IMEX America 2027 runs 28–30 September at Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, and is free to attend. Hosted buyer rules, 2026 buyer profile, Smart Monday and airport transfers.
Cover image: The Las Vegas Strip, host city of IMEX America at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center — photo by Dietmar Rabich, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
IMEX America 2027 runs from Tuesday 28 to Thursday 30 September 2027 at Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, about two weeks earlier in the year than the 2026 show, and it is free to attend. Smart Monday, powered by MPI, opens the week on Monday 27 September. Organised by IMEX Group, it is a trade show for the meetings, events and incentive travel industry.
The 2026 edition ran from 13 to 15 October 2026 and has finished. The organiser has also dated 2028: 26 to 28 September, again at Mandalay Bay. The show is for meeting planners, agencies, association and corporate event teams and incentive buyers, and the destinations, hotels, venues and suppliers selling to them.
Who exhibits and who attends IMEX America?
The 2026 show drew 18,200 participants including exhibitors, up 4% on 2025, according to the organiser. Its 6,292 buyers from 82 countries comprised 4,857 hosted buyers and 1,435 buyer attendees, alongside 3,800 exhibiting companies representing more than 90 countries. The organiser counted 96,000 meetings and 96 press from nine countries.
The buyer base is mainly North American. In 2026, 73% of buyers came from the United States, 5% from Canada, 4% each from Mexico and the United Kingdom and 3% from Brazil. Agencies accounted for 58% of buyers, corporates 25%, associations 10% and independent planners 6%, and 27% of buyers reported buying power of more than $10 million.
Exhibitors range from national and regional tourist offices and convention bureaux to hotels, conference and exhibition venues, cruise lines, airlines, transport companies, technology providers and event management specialists. The 2026 exhibitor list on the organiser's site included Destination Florence, Lufthansa Group, Pacific Park on the Santa Monica Pier and Interactive DMC Puerto Rico.
How to attend IMEX America: registration, hosted buyers and students
Buyer attendees and visitors. Attendance is free. Registration for 2027 had not opened when we checked on 25 October 2026; the organiser is collecting expressions of interest from visitors, hosted buyers and press. Attendee registration stays open through the show and on-site registration is available. Visitors on a non-US passport may need a visa or an ESTA; once registered, you can generate a visa invitation letter in your IMEX account.
Hosted buyers. The programme gives qualifying planners free accommodation and reimburses travel up to a limit set by where you fly from, with no cancellation fees. To qualify you must research, organise, influence or make budget decisions for events outside your home country, have three confirmed or planned events in the next three years and arrive with buying power. In return you book six to eight 30-minute meetings a day through the show platform and stay for each full day of your programme. About 300 exhibitors act as intermediaries, inviting clients into hosted-buyer groups, or you can apply direct. Corporate planners with compliance rules can pay their own travel and hotel and keep the other benefits. Hosted-buyer registration closes before the show.
Students, academics and press. Event-management students register like any other attendee, and IMEX suggests the Thursday. Students can also apply for the IMEX-MPI-MCI Future Leaders Forum, which in 2026 was for those entering their final year, and in 2026 academics could join the Faculty Engagement Experience. Journalists can join the press list from the registration page.
Is it open to the public? No. It is a business event with no public days.
Networking at IMEX America: meetings, Smart Monday and evening events
Meetings are buyer-led: buyers find exhibitors in the Exhibitor Directory, which went live in August for the 2026 show, and request appointments in the online system. Exhibitors can contact buyers through the attendee list, and the organiser guarantees no minimum number of meetings. For 2026, meeting booking was due to open around 14 September, about a month before the show, so a complete exhibitor profile needs to be in place by late summer.
The Monday before the show floor opens is the main education day. In 2026 it carried Smart Monday, powered by MPI, alongside Corporate Focus, an Association Focus programme created by ASAE and the Executive Meeting Forum for senior corporate executives; the last two required registration. The evening brought the EIC Global Awards and SITE NITE North America. On show days the free education programme offered more than 300 sessions across seven tracks, with a daily MPI keynote and live translation through Wordly.ai.
