Houston 2026

The NAYEN annual Conference is a fantastic opportunity to share Rotary Youth Exchange with fellow Rotarians from around the world. We have 3 days of conference programming for both first time attendees and those new to RYE, as well as veteran RYE volunteers. The conference will offer speakers, sessions, and exhibits all geared towards enhancing your District's Rotary Youth Exchange program.

Conference Dates: Thursday, Mar 19, 2026 to Saturday, Mar 21, 2026

Location: Houston Marriott Westchase

Cost: $499 until Sep 30th 2025

Looking for past conference presentations & materials? The past presentation slides are available to download here.
TBD

Call for session speakers & topics opens

TBD

Call for session speakers & topics closes

TBD - Summer 2025

NAYEN Annual Awards Application launch

September 1, 2025

Registration pricing increase

October 2025

NAYEN Annual Awards Application due

October 1, 2026

Registration pricing increase

January 1, 2026

Registration pricing increases

January 2026

2026 Whova Conference App Launch (check back for the link in Jan 2026!)

Room block: expires Mar 02, 2026 (rooms may sell out prior to Mar 03)

Feburary 15, 2026

Last day to register for the in person conference online

March 19, 2026

Badge Pickup begins! Conference starts Mar 19!

March 19, 2026

 

First Day of the Conference!

 

Our Sponsors

Platinum

Gold

Conference Hotel

Houston Marriott Westchase

2900 Briarpark Dr. Houston, Texas, USA, 77042

Book your group rate for North American Youth Exchange Network Annual Conference 2026

The group rates are available through Mar 03, 2026. The room block may sell out prior to Mar 03, 2026.
It is recommended to contact the hotel to reserve your room as soon as you make plans to attend the conference.

Pricing/Registration

Individual Attendee

$499*

(includes the banquet dinner on Saturday)

Recent ROTEX

$400*

(Past RYE students who returned after 2016, this is for those that have recently returned and are still starting in their careers.)

Spouse

$450*

(All Rotarians attending the conference should register as individual attendees. Spouse registration is for included meals and the Saturday banquet only.
Spouses are not able to attend sessions.)

Attendee (Individual, ROTEX, Spouse) meals:

Breakfast: Thursday, Friday, Saturday
Lunch: Thursday, Friday, Saturday
Break snacks: Thursday, Friday, Saturday
Dinner: Saturday Banquet dinner

Thursday & Friday dinners are not provided by the conference. These meals are on your own. 

Registration Pricing and Increase Dates

Please note, in person registration prices will increase on March 1, Oct 1, 2025; Jan 1, Feb 15, 2026.

Registration Type Until Feb 28 2025 Mar 1-Sep 30 2025 Oct 1 -Dec 31 2025 Jan 1 -Mar 10 2026 Onsite
Full Attendee (all Rotarians) $449 $499 $549 $699 $799
Rotex $400 $400 $450 $450 $500
Spouse/Guest (non-Rotarians) $400 $450 $450 $500 $600
Banquet Add-on $150 $150 $200 $200 $225

 

Thursday only: $200

Friday only: $200

If you are planning to attend, don't delay, register today!

Registration will close March 1, 2026. Any registrations after March 1st  must be made on site & will be charged additional late fees for on site registration.

Cancellations

All cancellations will be charged a $25 fee to cover fees related to returned payments.

Days of Notice Prior to the Annual Conference

    • 45 days notice, 100%
    • 30 days notice 75%
    • 21 days notice, 50%
    • 14 days notice, 0%

Please contact Bruce Stimson with registration and cancellation questions brucestimson@gmail.com

Frequently Asked Questions

Call for Proposal/Session information

The Call for Speakers will launch in late summer 2023. Contact the Program Committee: Pauline Perreault and Fran Hochhausen if you have any questions.

The program for the 2024 conference is currently in development.

You can checkout the agenda from the 2023 conference for an idea of the types of sessions available.

Yes! We have great sessions and information for District Governors!

