IAAPA Expo convention center Mattel entrance

IAAPA Expo 2025: Sights, Sounds and Scents from the Attractions Industry’s Annual Show

Posted on November 21, 2025 by Juanita Chavarro Arias

The week before Thanksgiving marks IAAPA Expo’s annual return to the Orange County Convention Center and takeover of Orlando’s I-Drive tourist district, gathering the global attractions industry for a week of conference sessions, show floor exploration, networking and celebrations.

From Nov. 17-21, more than 40,000 professionals took part in 170-plus education events and walked a 500,000-square-foot trade show floor to see the latest industry innovations from over 1,100 exhibitors representing rides, arcades, water parks, show production, family entertainment centers, haunts and inflatables.

We hit the convention center to pull back the curtain on the “business of fun,” and what we discovered was a vibrant atmosphere made up of a close-knit, welcoming community. Here are our top takeaways and experiences:

Themed Show Floor Entrances

The OCCC’s North and South Concourses each offer two entrances to the expansive show floor, and IAAPA leveled up the way in and out with industry-specific theming. Attendees took in the décor as they rode down the escalator in awe.

When we arrived on the South Concourse, we encountered the Mattel-sponsored entry, decked out in dynamic graphics of a flying Hot Wheels car, Thomas the Tank Engine, water slides and Barbie Dreamhouse. Tall surrounding columns were adorned with colorful pool inner tubes and oversized inflatable UNO cards. The splashy environment also spread to the floor with pool graphics attendees walked over on their way in. Plus, get this, the scent of sunscreen was in the air.

It wasn’t the only scent on the concourse. Across the way, on the north side, we caught notes of cedar, which made sense since this side was themed to a treetop ropes course and zip lines. The columns in this area were wrapped to look like tree trunks, fitting into the wall graphics of families enjoying the great outdoors.

The next entrance over had a more chilling vibe. Leaning into haunts, the dark wall graphics portrayed an ornate manor surrounded by a cemetery, forest trees, crows and ghouls. The columns here featured large spiders and webs, and moving red and blue spotlights illuminated the wall designs.

Lastly, on our way out, we exited through the blue snake-themed roller coaster entryway, where we emerged through a giant viper’s mouth and heard the rumbling of roller coaster vehicles and screams as we rode up the escalator.

Top Three Booths

Luckyplay, Chinese manufacturer of children’s indoor playgrounds, used one of its products as the base of the pastel-colored, two-story structure, featuring flashing lights, oversized buttons and padded archways. But inside was a meeting space made up of tables with rounded edges and screens built into the center, rectangular seating blocks, and funky plastic chairs (all adult-sized, of course). A small ball pit against the back wall under a gaming TV and plastic piping reinforced the children’s play space environment.

Further up the aisle, we came across an Irish pub, The Deluxe Arms. The four-walled booth from The Deluxe Group featured stone façades on the sides, street signs and an oversized billboard with “Guinness for Strength” messaging. The front of the booth was a replica of a pub entrance, complete with windows, retro whiskey and beer ads, “Jamison Deluxe Edition Irish Whiskey” barrels, hanging flower pots, The Irish News and Donegal Democrat newspaper displays, and a “Fáilte” doormat on grassy carpeting.

The Deluxe Arms was quite popular and tough to get into, but through the doorway was, in fact, an authentic Irish pub, with wooden wall panels, a bar, stools, a backdrop of bottles, draft dispensers, a band performance corner, wooden booths, Guinness coasters and signage, teapots and cups, retro radios and Irish trinkets. Employees were also in on the theming, wearing white button-downs, vests and flat caps. While The Deluxe Group blew us away, IAAPA’s judging panel for the Brass Ring Exhibitor Awards was also wowed, recognizing the booth with the coveted Image Award, which honors the single most outstanding exhibit booth at IAAPA Expo.

Also a Brass Ring Exhibitor Award winner, first place in the 600-1,200-square-foot booth category, SplashTacular made a splash with its upscale, water-inspired lounge. The water slide manufacturer drew us in with a neon “Slink into Something Cool” sign, and the space was marked by ornate gold details, mood lighting, curved architecture, and plush couches and seating. A private conference room was enclosed by glass walls with wave patterns, and around the back of the booth was a two-story brick façade covered in an array of water park and ocean-themed posters, as well as a spray-painted SplashTacular logo. (Build: E3 XPS)

Rides, Rides, Rides

It wouldn’t be a show for the attractions industry without a few rides mixed in with the booths on the floor. We even saw a meeting take place inside the new ride vehicle for SeaWorld Orlando’s upcoming attraction, SEAQuest: Legends of the Deep, at the Vekoma Rides booth.

DOF Robotics offered two ride experiences in its booth: Mars Odyssey, a 270-degree immersive tunnel attraction, and the Hurricane 360 VR ride. The Istanbul-headquartered exhibitor also unveiled its new steampunk dark ride vehicle that was on display and spinning in its booth all week.

Zamperla debuted its new tower ride, WingZ, which also offers accessible seating for wheelchair users. By flapping their arms, riders can make their gondola rise and fall as the central tower slowly rotates. Italian manufacturer SBF–VISA Group brought its well-known, spinning figure-eight roller coaster and drop tower that had attendees’ screams echoing across the convention center.

Haunting Grounds

After a successful launch last year, Haunting Grounds returned to IAAPA Expo to spotlight exhibitors specializing in Halloween attractions and seasonal haunt experiences. Located on the North Concourse, the immersive zone enticed attendees with brick façades, pumpkin installations, gargoyles and digital window screens that showed jack-o’-lanterns moving through a factory.

Once we built up the courage to step inside, we encountered tortured corpses with graphic gore (the sign out front warned us), flashing lights and, to our unfortunate surprise, a jump scare of a black-haired woman popping out of a trash can and screaming bloody murder. When our heart restarted, we moved through an Egyptian mummy scene, an alien space set, a classic monster lab and a spooky zombie zone. Thankfully, this time we did not walk by that part first, and a hanging zombie that started jolting around in chains scared the participants ahead of us.

We quickly went for the exit, which led into the haunt exhibitors’ booths. While they were creepy-looking, the exhibits were nothing like the immersive walkthrough, and we were grateful to chat with friendly employees who helped us through an underwater- and shark-themed mini mirror maze at the Iron, Wood & Glitter booth, first-place winners of the 20-by-20-foot booth Brass Ring Exhibitor Award.

Universal Epic Universe

After officially opening in May, Universal Epic Universe, Universal Orlando Resort’s newest theme park, became the site of several events during IAAPA Expo week. We attended the Themed Entertainment Association’s International Mixer on Nov. 18, which took over the “How to Train Your Dragon” – Isle of Berk land and was one of the first corporate events hosted at the new park.

There, TEA announced the 32^nd Annual Thea Award recipients, and Epic Universe picked up four awards. Later in the week on Nov. 20, IAAPA Expo hosted its exclusive, special-ticket IAAPA Celebrates event at Epic Universe, giving attendees the chance to ride the new attractions, try f&b offerings and enjoy live entertainment.