CHEYENNE, Wyoming — Travel Alliance Partners (TAP) held its annual TAP Dance conference June 9-13 at Cheyenne’s Little America Hotel and Resort. During this annual event, TAP member tour operators meet with representatives of destinations and attractions across the country to collaborate on new ideas for tours and travel experiences.
TAP is a tour consortium owned by its tour operator members. Each member develops and sells tour products that are available for other members to sell to their customers. There were 26 TAP tour companies in attendance at TAP Dance.
The industry delegation to the conference included representatives of 138 companies, including convention and visitors bureaus, state travel offices, hotels and attractions. In one of the most unusual aspects of TAP Dance, the industry delegation is broken up into “pods,” sets of four to seven people grouped together by geographic regions or other travel themes.
The pods meet with each tour operator individually in 25-minute appointment sessions, allowing for extended discussion and brainstorming. The appointments are spread over three days throughout the course of the conference. By the end, each tour operator has met with every industry representative in attendance.
In addition to the business appointments, TAP Dance featured numerous meal functions, as well as after-hours networking activities that showcased the scenic beauty and Western heritage of the Cheyenne area. The first full day of the conference ended with a high plains garden party at the Cheyenne Botanic Gardens Grand Conservancy. The following evening’s event consisted of barbecue and a rodeo at a private ranch.
The final evening’s event was sponsored by the Branson Convention and Visitors Bureau, which will host TAP Dance in 2020. Next year’s event will take place June 13-18 at Chateau on the Lake in Branson, Missouri.
