APHL 2026 Annual Conference

• State, county and city public health laboratory directors and personnel
• Clinical and academic institution managers and staff
• Environmental and agricultural laboratory directors and scientists
• Healthcare professionals and clinicians from public health agencies
• Federal agencies or state and local public health officials
• Others interested in laboratory issues

APHL has secured room blocks at several hotels for the 2026 Annual Conference; book your room via the links provided to have the room rate applied automatically.

Upon reservation most hotels will hold one night’s fee as a deposit. This is fully refundable if you cancel before that hotel’s cancellation deadline. Be advised that all the hotels will charge a daily incidental fee that is returned upon departure if it's not used. The full amount is held upon check-in. If you use a debit card, it will charge the amount in full and refund you any unused balance at the end of your stay. If you use a credit card, it will post as a pending charge and only the used portion, if any, will be charged after your check-out.

• Contact: 300 Light St., Baltimore, MD | 410.528.1234
• Room rate: $250 (+tax) group rate (single/double): valid until April 17 or block is filled

• Contact: 110 South Eutaw St., Baltimore, MD | 800.228.9290 
• Room rate: $229 (+tax) group rate (single): valid until April 13 or block is filled

• Royal Sonesta Harbor Court Baltimore
  550 Light St., Baltimore, MD | 410.234.0550

• Renaissance Baltimore Harbor Place
  202 East Pratt St., Baltimore, MD

• Lord Baltimore Hotel
  20 W. Baltimore St., Baltimore, MD

Join us for over 40 sessions on a variety of topic focus areas and earn P.A.C.E. contact hours!

Explore the Program

Our program touches on a variety of topics, exploring public health laboratory issues, trends and technologies relative to emerging infectious diseases, environmental health, emergency preparedness, quality systems and safety, informatics, food safety, newborn screening, global health, workforce and more.

It's going to be a busy week! But don't worry, we've got some self-care strategies to help you find fun ways to be active, be mindful and be healthy on your own or with colleagues at APHL 2026. Activities include: 

Morning Yoga | Tuesday, May 5 @ 6:30 am
Welcome the morning with a refreshing session of movement on the outdoor terrace of the Baltimore Convention Center. Marissa Walch will be your instructor. Yoga mats will be provided.

Sunrise Walk | Wednesday, May 6 @ 6:00 am
More information to come

APHL Bark Park | Tuesday, May 5 @ 11:00 am - 2:00 pm & Wednesday, May 5 @ 12:00-3:00 pm
The Baltimore Humane Society will be joining us with adoptable dogs! Stop by for a snuggle or meet your best friend to take home!

Gratitude Wall: Take a moment to reflect on the good things and great people all around you. Write and share messages, stories and thank-you's, or recognize your peers and colleagues on the gratitude wall. Letters will also be available for you to personalize and give to others. The gratitude wall will be available near the registration desk throughout the conference.

Games and Activities: Invite friends to unwind with putt putt golf and cornhole.

Make the most of your time in Baltimore—consider a preconference workshop before the conference kicks off! Enhance a skill, explore something new or emerging, and dive deeper into one these topics. 

• Making a Difference: A Workshop for Prospective APHL Global Health Consultants (FREE)

The following four workshops are an additional $149. P.A.C.E.® and CPH continuing education credit will be offered:

• From Point A to Point B: Mastering Courier Logistics​
• From A to E: Viral Hepatitis Testing and Elimination​
• Next Generation Sequencing in the Adolescent Years
• Artificial Intelligence in Public Health Laboratories—From Fundamentals to Future Frontiers

These sessions bring specific content relevant to scientists and their partners who improve public health and safety by generating defensible data that informs regulatory decision making:

Regulatory Science Track Sessions

APHL 2026 also provides a great opportunity for scientists from environmental laboratories and human and animal food laboratories to:

• Learn more about laboratory issues and emerging technologies related to food safety, regulatory science, radiochemistry, environmental health, food chemistry, emergency preparedness and more.
• Contribute to dialogue on hot topics such as C. botulinum in infant formula, wastewater surveillance, biosurveillance, raw milk regulations, Cronobacter and funding challenges.
• Network with laboratory directors, managers and scientists from federal, state, county and city public health, chemical, environmental and agricultural laboratories, along with a new cohort of APHL–CDC fellows.

APHL is proud to host nearly 100 exhibitor companies at APHL 2026 in Baltimore.

Exhibits and posters will be open and available for viewing throughout the conference. Be sure to visit the exhibitors to see the latest products and services and the posters to learn the latest science and practices. Exhibitors and poster presenters will be available to discuss their products and research at specific times. Participate in the raffle and win prizes. Take advantage of this opportunity to network with industry peers and experts.

