SARATOGA HOSTS TOURISM CONFERENCE 3-DAY MEETING STARTS CITY'S BUSY CONVENTION SEASON.(Business)

Byline: Ken Thurman Staff writer

More than 300 tourism industry representatives from the U.S. and Europe will converge on the Spa City today

to mark the official start of the three- day New York State Governor's Tourism Conference and Showcase.

Highlights of the conference, which is scheduled to run through Tuesday,

include a gala dinner and address tonight

by Gov. Mario M. Cuomo to convention delagates at the Gideon Putnam Hotel in the Saratoga Spa State Park.

The annual event is a cooperative effort between the state and those in New York's tourism industry, and its mission is to bring together professional from around …