Celebrate Tourism Appreciation with the GFLCVB
Reserve your seat for National Tourism Appreciation Day luncheon on Thursday, May 13 at the Broward County Convention Center, as we celebrate the importance of tourism with motivational speaker and local hospitality partner, Carlos Molinet, General Manager of the Hilton Fort Lauderdale Marina. $30pp. Please RSVP to Kim Canter, kcanter@broward.org. And remember to wear red!
What’s the deal?
Summer deals are in full swing. Visit www.sunny.org/Lauderdeals to check out more than 30 different 2-for-1 attraction deals, Florida Resident hotel deals, special deals for Latin American visitors, plus Cruise and Play deals. And this June is Learn to Dive month, so take advantage of the special scuba offers at www.sunny.org/learntodive with a free graduation dive and a free hotel night. September is Lauderdale Spa Chic with $99 treatments at more than 12 spas www.sunny.org/spachic. Dine Out Lauderdale will start October 1 with $35 three-course menus at 35 restaurants. If you are interested in any of these programs, please contact jflippen@broward.org.
Celebrate with Mom
It’s not too late to make plans for Mother's Day. Need help with ideas? Visit sunny.org/mom for suggestions on celebrating with Mom. We are tweeting and posting on Facebook too. And don't forget Dad...send us Father's Day activities to kcanter@broward.org.
Greater Fort Lauderdale/Broward Film Commission at the CVB
On April 6, The Broward County Board of County Commissioners moved the Broward Film Commission to the GFLCVB. Many film offices throughout the U.S. (from Austin to Boston, San Diego to Sacramento, Tampa to Tucson and more), are under the CVB marketing umbrella. Our goal is to continue to be a film friendly community (which Elizabeth Wentworth worked for more than 20 years to help build) with one-stop permitting. We will work with the Florida Film office to offer incentives and help facilitate filmmaking in Broward and of course, grow the room nights. We will introduce the new Film Commission director at a hospitality industry update meeting this summer. In the meantime, we are providing assistance to production companies that are interested in, or have chosen, the Greater Fort Lauderdale area for a project. Our services include assistance in obtaining permits where needed; assistance in finding accommodations; assistance with site tours and location suggestions; still photography and video; local contacts and introductions. Film permits are required for film or video shoots on public property in Broward. There are no fees for Broward film permits. Andrea Voss is now handling one stop film permitting in our office avoss@broward.org. We have a new microsite: www.sunny.org/film.
Check out the latest in Broward County Film Productions
Fox Television Studios has selected Pembroke Park and Broward County to be the shooting base for The Glades, the studio's new one-hour drama series to air on A&E. The Glades began shooting the first of 13 episodes last week at locations throughout Broward County. Nat Geo WILD's new series Swamp Men, premiering May 3 at 10pm, rides along with Billie Swamp’s park director and his staff as they work to maintain safety at the Safari. Considered among the best wild animal wranglers, each day brings new tests of their skills with bears, alligators, wild hogs and panthers that inhabit the Everglades. www.natgeowild.com.
Agents say Leisure travel spending is bouncing back in 2010
As U.S. consumer sentiment gradually repairs, prices are beginning to firm again from recession lows, according to travel agents. Travel specialists said momentum started building in the fourth quarter, and first-quarter travel bookings are well outpacing those of 2009. Per-trip spending is rising, especially on airfare, though lodging perks like free nights and meals are sticking around for now. Recession-era trends like shorter stays are still in place, but travelers are booking further in advance than they were last year. (Claudia Hirsch, Market News International). Greater Fort Lauderdale’s February bed tax collections rose more than 14.6% and early unaudited tax collection numbers for March were up more than 10.2%.
Convention Sales Team Update
The convention sales team recently participated in the following: USITT Board Presentation in Kansas City; and BizBash Florida Meeting Planners Expo in Fort Lauderdale. Catch the sales team at these upcoming events and tradeshows:
May 2–5: Meetings Industry Ladies Open
May 3–6: Meeting Spots, Tallahassee
May 10–13: GFLCVB Texas Sales Mission, Houston
May 10–13: GFLCVB DC Sales Mission, DC Metro
May 17–20: GFLCVB Toronto Sales Mission, Toronto
May 19–22: SGMP Kansas City
May 21–23: Winterfest Board Retreat
May 25: Dunn’s Crabfeast, Virginia
May 26: PCMA Executive Edge
May 26 - 27: PCMA Foundation Dinner & Springtime in the Park
May 28: ASAE DC Invitational Golf Tournament
Upcoming Convention Sales Missions: Want to join us? Contact the group sales team leader listed.
Philadelphia, PA (Christine Tascione/ Dion James): June 8–10
Michigan (Stacy Copeland): June 14-18
Fort Lauderdale Destination Preview/Site Summer Seminar: July 8-11
Chicago Cubs Event (Nora Gorman): July 19-21
Minneapolis (Stacy Copeland): Aug 9-13
St. Louis (Stacy Copeland): Sept 27-30
May Group Sales Update
Groups meeting in May will generate more than $18 million to Broward County. Sample groups include:
May 2-7: Aquatic Weed Control Short Course 2010 (190 attendees)
May 3-10: Automotive Aftermarket Industry Association (325 attendees)
May 12-22: Infusion Nurses Society 2010 Conference/Convention (1,200 attendees)
May 19-24: Arthroscopy Association of North America 2010 Annual Meeting (1000 attendees)
May 22-28: 2010 Governor’s Hurricane Conference (1,300 attendees)
May 26-31: NAACP 6th Leadership 500 (400 attendees)
May 30-June 6: Florida Chapter, National Association of Social Workers Annual Conference (165 attendees)
Welcome Aboard
The GFLCVB Convention & Group Sales team welcomes Stephen Aird as Regional Sales Director for the New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Connecticut region. Most recently, Steve was regional director of sales for Hinton + Grusich, a national sales organization working in the meetings industry. He also held sales positions with Water’s Edge Resort and Mohegan Sun, both located in Connecticut, and was director of international sales for Accor Hotels and Resorts. Prior to this, Aird served as director of sales at the Hyatt Regency Pier Sixty-Six Resort & Spa in Fort Lauderdale and handled group sales for Hyatt’s resort hotels in Puerto Rico, Grand Cayman, Aruba and Key West, bringing knowledge of the area to his new position. Steve's office will be located in Connecticut.
