FoodTrekking World 2017 Registration Open & Speakers Announced

According to the World Food Travel Association (WFTA), food and drinks are now the number one activity for travelers. The Eiffel Tower, Museum of Modern Art, and Times Square are still high on the list but food tourism has become much more than simply grabbing a bite to eat in between seeing attractions.

I think many of my readers know that food is a very important part of my travels. I often make a list of foods that I’d like to try before visiting new places, love shopping in local grocery stores when abroad, and am thrilled when I come across great restaurants like Ristorante Antonio in Santa Margherita, Italy where I enjoyed the best seafood lasagna I’ve ever eaten.

If you think you aren’t really into Food Tourism, you might be surprised. How many of these Food Tourism activities have you taken part in –

• Cooking classes while traveling
• Posting photos of food/drinks on social media
• Visiting breweries/wineries/farms
• Purchasing food at gourmet grocery stores
• Using websites to find great hidden local restaurants
• Going on culinary walking tours

I have done all of these except for taking cooking classes while traveling, but that activity sounds fun too.

The FoodTrekking World convention was started in 2004, and has grown tremendously in popularity since then. It is open to the public, and is focused on the intertwining of food, beverage, and travel.

This year’s FoodTrekking World convention is April 2-4, 2017 in Portland, Oregon. The convention boasts inspiration, food, and fun spread over three days.

The speakers have been announced, and include the following –

• Adnan Nawaz, News Presenter, British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), Official Emcee of FoodTrekking World
• Stephen Joyce, CEO, com, The Next Big Thing in Tech for Food Tourism
• Gabi Logan, Travel Journalist and author of The Six-Figure Travel Writing Road Map, Building Your Food Tourism Brand Story
• Benjamin Brown, Content Strategy and Development Lead for Princess Cruises, What’s Your Food Tourism Content Strategy?
• Risa Meynarez, CEO, Consumers Everywhere, It’s Time to Be Fearless: Food Tourism & Millennials
• Steven Shomler, Author and Speaker, Consultant and Culinary Storyteller, The Future of Social Media in Food Tourism
• Chase Ramsey, Actor & Director/Host, California Dream Eater, The Road Less Traveled
• Erik Wolf, Executive Director, World Food Travel Association, Keynote: State of the Food Travel Industry & the Food Tourism 2025 Initiative

Registration for FoodTrekking World 2017 is unfortunately a bit steep with tickets starting at $795 for the the 3-day extravaganza, though if you are on the fence about getting a ticket note that prices go up $200 on March 1, 2017. Exhibitor booths are available as well for $995.

Here’s a link to the FoodTrekking World registration page.

I’ll be sitting this one out since I’ve already got some travel plans for those dates (plus the fee is a little hefty) but I’d love to hear from any readers who have been or are planning on going.