Megan Ryburn

Member Spotlight: 

Megan Ryburn
Director of External Affairs
Louisiana Travel Association

Megan Ryburn has spent more than 15 years working in tourism and has built a career around something she truly enjoys: connecting people, communities, and businesses to the places that make Louisiana special.

A native of Oceanside, California, Megan grew up as a military brat, with strong Louisiana roots through her parents, who are both from New Orleans. She attended Louisiana State University, earning a degree in Communication Studies. Her career path led her into the tourism industry, where she discovered that the work offered the perfect combination of relationship-building, communications, advocacy, and a little bit of Louisiana pride.

Today, Megan serves as Director of External Affairs for the Louisiana Travel Association (LTA), where she advocates on behalf of Louisiana’s travel and tourism industry at both the state and federal levels. She works closely with legislators, elected officials, tourism organizations, destination marketing organizations, hotels, attractions, restaurants, airports, and corporate partners to strengthen Louisiana’s visitor economy.

In addition to advocacy, Megan is passionate about building relationships and creating opportunities for LTA members and partners. She works with corporate investors and members, develops partnerships and sponsorships, and helps connect businesses across Louisiana’s tourism industry. For Megan, one of the most rewarding parts of the job is seeing how many different people and industries come together to make Louisiana tourism successful.

Outside of work, Megan enjoys traveling, cooking, spending time with family, and being an aunt. She loves water destinations, barre, pickleball, and, perhaps fittingly, scary movies. Her love of travel continues outside of work as well, giving her plenty of inspiration and perspective to bring back to her role in Louisiana tourism.

Megan is proud to be a member of MSWIT and values the opportunity to connect with other women who are making an impact in the tourism and hospitality industry. She especially appreciates the organization’s focus on professional relationships, mentorship, and creating a community where women can support and learn from one another. For Megan, MSWIT is a reminder that some of the best opportunities in this industry come from simply getting to know the people around you and cheering each other on along the way.