Thank You - 2026 New York State Tourism Excellence Awards & Summit

Thank you to the 200+ tourism professionals who joined us in Corning for the 2026 New York State Tourism Excellence Awards & Summit! This year, we convened in America's Crystal City to reconnect with tourism industry colleagues, brush up on the latest advocacy efforts, hear what NYSTIA has been up to, and celebrate tourism excellence in New York State.

These events are powered by a team of dedicated tourism professionals and volunteers who work tirelessly to make it happen. We want to express our appreciation and gratitude to the many attendees, partners, and presenters who participated in the event:

First, we would like to extend our sincere gratitude to our host DMO, Explore Steuben (thank you, Kevin Peterson, Mikenna Pierotti, Craig Hills, & team!); our host hotel partners, Emily Walter (Sales Manager) and the entire team at the Radisson Hotel Corning; and our Awards Ceremony hosts at the Corning Museum of Glass (thank you, Beth Duane, Loghan Patocka, Regina Wagner, & team!) — for their hospitality and help throughout the planning and execution of the event.

We would also like to say thank you to our keynote speaker, Geoff Freeman, President & CEO of the U.S. Travel Association, for providing an insightful Thursday morning keynote (and for going out of his way to meet with us in Corning despite a very busy travel schedule), and to Andreas Weissenborn, SVP of Advocacy & Destination Advancement at Destinations International, for providing the Friday morning keynote, "Destination Advocacy First Aid Kit." We would also like to thank our multiple presenters, including the 15 honorees who led a Tourism Excellence Workshop on Thursday morning, and the many partners who provided a 10x10 Briefing alongside the 1:1 Networking Sessions. View Slide Decks

NYSTIA events wouldn't be possible without our partners, and we'd like to highlight the presenting partners who made it all happen: the New York State Canal Corporation (represented by Liz McAndrew and Michael Sullivan); Rove (James Sauter and Sally Donovan) for their generous support of NYSTIA programming; Advance Travel & Tourism (Gerard Carroll and Jeremy Duca) for presenting the wonderful 2026 NYS Tourism Excellence Awards Ceremony & Reception; I LOVE NY (Ross Levi and David Contreras Turley) for hosting the morning breakfast on Wednesday, September 16; and our reception hosts for Wednesday evening, Skål International – Albany/Upstate Chapter (Tom Martinelli) and Explore Steuben.

We would be remiss not to formally thank the many attendees who participated in Wednesday's pre-Summit activities, including the Advocacy Masterclass with the New York Sherpa (thank you, Josiah Brown!), the DONYS Golf Tournament at Indian Hills Golf Course (congratulations to Team Bagshaw for winning!), and the Mini Golf Tournament at the Park Avenue Sports Center (congratulations to team 'Run DMC'!). (Both golf activities supporting the Destinations of New York State Scholarship Fund!)

Last but certainly not least, we would like to thank our colleagues at I LOVE NY/ESD, in particular Ross Levi and David Contreras Turley, for their valuable program contributions.

To everyone who traveled to Corning, presented, volunteered, sponsored, or simply showed up ready to connect,  thank you for making the 2026 Summit a success. We can't wait to see you next year!

More photos coming soon!