2025 Arizona Governor’s Conference On Tourism

DATES: July 16-18, 2025

The Arizona Governor’s Conference on Tourism (GCOT) is the premier educational and information-sharing event in the state for travel professionals and destination marketers. GCOT provides its attendees the opportunity to exchange ideas with peers, learn from expert panelists, draw inspiration from nationally renowned speakers, and discover cutting-edge products and services.

Questions? Please contact us at (602) 542-0065 or info@azgcot.com

Registration

Early Bird Registration: $400 – until May 2
Full Conference Registration: $500

We look forward to another productive year full of educational sessions, great networking opportunities and the chance to collaborate with partners across Arizona.

Events & Activities

Governor’s Tourism Awards Celebration

The Governor’s Tourism Awards Celebration is where we recognize the outstanding marketers, innovators and ambassadors of the Arizona tourism industry. This sit-down dinner affair is a wonderful celebration of our industry and a great opportunity to network with fellow attendees, sponsors and exhibitors. We look forward to recognizing excellence in Arizona’s travel and tourism industry during this special evening event.

We invite you to nominate yourself, your organization, or someone you admire within the tourism industry for the Governor’s Tourism Awards, with categories including innovative marketing campaigns, cooperative partnerships, exceptional customer service and more.

Please review the guidelines and deadlines as outlined below carefully before making your final submission. Winners will be announced at the Governor’s Tourism Awards Celebration Dinner on July 17, 2025.

If you have any questions or concerns, please contact Krista Mott-Fulton at kmott-fulton@tourism.az.gov.

Accommodations

The JW Marriott Scottsdale Camelback Inn Resort & Spa will be hosting the Governor’s Conference on Tourism.
Please use the button below to reserve your room.

RESERVE NOW

2025 Conference Schedule

Please check back as more details are finalized

Wednesday, July 16

4:00 – 6:00 p.m. – Welcome Reception

Thursday, July 17

8:30 – 9:00 a.m. – General Session: Arizona Office of Tourism State of the Industry Update

9:00 – 9:30 a.m. – General Session: Zeek Coleman, Vice President, Americas at Tourism Economics

9:30 – 10:30 a.m. – General Session: Trever Carthwright, Founding Principal, Coraggio Group

10:30-11:00 a.m. – Morning Break

11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. – Concurrent Breakout Sessions

12:oo – 1:00 p.m. Lunch

1:00 – 1:45 p.m. Deborah Ostricher, Founder, Distinguished Communications

2:00 – 3:00 p.m. Concurrent Breakout Session

3:00 – 3:30 p.m. Afternoon Break

3:30 – 4:30 p.m. General Session – Panel TBD

5:00 – 6:00 p.m. Reception

6:00 – 8:30 p.m. Governor’s Tourism Awards Celebration

Friday, July 18

8:00 – 8:45 a.m. Continental Breakfast

9:00 – 10:00 a.m. General Session: Dr. Anirban Basu, Sage Policy Group
Is the US economy headed for recession, or can America weather emerging trade wars, associated cost increases, and uncertainty? This presentation focuses on US and regional economic performance with an eye toward identifying emerging risks to what has been the world’s most envied economy. Among variables of interest are interest rates, employment growth, real estate valuations, and a variety of leading economic indicators.

10:00 – 10:15 a.m. Morning Break

10:15 – 11:00 a.m. General Session: Panel TBD

11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. General Session: Panel TBD

12:00 p.m. – Conclusion

Sponsorships Now Available

This year’s offerings deliver on the most-requested options based on feedback and requests from previous years.

While our general GCOT sponsorship options offer amazing exposure and value, this year we added DMO-only sponsorship options to meet the specific needs of statewide marketing organizations.

All of these packages provide the opportunity to participate in the conference at a variety of levels, offering flexibility to choose the sponsorship level that best suits budget and promotional needs.