November 28th, 2011 — 9:40am
With over 150 Florida industry representatives in attendance at World Travel Market 2011, many of you reading this blog are well aware of the buzz surrounding the show this year. There was much anticipation for the brand reveal by the Corporation for Travel Promotion. “Brand USA,” as it is now known, was launched during two invitation-only events and a press conference, and was prominently displayed throughout the trade show floor. The anticipation of a long overdue U.S. tourism brand created demand for space and, for the first time in a decade, space was at a premium. Being at capacity meant more appointments and it was very apparent as partners had little down time during the show. Continue reading »
Tracy Vaughan
Director, International Sales & Marketing
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November 23rd, 2011 — 9:48am
Tomorrow morning, millions of Americans will watch the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, the first of several treasured Thanksgiving rituals. On the same day, more than two million Americans of Latino heritage also will be watching TV, hearing stories of Jamestown and Plymouth … and of another Thanksgiving 56 years previous, in St. Augustine.
VISIT FLORIDA reached out to Univision, and as a result, Thanksgiving Day’s morning news show Despierta América will bring Spanish-speaking audiences in the United States a 500-year-old story: the European discovery of Florida. Continue reading »
Susannah Costello
Vice President, Global Brand
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November 22nd, 2011 — 4:24pm
According to a study released in February 2011 by the Convention Industry Council – widely recognized by the tourism industry as the first, definitive, qualitative, research-based analysis of the economic significance of meetings in the U.S. – nearly 1.8 million meetings took place, attended by 205 million participants, generating over $263 billion in direct spending and creating 1.7 million jobs. Last year in Florida, nearly 10.7 million visitors traveled to the state for business purposes, with more than 55 percent attending conventions, seminars and meetings. Continue reading »
Steven Bonda, CMP
Senior Manager, Corporate Meetings & Events
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November 16th, 2011 — 2:47pm
I am pleased to announce that preliminary estimates* of visitors to Florida for the third quarter of 2011 (July-September) show an estimated 20.4 million travelers visited the Sunshine State. This represents an increase of 5.1 percent from the same period in 2010. In addition, Florida’s tourism-related employment for the third quarter of 2011 was 1,009,500, up by 51,400 jobs, which reflects a 5.4 percent increase when compared to third quarter 2010. Continue reading »
Chris Thompson
President and CEO
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November 11th, 2011 — 12:46pm
October marked “Florida Camping Month” in the Sunshine State. To celebrate, the I-10, I-75, I-95 and US-231 Official Florida Welcome Centers all took a creative and interactive approach to making Camping Month a huge success.
Each October, the Official Florida Welcome Centers – managed and operated by VISIT FLORIDA – promote “Florida Camping Month” by setting up displays in their facilities and providing activities for visitors. This year, each center set up a campsite display in their lobby area, where visitors could “camp out,” as well as gather information to help plan their next camping trip or outdoor adventure in the Sunshine State. Throughout October, nearly 170,000 visitors to the four Interstate Welcome Centers had a chance to experience our Camping Month activities. Continue reading »
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