in Johnston, Iowa. Check out the Iowa Farmers Market Association Facebook page for more information.
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First Impressions Program Accepting Applications for 2026
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Offered through a partnership between Iowa State University Extension and Iowa Economic Development Authority/Iowa Tourism Office, First Impressions is a comprehensive community assessment conducted by a team of unannounced visitors to your community. The program helps communities learn about their strengths and weaknesses through the eyes of first-time visitors. It provides specific short and long-term action steps for creating places where people want to visit and live.
"Participating in the First Impressions Program energized our community! The report and community presentation brought attention to key areas for improvement but also affirmed the meaningful work already underway behind the scenes. Overall, the program has been an important steppingstone toward turning those recommendations into action." - 2025 First Impressions Program participant, Jamie Griffith, Webster City Chamber Director
Five communities with a population of 20,000 or under are eligible to be selected for the program in 2026. Applications are due February 18, 2026.
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The 2026 Iowa Travel Guides are hot off the press! The cover, which features an iconic photo of the Ghost Players emerging from a cornfield at the Field of Dreams movie site, challenges visitors to come to Iowa "Where Beloved Classics Meet New Discoveries". Destination dupes are called out; Iowa's trails are feature by season and advice for anglers includes practical insights and "a-lure-ing" destinations. An article on "Fantastically Fresh Farm Stores" encourages visitors to create one-of-a-kind memories and helps agritourism destinations across the state get the word out.
Are you ready for the new guide to send visitors to your destinations or businesses? Check out this annual publication and brainstorm for how you can maximize the spotlight using social media, itineraries and cross promotion.
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Iowa Tourism Webinar Recording Detailing Tourism Trends is Live!
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Learn about Iowa's biggest 2025 marketing wins and get a look at the tourism trends shaping 2026 when you watch the January Iowa Tourism Office Webinar Update. This insightful session provides an opportunity for you to learn from IEDA's Social Media Manager Lucy Cade and Travel Iowa's agency partners, FleishmanHillard. They share the secrets of Iowa's most successful 2025 content and provide practical insights to help you maximize your 2026 marketing budget.
Watch to learn more about past and future trends, how to find trends yourself and how to work with Travel Iowa to maximize trends. A few of many insights from the Webinar you won't want to miss include the following.
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Nostalgia is a macro trend, 91% of people have a desire for escapism or revisiting the past. Iowa has been maximizing this trend. Are you?
- Wellness travel continues to be one of the fastest growing travel segments, up to 16% year over year but it looks different for everyone. Find out how you can tap into this rapidly growing industry trend in your own unique way, which buzz words you should use and where to find inspiration.
- Literary tourism inspires all types of travel. 55% of travelers have or would book a trip inspired by literature. The Iowa Tourism Office featured bookstores from around the state and it was our best performing content in 2025. Are you featured? Find out how this trend is blowing up in 2026 and how to maximize what the Iowa Tourism Office is plans on doing
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2026 travel trends include Passion travel, which is all about the "why" rather than the "where" of travel. 67% of millennials have planned a trip based on their interest. Find out how to plan your own content based on this trend.
- Agritourism crosses into Wellness travel. It is a strength for Iowa and is expanding by 12% year over year. Find out how you can lean into this trend, which probably means more than you think it does.
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Finding, Understanding and Using Research Results
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Research and information are pushed at us from a variety of sources and then interpreted and reinterpreted. Some studies provide a one-time snapshot with current data and perspectives; others reveal historic, on-going or even future trends. The Iowa Tourism Office uses research to plan and implement effective marketing and then to measure our return on investment. We also gather credible research from a variety of sources and make it available to our Iowa partners for free or at low cost. You can find it under the Research tab on the Industry Partners website. With the advent of AI more and more on-going research is also at your fingertips than ever before.
Consider the following tips as you explore new sources of information and be sure to check out the sessions on this topic at the Iowa Tourism Conference.
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Whenever possible, go to the original source.
- If the report has a regular release date, make sure you are using the most current.
- If the research includes data gathering, consider the size of the study, the target audience and the focus of the research. Are they relevant?
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Focused studies can provide great information if you understand who was asked and how their perspective is relevant. For example, research about solo travelers can effectively be used to inform marketing to solo travelers.
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Keep data and results to compare data over time and measure return on investment but beware of shifts in methodology that can skew results.
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Tip: Don't discount grants that target one segment of your community, especially when they are focused on livability or historic assets, which we have in every Iowa community. More often than not, the projects they fund will actually benefit all your residents and visitors.
Featured Grants:
AARP is accepting applications for the 2026 AARP Community Challenge Grant, which focuses on quick-action projects that make communities more livable and spark long-term change. Grants should align with AARP's mission to serve the needs of people aged 50+ and increase the quality of life for your community. Projects can include 1) permanent physical improvements 2) temporary demonstrations, or 3) innovative new programming. Deadline is March 4th 2026, before 4 p.m. Central Time. Be careful! The AARP website says 5 p.m., but that is Eastern Time.
Conserving Black Modernism Grants from the National Trust for Historic Preservation are designed to empower and equip preservationists and steward with funding, technical support and training to preserve the material heritage, innovation and legacy of modern architectural sites designed by Black architects. There is a list of the types of buildings on the website, and it includes spaces associated with sports and recreation. Grants range up to $150,000 and are due February 6, 2026.
Cynthia Woods Mitchell Fund for Historic Interiors assist in the preservation, restoration and interpretation of historic interiors. Grants range up to $15,000 and are due March 2, 2026.
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Iowa Tourism Office
1963 Bell Avenue, Ste 200 | Des Moines, IA 50315 US
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1963 Bell Avenue, Suite 200 | Des Moines, IA 50315 US
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