The sales team at Visit Fairfax is hard at work promoting and selling Fairfax County as a prime meeting destination. From virtual tradeshows and virtual FAM tours to in-person conferences, events, and meetings, our sales managers are planning many exciting strategies to represent the great assets and businesses of Fairfax County.

Here is a snapshot of some upcoming events, activities, and appointments our sales team is working on. The team is always happy to share updates and notes from these events, so feel free to reach out at any time.
 


On the Associations/Reunions Side:

Dean Miller, our National Sales Manager in the Associations/Reunions markets, has been on the road at trade shows and seeking new leads for Fairfax County. Here are some recent updates:

  • We hosted two “hard hat” tours of the new J. W. Marriott Reston Station for locally-based meeting planners.  The hotel, currently under construction, is scheduled to open in September of this year. 
  • August also saw Dean Miller and Eric Kulczycky exhibiting at the FLEX Summer Camp event in Leesburg, VA, where they talked with more than 100 locally-based association and corporate meeting planners. 
  • Also in August, Dean and Eric travelled to Miami, FL, for the Connect Marketplace trade show event.  Dean met one-on-one with 30 association planners, while Eric met with an equal number of sports tournament organizers.
  • We’ll start September in Providence, RI, attending the Destination East trade show event, where we’ll meet one-on-one with 25 corporate and association planners.
  • Buffalo, NY will also be on our September schedule, where we’ll be meeting with 35 corporate and association planners at the Small Market Meetings trade show event.  We’ll be attending this show for the first time.
  • Also in September, we’ll return to Richmond, VA for the VSAE Fall Conference & Expo, where we’ll be exhibiting for the 20th consecutive year.  We still have some room in our booth for this show; if your hotel is interested in being in front of an audience of state association planners, please give Dean Miller a call and he can provide you with all of the details about exhibiting.
  • In October, we’ll head south for the Small and Boutique Meetings trade show event in Knoxville, TN.  We’ll also join up with seven of our fellow Virginia DMOs to exhibit at the Association Executives of North Carolina (AENC) Fall Meeting, held in Cary, NC.
  • And in November, we’ll be in New Orleans, LA, for the Meetings Today Live! trade show event, meeting one-on-one with two dozen association and corporate planners.


On the Tour & Travel Side: 

Lori Scott, our National and International Sales Manager, continues our efforts in the tour & travel market both domestically and internationally:

In the News:

  • Visit Fairfax thanks its stakeholders for their insight and feedback as it relates to accessing reports, data, and industry updates that affect all in the region. Many of the data reports, webinars, and insights will now begin to be posted in the Extranet and under the Reports Tab. Please be on the lookout as these reports are now available and will be updated regularly. If you need access to the information being provided, please contact us to activate your account and receive your log-in information.

What's Next:

  • In August, Lori will attend SYTA’s (Student Youth Travel Association) annual conference, being held in Savannah, Georgia.

Opportunities for You:

  1. Are you looking to welcome more group business? The group tour market is key for this region and groups are always in search of new experiences, dining options, and entertainment. We can share insights and ways for you to capture this market.
  2. After the past several conferences, Visit Fairfax continues to receive requests from International Inbound Tour Operators and Receptive Operators for new hotel product. This is expanding with notice on Europe, India, and Latin America. If your hotel is interested in gaining new international group and FIT visitors, let us know. We soon will be running campaigns with hotel third-party sellers so why not get ahead of the market and the promotions by securing a better rate with direct contracting?

 

On the Sports & Corporate/Government Side:

Eric Kulczycky, our National Sales Manager in charge of the sports, government and corporate markets, has been working hard on furthering Visit Fairfax's foray into sports event tourism and also in the government and corporate landscape:
 

Upcoming Events/Activities:

  • New Sports Venues Expand Year-Round Event-Hosting Opportunities.  Fairfax County is proud to welcome two exciting new sports venues: the renovated Mount Vernon Rec Center (MVRC) in Alexandria and the Down the Line Sports Center in Annandale.  MVRC now features two state-of-the-art ice sheets, making it an ideal location for hockey, figure skating, and other events. The Down the Line Sports Center offers 12 championship pickleball courts, golf simulators, a pro shop, and a full-service restaurant and bar.  Together, these venues enhance the county’s ability to host year-round travel sports competitions while also serving as valuable community assets that promote active, healthy lifestyles for residents of all ages.
     

Past Events/Activities:

  • August 25-27, 2025: CONNECT Sports Marketplace (Miami Beach, FL).  CONNECT Sports is an annual education conference and tradeshow bringing together sports event planners and suppliers for three days of general sessions, workshops, and pre-set appointments.  In conjunction with Sports Virginia and other DMOs in the Commonwealth pursuing the sports market, Visit Fairfax will co-host tournament planners at a special client function during the show.
  • Fairfax County Athletic Council Meeting (Fairfax, VA; July 16, 2025). The FCAC serves in an advisory capacity to the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors, School Board, and county agencies on matters relating to the use of public sports facilities and the programming of youth/adult sports programs in the county.  Meetings take place on the third Wednesday of every month (Pennino Building at 12011 Government Center Parkway, Fairfax, VA 22035; 7:30 p.m. on the 2nd floor in room 206).  Please contact Eric Kulczycky at ekulczycky@fxva.com for more information.   
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