Vision Expo to Become Single Annual Event in 2026

For the first time since their inceptions—Vision Expo East in 1986 and Vision Expo West in 1988—the two conferences will merge into a single annual show starting in 2026. Photo: Vision Expo. Click image to enlarge. After being held in New York City for nearly four decades, Vision Expo East relocated to Orlando for the first time this year, where the event saw a significant drop in attendance. This dip, coupled with concerns and criticisms voiced by industry stakeholders and past attendees regarding the move, prompted the show’s organizers—The Vision Council and RX—to re-evaluate the event’s structure and timing.In response, Vision Expo recently announced a major transformation: beginning in March 2026, the longstanding biannual trade shows held on separate coasts will be consolidated into a single, annual event that rotates among major US cities. The newly unified show is slated for Orlando in 2026, Las Vegas in 2027 and New York in 2028, all scheduled for the first quarter of each year. Vision Expo West in Las Vegas will proceed as planned this year, taking place from September 17 to 20, 2025. “In recent conversations with stakeholders, we heard a clear message: Vision Expo needed to evolve to deliver more value and simplify participation,” comments Ashley Mills, CEO of The Vision Council, in a Vision Monday article published earlier today about the news. “The new one-show format answers that call. Unifying into a single annual event streamlines planning and budgeting, lowers travel costs, amplifies exhibitor impact and creates one powerful moment for the industry to come together,” Mills says.Show organizers told Vision Monday that the reimagined event “delivers an experience that aims to maximize value, streamline participation and reflect the dynamic needs of a changing marketplace while expanding the show’s overall impact.” According to Vision Expo, highlights of the new format include enhanced technology showcases, targeted educational programming, expanded networking opportunities and simplified scheduling for companies and attendees (reducing overlap with other industry events). The March show timing also coordinates with product launches, annual education cycles and major buying seasons, while the rotating host city model is intended to make the show more regionally accessible and offer fresh experiences in top travel hubs across the US.A member of The Vision Council board of directors, Mollie Tavel Kaback, told Vision Monday that “as a longtime attendee, the industry event calendar can be overwhelming, and choices need to be made based on how to best meet our growing business needs. A bigger, better, single Vision Expo event means we can show up, accomplish everything we need to do in one place, and leave energized for the future.”Vision Expo plans to work alongside program partners to make for a cohesive transition from a biannual to an annual show. While the conference will continue to offer accredited education, organizers are exploring options to help attendees who previously relied on both spring and fall events to meet CE requirements.Looking beyond 2028, plans for future host cities—including potential destinations in the Midwest—are under review. Organizers say they are weighing options based on feedback, accessibility, venue caliber and regional reach.For additional details on the upcoming unified Vision Expo, visit www.visionexpo.com.