General Conference Information

Last day to register for the in person conference: February 15, 2025.*

This is earlier than in prior years! Late registrations on site may be limited due to the contract with the hotel. If you are planning to register, please make sure to sign up as soon as possible!

Registering on site is the most expensive way to attend the conference.

Whova is the conference app, it is the best place to find information on the program, speakers, connect with other attendees & more!

The conference app will be available 60-90 days prior to the start of the event.
Once it is live, check back here or the email you used to register for the event for a link to the app!

Is it before December 2023? The app will be published 60-90 days prior to the start of the conference.
If it is before then, there is not a live event to log into yet!

Did you register & pay in the last 15-30 minutes? Once the app is live, new registrations are sent to Whova every 30 minutes. You will not have immediate access.

Were you registered by someone else from your district? Reach out to that person & confirm the email they provided for you at registration. You will not be able to login automatically unless your email matches. If there is a typo in your email, contact Shannon Brunston, confvicechair1@nayen.org to correct your registration.

I think I have the right email, but there is already an account & I don't have the password
On the login page, click 'forgot password' & then follow the instructions to set up a new password & then try to log in again. NAYEN cannot reset your password.
If you are using a district email address, like "InbouncChair@district1234.org", the last chair may have already set up a whova account. You'll want to reset the password, or reach out to Shannon (email above) to modify your registration to a personal email.

I tried to register with an apple, facebook or other social sign on email, I don't have the event once I'm logged in.
Please log out. Please log back in using the email you provided at registration. Only the emails provided at registration will get immediate access to the event in Whova.

All cancellations will be charged a $25 fee to cover fees related to returned payments.

Days of Notice Prior to the Annual Conference

  • 45 days notice, 100%
  • 30 days notice 75%
  • 21 days notice, 50%
  • 14 days notice, 0%

Please contact Kim Armitage and Shannon Brunston with registration and cancellation questions.

You can also send someone else in your place to attend the conference, please contact Kim Armitage and Shannon Brunston for registration substitutions.

All Rotarians involved in Rotary Youth Exchange who would like to attend sessions need to be registered as "attendees".

Those registered as "Spouse" will no longer have access to sessions starting in 2024. Spouses have access to event social activities, meals, and the banquet dinner.

If you are a young professional, who when on exchange 2015-2016 or more recently, please feel free to register as a ROTEX attendee! We are excited to welcome you to the NAYEN conference! The lower ROTEX rate is intended to help recently returned ROTEX members engage with the wider RYE community.

If you are a Rotarian, established in your career & went on exchange in for example 1980 or 2000 or 2010, please register as an individual attendee. We are also excited to welcome you to the NAYEN conference! We do contact ROTEX registrants to confirm the year they went on exchange prior to the conference.

Hotel FAQ

Check back soon!

Hotel room block: expires Jan 19, 2025 - don't wait to make your reservations until Jan 18th or 19th!
The NAYEN room block has sold out the last several conferences; you may not get a room at the reduced price or the main conference hotel if you wait to make your reservations.

If you are planning to attend, make sure to contact the hotel to make your reservations today!

To make your reservation by phone:

Step 1. Call our reservation center: 800 504 5000 (from Mexico). From USA and Canada: 1 800 343 7821

Step 2. You will be contacted by an advisor who will provide information on the
rates, commenting on the name NAYEN 2025 ANNUAL CONFERENCE
or the code G1MQ0U@FMD.

You can check in as early as February 29th, and check out as late as March 13th and still get access to the group rate.

Planning to attend in person? Don't miss out on the group rate, book your room today!

No, you will need to contact the hotel directly to modify your reservation.

 

Check back soon!

Fiesta Americana Mérida

Paseo de Montejo No. 451 Esq. Avenida
Colón C.P. 97127 Mérida, Yucatán, México

Reservation Center: 800 504 5000
 

The hotel does have parking available, but there is a charge. If you are driving to the conference, you will need to pay for parking at the hotel.