How the Evolution of the IAAPA Made Orlando Its Inevitable Home

Organizations occasionally make decisions that define their future for generations.

The International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions' (IAAPA) decision to relocate its Global Headquarters from Alexandria, Virginia to Orlando, Florida nearly a decade ago was the most consequential strategic decisions in the Association's history.

Looking back nearly a decade later, it is clear the move was not simply a relocation. It was the natural culmination of an evolution that had been taking place within our Association for more than forty years. In my opinion, IAAPA did not move to Orlando because Orlando was convenient. IAAPA moved to Orlando because the Association had evolved to the point where Orlando had become its inevitable home. That distinction is important. This is not a story about a $20 million Headquarters building. It is not a story about valuable a real estate purchase has soared since acquisition. It is not even just a story about Orlando. It is the reality of how our Association transformed itself from an organization with an international name into one that genuinely represented the expanding worldwide attractions industry, and how Orlando naturally emerged as the one place on earth where our global organization belonged.

When I first became active in IAAPA many years ago, we proudly carried the name International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions. Truthfully, however, we were basically an American association with an international name.

IAAPA Headquarters 1448 Duke Street, Alexandria, Virginia

That statement is not intended as criticism of those who came before us. It simply reflected the reality of our industry at the time. The overwhelming majority of our members, leadership, educational programs, committees, manufacturers, and business activity were centered in North America because that was where the modern amusement park industry had largely been born and had matured. But by the late 1970s and early 1980s, many of us recognized that the future of our industry would not be confined to the United States. Europe was expanding. Asia was awakening. Latin America was beginning to embrace destination leisure development. New markets were emerging across the globe.

Developers everywhere were looking for operational knowledge, safety standards, management expertise, creative design, and educational resources. They were looking for IAAPA support.

It became increasingly apparent that simply having the word “international” in our name was no longer enough. We needed to become international in every meaningful sense of the word. That transformation became one of the defining objectives of IAAPA’s leadership during the following decades. We deliberately expanded our educational outreach beyond North America. We took IAAPA conferences, institutes, and educational programs into emerging markets around the world. We actively invited countries that previously had little involvement with the Association to become engaged. We broadened committee participation. We welcomed international manufacturers, suppliers, consultants, and operators. Perhaps most importantly, we expanded the composition of the IAAPA Board of Directors itself, ensuring that its leadership increasingly reflected the worldwide industry we aspired to represent. Those were not symbolic changes. They fundamentally altered the trajectory of our Association.

Over the years, IAAPA evolved into exactly what its founders had envisioned, truly a global organization representing thousands of member companies in more than 100 plus countries and serving virtually every segment of the attractions industry.

Once that transformation occurred, another question naturally followed.

If IAAPA had truly become the world’s attractions association, where should the world’s attractions association call home?

By then, the answer had become increasingly obvious. Not because someone declared it. Not because a committee wanted it. Not because it was fashionable. But because the industry itself had already made the decision. The center of gravity of the global attractions industry had shifted. It had shifted to Orlando.

From the moment Walt Disney World opened its gates in 1971, Orlando embarked on a trajectory unlike any other city in the history of leisure entertainment. Universal Orlando Resort, SeaWorld Orlando, the growth of International Drive, the Orange County Convention Center, and, most recently, Universal’s Epic Universe have each added another chapter to a story that is still being written.

The numbers tell the story. Orlando welcomed more than 75 million visitors in 2025 alone, remaining the most visited destination in the United States, and the highest visited city in the world. Central Florida’s tourism economy now generates nearly $95 billion in annual economic impact. That is not simply tourism. Orlando is forecasting drawing over 100 million visitors during the next 5-7 years! That is a true global industry podium!

Universal’s Epic Universe opened in May 2025, and it further confirmed Orlando’s position as the world’s most powerful attractions market. It was not just another park opening. It was another signal that the industry’s future continues to be written in Central Florida. Yes, there is growth in Asia, the Middle East, and now even Africa, but the “elephant in the room” regarding global leisure attraction mass is undeniably Orlando, Florida.

Today, Orlando is more than the world’s premier tourism destination. It is the world’s classroom, laboratory, marketplace, and meeting ground for the attractions business. It is where operators study best practices. It is where manufacturers and suppliers are opening offices and bringing new ideas. It is where developers from around the world come to understand what is possible. It is where executives, designers, financiers, consultants, and creators gather to learn, innovate, collaborate, and invest. And it is from where our terrific IAAPA Management team emanates, supported by its global regional offices.

Once IAAPA became a truly global Association, there was only one logical place for its International Headquarters. The Association did not simply relocate. It came home.

And doesn’t it feel good when you get it right!

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