The Wednesday of the 2026 show carried the MPI Foundation Rendezvous, billed as the IMEX America Night and ticketed separately, and the 5km IMEXrun before the doors opened. The floor opened 9:30am to 5:30pm on Tuesday and Wednesday and 9:30am to 4pm on Thursday in 2026; 2027 timings are not yet published.
Getting to IMEX America and where to stay
From Harry Reid International Airport, IMEX says a taxi costs from $25 and an Uber from $15, both taking about 10 minutes, while shared airport shuttle buses cost from $8 but take around 30 minutes because they wait until full. Hosted buyers use IMEX transfer buses at no extra cost.
From other Strip hotels, IMEX runs morning and evening transfers for buyers from selected hotels on show days. The Deuce bus runs 24 hours along the Strip and stops outside Mandalay Bay, with fares from $6, and the free MGM tram links Excalibur with Mandalay Bay. Indoor walkways link the resort's hotel towers to the convention space; allow 10 to 15 minutes.
For accommodation, IMEX offers rates negotiated directly with MGM at Mandalay Bay and other MGM properties nearby; the 2027 offers will appear on its travel and accommodation page in 2027. The organiser advises layers, as indoor spaces are heavily air-conditioned.
How does IMEX America compare with IMEX Frankfurt?
IMEX Group's other show, IMEX Frankfurt, takes place at Messe Frankfurt in May 2027. Its 2026 edition had 13,515 participants, 4,739 buyers and 2,900 exhibiting companies, against IMEX America's 18,200, 6,292 and 3,800. The buyer mix differs: 23% of Frankfurt's 2026 buyers came from Germany and 11% from the United States, while 73% of IMEX America's were US-based. Our travel trade shows calendar lists both, along with IBTM World in Barcelona.
Frequently asked questions
When is IMEX America 2027?
IMEX America 2027 runs from Tuesday 28 to Thursday 30 September 2027 at Mandalay Bay, 3950 S Las Vegas Blvd, Las Vegas, with Smart Monday, powered by MPI, on Monday 27 September. The 2026 edition took place from 13 to 15 October 2026, and the organiser has dated 2028 for 26 to 28 September at the same venue.
Is IMEX America open to the public?
No. IMEX America is a trade show for the meetings, events and incentive travel industry and has no public days. It is open to meeting planners, agencies, association executives, incentive buyers, corporate event teams, exhibitors, event-management students, academics and press, all of whom need an IMEX account and a badge. You can register on site if you miss online registration.
How much does it cost to attend IMEX America?
Nothing. IMEX America is free to attend for registered industry professionals, including buyer attendees and students, and most education sessions need no separate booking. Hosted buyers also receive free accommodation and have their travel reimbursed up to a band set by their departure point, with no cancellation fees, in return for booking six to eight 30-minute meetings a day.
How do I become a hosted buyer at IMEX America?
Apply direct through an IMEX account, or join the hosted-buyer group of one of about 300 exhibitors that act as intermediaries. You must research, organise, influence or sign off budgets for events outside your home country, have three confirmed or planned events in the next three years and come with buying power. IMEX checks your details with the venues you name.
How do I get from Harry Reid Airport to IMEX America?
Taxis from Harry Reid International Airport cost from $25 and Ubers from $15, and both take about 10 minutes, according to IMEX. Shared airport shuttle buses cost from $8 but take around 30 minutes because they leave only when full. Hosted buyers ride IMEX transfer buses at no extra cost.
Sources
- IMEX Group, IMEX America homepage: 2027 dates, venue and 2026 figures
- IMEX Group, IMEX America 2026 show statistics (PDF)
- IMEX Group, Register your interest for IMEX America 2027
- IMEX Group, IMEX America hosted buyer program
- IMEX Group, IMEX America FAQs
- IMEX Group, IMEX America schedule at a glance (2026)
- IMEX Group, IMEX America travel and accommodations
- IMEX Group, IMEX Frankfurt 2026 show statistics (PDF)
