Welcome to the American Indian Tourism Conference
Reimagine, Re-emerge, Reunite : Stronger Together in Indian Country
Now entering its 23rd year, the Annual American Indian Tourism Conference (AITC) is the only national conference dedicated to growing tourism in America’s indigenous communities.
Every year the conference attracts more than 300 attendees, who attend for the networking opportunities, the high-level keynote sessions and the informative breakout sessions led by some of the leading hospitality industry experts. At our first-ever virtual conference we had 800 registrants.
23rd Annual American Indian Tourism Conference
October 25-28, 2021
We-Ko-Pa Casino Resort
Fort McDowell (Scottsdale), Arizona
Fort McDowell Yavapai Nation
News & Notes From AITC
Call for Speakers
AIANTA is seeking expert speakers to lead the breakout sessions at AITC.
Showcase your expertise in front of more than 300 tourism professionals, including tribal tourism professionals, tribal leaders, Native American entrepreneurs, federal employees and many more.
Sponsor AITC
Extend your visibility by sponsoring the 23rd annual American Indian Tourism Conference, the only national conference dedicated to travel and tourism in Indian Country,
A conference sponsorship will provide you with increased exposure to a diverse group of tribal tourism professionals, while also helping AIANTA augment its best-in-class training at this annual conference.
2021 AIANTA Charity Golf Tournament
Join the 2021 AIANTA Charity Golf Tournament at the award-winning We-Ko-Pa Golf Club on Sunday, October 23, 2021. $125 per player or $500 per foursome.–includes tee gift, golf cart and lunch. Prizes are available for the first, second and third-place teams. All proceeds support AIANTA programming.
2021 AITC Silent Auction
This silent auction raises direct funding support for AIANTA’s Hospitality and Tourism Scholarship Program benefiting Native students pursuing post-secondary degrees in Hospitality and Tourism Management and other tourism-related fields. Our goals are to ensure that Native students have the financial means to supplement their tuition.
About the We-Ko-Pa Casino Resort
The 23rd Annual American Indian Tourism Conference will take place at the all-new We-Ko-Pa Casino Resort, which recently unveiled a dazzling renovation. Guests of the hotel, which has received AAA Four Diamond status every year since its opening, can enjoy excellent dining options from an all-star lineup of chefs that have served guests at some of the leading luxury resorts around the world.
The new 166,341 square-foot casino replaces the original McDowell Casino—Arizona’s first casino—which opened as a bingo hall in 1984. Native American design elements—earth, water, fire and basket weaving, all important to the Fort McDowell Yavapai Nation—are incorporated throughout the new casino.
AITC attendees are encouraged to stay an extra day before or after the conference to enjoy the resort’s two outdoor pools, a Yavapai-inspired spa treatment at Amethyst Spa & Boutique, championship golfing at the resort’s two highly acclaimed courses and/or a menu of cultural and outdoor activities from Fort McDowell Adventures.
The Fort McDowell Yavapai Nation is an 889-member Native American tribe that calls Central Arizona’s upper Sonoran Desert home. Located to the northeast of Phoenix within Maricopa County, Arizona, the 40-square mile reservation is a small part of the ancestral territory of the once nomadic Yavapai people, who hunted and gathered food in a vast area of Arizona’s desert lowlands and mountainous Mogollon Rim country.
AITC 2020 Sponsors
Navajo Nation Parks & Recreation
Arizona Office of Tourism
Visit Cherokee Nation
Inn of the Mountain Gods
Choctaw Country
Oneida Nation of Wisconsin
Spokane Tribe of Indians
AMERIND
REDW
AITC 2020 Exhibitors & Artisans
106 Group
Amaktoolik Studios
Big Fire Law & Policy Group LLP
Caesars Entertainment
Indian Pueblo Cultural Center
Native America Travel
Native American Tourism of Wisconsin (NATOW)
Solimar International
Bluedot Beadwork
MoonHawk Art, LLC
Prudy Correa
A Warm Thank You to Our Partners
Bureau of Indian Affairs
Native American Agriculture Fund
Juan Bautista de Anza National Historic Trail
Lewis & Clark National Historic Trail
NativeAmerica.Travel
Education & Training
Technical assistance and training is the heartbeat of our work at AIANTA. We provide general and tailored technical assistance, training and education in a variety of ways.
International Outreach
AIANTA plays a critical role in supporting the National Travel and Tourism Strategy to bring more visitors to the United States, especially in our participation at trade shows internationally and domestically, to promote tourism in Indian Country.
Membership
Through AIANTA membership, tribes, the tourism industry and other partners form a dynamic network of shared experiences, resources and support.
A Warm Thank You to Our Partners
Bureau of Indian Affairs
Native American Agriculture Fund
Juan Bautista de Anza National Historic Trail
Lewis & Clark National Historic Trail
NativeAmerica.Travel
Education & Training
Technical assistance and training is the heartbeat of our work at AIANTA. We provide general and tailored technical assistance, training and education in a variety of ways.
International Outreach
AIANTA plays a critical role in supporting the National Travel and Tourism Strategy to bring more visitors to the United States, especially in our participation at trade shows internationally and domestically, to promote tourism in Indian Country.
Membership
Through AIANTA membership, tribes, the tourism industry and other partners form a dynamic network of shared experiences, resources and support.
