LAS VEGAS -- Las Vegas is reaching out to the international tourist market and it's paying off.
The London-based World Travel & Tourism Council announced Tuesday that Las Vegas will host the 2011 Global Travel & Tourism Summit. That summit will draw top government officials and industry leaders from around the world.
There are several events and trade shows that have started to bring international tourists to Las Vegas. For the first time, the PBR World Cup will be held in the United States at the UNLV.
While the Thomas and Mack Center may be best known for hosting basketball games, it's now starting to look like a bull riding arena. The events start on Friday.
"Bull riding is man against beast and it's pretty elementary and pretty easy to understand," said Jerome Robison, PBR.
Professional bull riders are no stranger to Las Vegas, but the World Cup will attract thousands from all over the world.
"The competition whether you have it in Australia, Canada, Brazil, Mexico, or the U.S. will be world class," Robison said.
It's these types of events that are expanding tourism efforts.
"You have World Cup, you have Rugby 7's which was here in February, you have the National Association of Broadcasters which is here and international in flavor. We have Consumer Electronics and we have a lot of trade shows that come to Las Vegas that have 25 to 30 percent of their attendees who are international," said Rossi Ralenkotter, LVCVA.
The Rugby 7's Tournament drew crowds from Scotland, Australia, and Ireland just to name a few and brought in $9.2 million.
Now, with the announcement that The Global Travel & Tourism Summit is coming to Las Vegas, Mayor Oscar Goodman couldn't be happier.
"We're constantly working to get the best conventions in the world to come to Las Vegas because we're the tourist destination, we're the place," said Goodman.
"I refer to this as the Olympics of tourism because it brings together all of the primary ministers of tourism and those that promote travel and tourism throughout the world," said Ralenkotter.
Aria at CityCenter will be the host hotel and casino. Las Vegas beat out at least three other cities after some massive bidding.
This year's summit is being held next month in Beijing. World Travel & Tourism Council chief executive Jean-Claude Baumgarten says Las Vegas was selected in part because it's a symbol of tourism in the United States. Baumgarten calls Las Vegas a well-known example of a city with a tourism-based economy.
