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Laura Lopez is a Latina powerhouse in the travel sector—an industry oversaturated with white, non-Latino leaders despite Latino folks spending almost $114 billion annually on domestic leisure travel, according to the 2019 MMGY report Vistas Latinas: A Landmark Study on U.S. Travelers of Hispanic Descent. But Lopez is looking to change that as she fosters strong relationships with some of the largest travel brands and aims to revolutionize the industry by uplifting more Hispanic and Latino voices.
That commitment manifests in her current role as head of US media relations at Expedia, one of the nation’s top travel technology companies. The position is a dream job for the multicultural powerhouse, who is of Mexican, Puerto Rican, and Irish descent—especially so considering less than 2 percent of senior executive roles are held by Latinas at the nation’s largest companies, USA TODAY reports. Earning the title in 2022, Lopez brought with her over fifteen years of industry experience to Expedia.
“When I got the offer letter it was a true pinch me moment,” she recalls. “The role was an exciting opportunity to build an in-house media relations team from the ground up that was responsible for landing coverage for our brands. Since its inception, our small but mighty team’s results have rivaled the work of large-scale PR firms.”
“I’ve always had a love for travel, even before I had the opportunity to explore the world. From a young age, I wanted to see more of the world, and I wanted to have a job where every day was a new experience.”
Laura Lopez
A look at a day in the life of Lopez consists of developing and pitching compelling story angles to journalists at leading publications, while building relationships with them on behalf of Expedia brands. That means attending lots of dinners, events, or conferences like the National Association of Hispanic journalists with her team. She played an integral role in the launch of Expedia Group’s One Key rewards program, Expedia’s annual trends report, and Vrbo’s Vacation Home of the Year campaign.
But her love for connecting with diverse groups and embracing the beauty of other cultures wasn’t borne from her job. In fact, it’s something that dates back to her childhood.
“I’ve always had a love for travel, even before I had the opportunity to explore the world,” Lopez says. As a child, her travels were limited to Puerto Rico and summer jaunts to upstate New York visiting a lake-side cabin. But Lopez fell in love with tourism by watching the Travel Channel, living vicariously through television travel icons Samantha Brown and Anthony Bourdain. “From a young age, I wanted to see more of the world, and I wanted to have a job where every day was a new experience,” she says.
A devotion to family informs her desire to explore, as it was her father who instilled the value of learning about other cultures. He would take his children to Manhattan’s Chinatown to sample different cuisines. He also taught her the value of networking within the Latino community. “When we traveled to Puerto Rico, my father would strike up conversations with locals. He has a way of connecting with Spanish-speaking strangers wherever he goes. That’s one of the beautiful things about our culture. That sense of familia regardless of your home country,” Lopez says.
Networking within the Latino community has been key to Lopez’s professional growth, beginning when she studied political science, journalism, and anthropology at the University of Delaware. “In college, I was invited to join the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers. I wasn’t an engineer, but I was Latina and they enticed me with the opportunity to travel to annual career conferences across the country. The conferences were invaluable,” Lopez says. “I sat in on professional development panels, met with recruiters from Fortune 500 companies, and tapped resources, such as resume writing courses. I got to travel to Disney World, Dallas, and Chicago for free,” Lopez recalls.
Before university, Lopez had never traveled outside of North America. Determined to see more of the globe, she self-funded a study abroad trip to South Africa, where she studied for a semester at the University of Pretoria.
“That’s one of the beautiful things about our culture. That sense of familia regardless of your home country.”
Laura Lopez
Jumpstarting her career in journalism, she worked for Good Morning America, News 12 Long Island, and LI News Tonight. However, she came to the realization that a career in journalism was not sustainable, as full-time roles in newsrooms were rare. “I knew I needed to pivot careers if I wanted more stability. Being able to pivot has been a constant in my life, and my background in journalism created a seamless foray into public relations,” Lopez explains.
Her love for travel never waned, though. It wasn’t until she saw one of her college classmates caption a photo of her in Bora Bora on social media with “This is Work” that she pursued her childhood dream of working in the travel industry. “I immediately messaged her demanding to know what she did for a living. She introduced me to the world of travel PR and got me an internship at her company, Hawkins International. I’ve been hooked ever since,” says Lopez, who went on to oversee media relations for a broad range of travel companies including Air Canada, Marriott Hotels & Resorts, Amtrak, VisitDallas, and Conrad Hotels & Resorts.
As such, working in travel media relations helped Lopez actualize her dream of traveling the globe. “Growing up my family didn’t travel very far, so I’m proud to be able to have a career where I can indulge in travel perks,” she says. “I was always a budget motel type of traveler, but my work has exposed me to the finer things in life.”
