CLEVELAND — The Rolling Stones's decision to add Cleveland as a stop on its concert tour next year adds yet another event to the busy calendar that is shaping up to be the biggest for the city since hosting the RNC, the NBA Championship and the World Series in 2016. That's why Travel & Leisure Magazine listed Cleveland as one of the best places to travel next year, not just in the U.S., but in the world.
"2024 is really shaping up to be the biggest and I would dare say the best year for Cleveland's travel and tourism industry," said Emily Lauer, Vice President of Communications at Destination Cleveland.
It's a year filled with events years in the making. Consider this: we've got the Pan-American Masters games this summer, bringing athletes and media from all over the world, the Women's NCAA Basketball Final Four, followed immediately by the total eclipse of the sun that we've been telling you has already sold out hotels.
"You talk about probably 20,000 people for the Women's Final Four, another 20-25,000 people for the PanAm Masters games, who knows how many, but certainly tens of thousands in and around Cleveland for the eclipse," said David Gilbert, President & CEO of Destination Cleveland.
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductions also return to Cleveland in 2024, but the biggest event of the year is one you've likely never even heard of — the ASAE Convention.
"It's considered by many the sort of 'Super Bowl of Meetings,'" Gilbert said. It's the American Society of Association Executives, or simply put, it is a convention of convention planners — decision makers who have the potential to send the city future business.
"Research has shown that cities that host the ASAE annual conference, within the first five years after hosting, can see an increase of $200 to $500 million in economic impact from meetings and conventions secured as a result of hosting that convention," said Gilbert.
And whether it's for sports, an eclipse, a convention or concert, many of those coming next year will be visiting for the first time, and Destination Cleveland's own research shows if they can get you here, they can send you home as an ambassador — one who wants to come back.
"What we know is that people who visit Cleveland, their perception goes up greatly if they've never been here," Gilbert said. "They're then open to coming back, they're open to the message of living and working here. So it's critical for a city that continues to try and enhance its perception to get people here to experience our city."
The influx of new visitors means organizations like Destination Cleveland have a big job ahead of them.
"We always talk about every year we have millions of first dates and our job is, after that, try to convert them into long-term relationships with our community," Gilbert said. "So these events collectively have enormous opportunity to do that and above and beyond many of them have thousands of national media who will be here reporting on Cleveland."
