Celebrity lineup to lead 2014 Chicago Travel and Adventure Show
Kick off the New Year with a new adventure. The Travel and Adventure Show returns to the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center, January 11-12, featuring some of the biggest names in travel. Plus, see culinary demos, meet sled dogs, ride the mechanical bull and interact with some of SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment's “wild” friends.
SAMANTHA BROWN: Making her return to the Travel and Adventure Show this year is Samantha Brown, the beloved host of several Travel Channel shows, including “The Trip 2014”. Over the last 13 years, Samantha has traveled around the world visiting over 220 cities in 49 countries and 30 states in the U.S.
RICK STEVES: As the best-selling author in the country for guidebooks on international travel, Rick Steves is your ultimate resource for special tips and insights while traveling abroad. Steves hosts his own travel shows on public television and radio, and is a nationally syndicated newspaper columnist. In 2013, Steves published his latest guidebooks to Paris and Italy.
TODD CARMICHAEL: Host of Travel Channel's “Dangerous Grounds,” Carmichael travels the globe sourcing coffee from Bolivia to Vietnam, and points in-between. But this entrepreneur is also an adventurer, becoming the first American explorer to cross Antarctica to the South Pole – alone.
PAULINE FROMMER: Part of America's first family of travel, Pauline is the creator of the Pauline Frommer's Travel Guides, the award-winning guidebook series aimed at adult budget travelers. She is also a nationally syndicated radio talk show host of “The Travel Show,” which she cohosts with her father, travel legend Arthur Frommer.
“Last year's show produced a record turn-out and we are planning on topping it in this 10th year in Chicago. We have over 250 exhibitors with experts to help you plan your next dream vacation – destinations you may have never considered,” said John Golicz, CEO of Unicomm, which produces the event in six cities nationally. “As the country's largest series of travel shows, this is a must-see travel extravaganza.”
Your guidebook to the show directs you to:
• Travel Experts– the travel celebrities are just a few of the experts who will be on hand, with two full days of days of discussions, seminars planned
• Adventure Activities –, mechanical bull rides, sled dogs meet and greet and SeaWorld Animal Exhibits are all free
• Culinary Theater – you can taste the international flair – literally – as chefs demonstrate their best recipes from far-flung lands
• Global Beats Stage – non-stop musical and dance performances representing cultures around the world (with many in full costume) will entertain and intrigue
• Dream Destinations – representatives will be on hand from U.S. locales (including Alaska and Hawaii), as well as experts who can help plan trips to Africa, Antarctica, Asia, the Caribbean, Central and South America, Europe, India, Mexico, the UK – even Yap Island in the western Pacific Ocean
The show takes place at the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center. It opens Saturday, January 11, from 10 a.m.- 5 p.m., and Sunday, January 12, from 11 a.m.- 4 p.m. (The show opens at 9:30 a.m. Saturday for travel professionals.) Tickets are $10 online with Promo Code: CHPR or $15 at the Door. Kids 16 years old and under are free of charge.
The Travel and Adventure Show is the longest-running series of consumer travel events in the U.S. with shows in Los Angeles , Bay Area (Santa Clara), Chicago, Washington D.C. and Dallas. In Chicago, the Travel and Adventure Show's supporting sponsors are SeaWorld Parks and Entertainment and Rick Steves' Europe. The event's official travel agency partner is AAA Travel. Event media sponsors include: national television media sponsor is the Travel Channel, Broadcast Sponsor is ABC7 Chicago, and media sponsor is Jetset Extra. For more information on attending or exhibiting in the event, please visit www.adventureexpo.com or call 203-878-2577.