Exhibitor and Sponsor Prospectus    Exhibitors List    Exhibitor Guide

Connect with your industry partners and get the inside track on new technologies and services during 30-minute educational presentations designed for the public health laboratory community. These sessions will feature a live Q&A with an industry speaker during and after the presentation. Sessions are sold out.

We’re excited to host our attendees in “Charm City,” named so for its rich diversity of food, history, arts, culture and architecture. The convention center and hotels for APHL 2026 are conveniently located next to the vibrant Inner Harbor, a focal point of the city with many waterfront attractions. 

Visit Baltimore Guide
Visit our online guide to everything Baltimore—transportation and maps, restaurants and nightlife, museums and attractions, shopping, tours and more!

National Aquarium Discount
We are happy to provide 20% discount tickets to the iconic National Aquarium, the largest tourism attraction in the state with 1.5 million visitors per year. The aquarium holds more than 2,200,000 US gallons (8,300,000 L) of water and has more than 17,000 specimens representing over 750 species!

The Atlas Obscura Guide to Baltimore
Looking for something a little different? 48 cool, hidden and unusual things to do in Baltimore.

Maryland’s Famous Steamed Blue Crabs
Learn more about this culinary treat and check out lists of longtime local favorites for steamed crabs and where to get a great crab cake.

John Waters’ Baltimore
Spend a day getting to know Baltimore’s native filmmaker and writer John Waters by touring his favorite local haunts.

Edgar Allan Poe’s Baltimore
Follow in Poe’s footsteps by visiting his one-time home (now a museum), statue, favorite pub, gravesite and more.

Graffiti Alley
Get inspired (and take some selfies) by the colorful, large-scale—and legal—graffiti in Graffiti Alley behind the Motor House creative incubator. 

American Visionary Art Museum
Visit this collection for a different art experience—entirely comprised of works by self-taught artists. If you like walking to the beat of your own drum, you’ll love this inclusive space for “outsider” art.

Reginald F. Lewis Museum of Maryland African American History & Culture
See life and history through the eyes of Black Marylanders. 

Other Niche Baltimore Museums
Check out this list of all the specialized museums in the city!

Baltimore Symphony Orchestra
Take in the sounds of this world-renowned orchestra the weekend before the conference.

Fort McHenry National Monument
The birthplace of the American national anthem is right here in Baltimore. Francis Scott Key wrote the words that would become “The Star-Spangled Banner” while watching a battle at the fort, which is now a museum and public park. 

Please be aware that conventions in the US are frequently perpetrated by third-party companies who try to solicit exhibitors and attendees with hotel or other convention services offers.

APHL does not engage a third party to contact our participants and if you are contacted, presume it is a scam and ignore it. Please book only in APHL's official room blocks, which also affords you the chance to be included in APHL communications and contractual benefits.

APHL takes measures to vigorously protect our conference participants information and please note that all legitimate APHL hotel information is found on this website only, or by contacting [email protected].

Registration and attendance at or participation in APHL meetings and other activities constitutes an agreement by the registrant to APHL's use and distribution (both now and in the future) of the registrant's or attendee's image or voice, without compensation, in photos or video and audio recordings of such events and activities.

US travelers must be REAL ID compliant to board domestic flights. You can check if your driver's license or ID is compliant and find assistance at www.dhs.gov/real-id.

The conference site is the Baltimore Convention Center, in downtown Baltimore.​

The local airport is the Baltimore Washington International Airport with the airport code BWI.

Airport to downtown and hotel transport​ includes taxis, rideshares and public buses.

Advance and Oversized parking can be arranged through: 

• Baltimore Parking
• LAZ Parking Baltimore Inner Harbor
• Spot Hero

APHL has secured room blocks at several hotels for the 2026 Annual Conference; book your room via the links provided to have the room rate applied automatically.

Upon reservation most hotels will hold one night’s fee as a deposit. This is fully refundable if you cancel before that hotel’s cancellation deadline. Be advised that all the hotels will charge a daily incidental fee that is returned upon departure if it's not used. The full amount is held upon check-in. If you use a debit card, it will charge the amount in full and refund you any unused balance at the end of your stay. If you use a credit card, it will post as a pending charge and only the used portion, if any, will be charged after your check-out.

• Contact: 300 Light St., Baltimore, MD | 410.528.1234
• Room rate: $250 (+tax) group rate (single/double): valid until April 17 or block is filled

• Contact: 110 South Eutaw St., Baltimore, MD | 800.228.9290 
• Room rate: $229 (+tax) group rate (single): valid until April 13 or block is filled

• Royal Sonesta Harbor Court Baltimore
  550 Light St., Baltimore, MD | 410.234.0550

• Renaissance Baltimore Harbor Place
  202 East Pratt St., Baltimore, MD

• Lord Baltimore Hotel
  20 W. Baltimore St., Baltimore, MD