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IMPACT: 2026 KOA Convention & Expo, Kansas City, November 16–19, 2026

First-Timers Guide · Kansas City · Nov 16–19, 2026

Walk in like you've done this before.

Four days, 150+ exhibitors, and a room where most people already know each other. That's a lot for a first time. This is the part nobody hands you: what to bring, where to be, and what everyone else already knows.

Start with step one See your first afternoon
Hundreds of KOA owners in yellow shirts with their hands raised for the annual convention group photo
Three KOA attendees wearing convention badges, smiling together
Group photo day · Wednesday
Start here

Nobody tells you the unwritten part

The convention site will tell you what is happening and when. It won't tell you that lunch is served inside the Expo hall, so the busiest hour of the show is also the hour you're trying to eat. Or that "black tie optional" means a jacket, not a tuxedo. Or that the people wearing yellow on Wednesday planned it weeks ago.

This isn't a trade show you survive. It's the week your year gets easier.

The Kansas City Marriott Downtown room block closes October 21, 2026.

Click here to book the hotel

The plan

Five steps, in this order

Do them in sequence and nothing will surprise you.

01

Get registered

One fee covers every session, the Expo, breakfast and lunch Tuesday–Thursday, and dinner Monday and Thursday. Most of the week is already paid for. Be sure to select "First-Timers Reception" and give us your T-shirt size. You'll wear it at the First-Timers event.

Flag any dietary needs while you register. They cannot be added at check-in.
Also booked here

"Choose Your Adventure" runs 2:00 to 4:00 on Monday afternoon and is booked while you register, not later. Three options that day: the BBQ Museum at $50, the streetcar and walking history tour at $20, or the Barley Bus brewery tour at $75. Each carries its own fee on top of your convention registration, capacity is capped, and you pick one.

Cancel by November 1 at koaevents@koa.net. No refunds after that.

Register here

02

Hotel or campground? You choose

Two ways to sleep, booked in two completely different ways. Neither rate exists outside the official route.

The hotel

Kansas City Marriott Downtown, $229 a night, a short walk from the Convention Center. Rooms go first-come, first-served, and the convention rate only exists through the official KOA housing link.

Book the hotel

Block closes Oct 21, or when it sells out
The campground

Kansas City West / Lawrence KOA Holiday, 45 to 50 minutes out. Stay two nights, get two free. There is no online booking for this one: the convention rate is only available if you call the campground direct.

Call 785-842-3877

Ask for the KOA convention rate
03

Build your days

The full lineup is out: 25 workshops across five time slots, Tuesday through Thursday, with five running at once in every slot. No sign-up, walk into any of them, and everything is recorded. A session you miss isn't a session you lost.

*Pro Tip - Pick a first and a second choice for each slot

See all 25 workshops

04

Pack right

Layers, shoes you'd walk a park in, and one yellow shirt. Bags are covered: you get one at check-in and vendors hand out more on the Expo floor. You'll leave carrying more than you brought.

Week before
05

Walk in Monday

Check-in at noon. First-Timers Reception at 4:30. The opening party at 6:00, walkable from the hotel.

Nov 16
Two KOA owners at the convention check-in desk holding their programs and tote bags
What to bring

The packing list

Marked items are the ones people wish they'd brought.

  • One yellow shirt: group photo day is real, and it's Wednesday
  • Shoes you'd walk a park in: a few miles a day
  • Layers: cold ballrooms, warm Expo hall
  • Business cards: still the currency here
  • Room in your suitcase: bags are free at check-in and all over the Expo floor
  • A jacket for Thursday: not a tuxedo
  • Money for the Care Camps auction: silent bids run all week, live auction on the final night, and it sends kids with cancer to camp
  • Battery pack: session-room outlets are a myth
  • Your park's numbers: vendors will ask site count and season
  • A refillable bottle: the walk between halls is long
Monday, November 16

Your first afternoon

The convention officially starts at 6:00 PM. Here's everything before that, and why it matters.

12:00PM · Convention Center

Check-in opens

Pick up your badge and your First-Timers T-shirt. The badge gets you into everything, including the off-site excursions. Wear the shirt to the reception at 4:30: staff wear them too, so you will not be the only one in it. Come early. The line at 4:00 is not the line at noon.

2:00PM · Departs the Marriott

Choose Your Adventure

BBQ Museum ($50), streetcar and walking history tour ($20), or the Barley Bus brewery tour ($75). Each is an extra fee on top of your convention registration, booked in advance and capped. The brewery tour is Monday only. Arrive Sunday if you want one.

4:30PM · Location TBC

First-Timers Reception

Ninety minutes with the other people who are also new, plus the Franchise Business Coaches: the KOA staffers assigned to your park, and your first call all week. The single most useful hour of your convention.

6:00PM · Kansas City Live!

Opening Night Celebration

An entire city block in the Power & Light District, KOA-only access to the ground floor, Kansas City BBQ from County Road Ice House. Walkable, and a shuttle runs all evening. Arrive hungry.

You don't have to do all of it. Most first-timers do one excursion and sleep.

Aerial view of the KOA Expo hall
The Expo

How to work 150+ booths

Lunch is served inside the Expo hall Tuesday through Thursday. The busiest hour of the show is also the hour you're trying to eat. Plan around it.

The vocabulary

Speak KOA

Walking into a room where everyone speaks a language you don't is the fastest way to feel like an outsider. Here's the language. You'll hear all ten in the first two hours.

Your people
FBCFranchise Business Coach
The KOA staffer assigned to your park. Find yours at the First-Timers Reception. Your first call all week, and all year.
Your people
Owners Association
The franchisee body. Annual meeting is Thursday morning; paid members vote. You can attend either way.
The agenda
General Session
Everybody in one ballroom. Leadership, keynotes, awards. You don't pick these. They're the spine of the day.
The agenda
Workshops
Smaller concurrent sessions. No sign-up, walk into any, all recorded. Arrive ten minutes early. The popular ones fill.
The awards
ICON Awards
Wednesday afternoon. Recognizes parks excelling at operations, guest satisfaction and brand engagement.
The awards
Rising Star
Announced at Thursday's gala alongside Campground of the Year. The two biggest honors in the system.
The cause
Care Camps
The foundation KOA supports. It sends children with cancer to camp. Silent auction all week, live auction at the gala. Bring money to spend on this worthy cause.
The rituals
Yellow shirt day
Wednesday. Everyone wears yellow for the group photo.
The rituals
Partnership Recognition
Owners honored at 20, 30, 40, 50 and 60 years. Watching a 60-year partner stand up explains this company faster than anything else.
Bring the family
Kids Kamp
On-site childcare, ages 4–12, with supervised outings. Infant care 3 months–3 years. Registration closes October 10, no exceptions.
When you're stuck

Two people who answer

You are not the first person to ask, and they'd rather hear from you in September than at the check-in desk.

Kama Humphrey

Kama Humphrey

Director of Convention

Hotel block, lodging, the Expo, anything general.

khumphrey@koa.net406-248-7444

Tracy Kern

Tracy Kern

Convention & Event Manager

Registration, dietary needs, Kids Kamp and childcare.

tkern@koa.net406-248-7444

One thing left

Register, then book the room

In that order. The convention will still have space in October. The hotel block probably won't. Then come back here and we'll walk you through the rest.

Register for the convention Reserve your room