Sport Lauderdale
Greater Fort Lauderdale welcomes the following sports groups in May, with more than 17,000 competitors plus family and friends:
Apr 30-May 2 Synchronized Swimming Regional Meet (900 attendees)
Apr 30-May 2 AAU District Basketball Qualifier (650 attendees)
May 4-9: Soccerfest 2010 (2000 attendees)
May 7-9: Coral Springs Travel Basketball Tournament (850 attendees)
May 10-15: Masters Basketball Tournament (1,200 attendees)
May 10-15: USSSA SE Baseball Qualifier (2,500 attendees)
May 13-16: Wendy Wyland Division Swim Invite (800 attendees)
May 14-17: SE USSSA Championships (1,200 attendees)
May 14-16: Sunshine State Games Figure Skating Competition (1,850 attendees)
May 15-21: USTA National Open Clay Court Champs (800 attendees)
May 22-24: Sunshine State Games Lacrosse Series (700 attendees)
May 21-23: FL Championship ASA Qualifier (1,000 attendees)
May 28-30: FGC Sr Circuit Swim Meet (800 attendees)
May 28-30: Adidas Track Classic (800 attendees)
Sports Hospitality Update Meeting
The GFLCVB Hospitality Sports Update Meeting will be held on Wednesday, May 19 at the Sheraton Suites Cypress Creek from 3:30-5pm. Meet 25 local event directors who will discuss upcoming sporting events coming to Broward County. Learn how to become involved. RSVP to Carol Hudson chudson@broward.org or call 954-767-2470.
Tourism Sales
In April, Alfredo Gonzalez and Fernando Harb were in South America attending the Visit Florida Sales Missions in Chile and Argentina. Fernando attended a number of special events including the preferred customer appreciation reception at the Crowne Plaza Sawgrass and the Aires Airlines press conference at Bimini Boatyard. Josh Winston hosted Visit Florida’s Leisure Sales Team and Welcome Center Staff on a tour of Greater Fort Lauderdale. Additionally the CVB was joined by 8 hotel partners and the Hollywood Office of Tourism at this year’s Original Home Based Travel Agent Show and Cruise World 2010 at the Broward County Convention Center.
Social Media
Remember to fan us on facebook.com/visitlauderdale and follow us at twitter.com/visitlauderdale. Justin Flippen is maintaining the CVB’s Twitter account. If your hotel, attraction or restaurant has an upcoming event, discount, or special you’d like us to promote on Twitter or Facebook, send to jflippen@broward.org.
Media Visits
Greater Fort Lauderdale welcomes the following press in May: Daily Express from the UK; The Telegraph from the UK and Travel with Kal London. If you are interested in hosting/assisting with these media, please contact Jessica Taylor, jtaylor@broward.org. Jessica will also be attending Pow Wow May 15-19 in Orlando. Any latest news send to Jessica.
Flying High
Total passenger traffic for the month of March was up 7.3% over March 2009. International traffic was up 8.6% over March last year. March marked the 7th consecutive month of positive growth in total passenger traffic. Available seats for March were up 3%. Based on scheduled seats for the month of March, the load factor was estimated to be 84.8%, well above the historical average (last three years) of 82.9%. The outlook for the summer months remains positive. Aires will begin new service to Cartagena in June. Spirit has applied for rights to Barranquilla, and this summer, will add several rotations to existing Colombian markets along with increased domestic service. Delta, JetBlue, and Airtran will also add capacity this summer. The Canadian carriers, Westjet and Air Canada, will increase their summer presence this year. And, Condor arrives next month with twice weekly service to Frankfurt.
Port Everglades
Broward County's Port Everglades has been selected the Best U.S. Homeport by Porthole Cruise Magazine, a world-leading cruise travel magazine. Porthole Cruise Magazine annually picks the very best in cruise itineraries, destinations, attractions and excursions. The award is timely, as Port Everglades welcomed the addition of five brand-new cruise ships to its homeport fleet this year. Since welcoming its first cruise ship in 1931, Port Everglades has grown to become one of the top three cruise ports in the world with more than 3 million passengers passing through the port annually. Port Everglades hosts more ships, more cruise lines, more sailings, and more vacation itineraries than any other cruise port in the world.
Gaming News
Gulfstream Park Racing and Casino will once again host the only World Series of Poker® satellite tournament in the state of Florida on June 6 as part of its World Series of Poker® Challenge, where players will compete for one of three seats and an all expense paid trip to the World Series of Poker® Main Event which begins July 5 at the Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas and offered over $15 million in prize money in 2009. Effective May 1, the Mardi Gras Casino Outdoor Flea Market will be open every Sat and Sun from 8am-3pm, continuing through October 2010.
Good Eats
Paul McCartney stops by Sublime Restaurant & Bar. Click here to read about in the Sun Sentinel. Enjoy old-fashioned food, games and entertainment at the Old Florida Fish Fry being held at the Fort Lauderdale History Center in downtown Fort Lauderdale, May 8 from 5-8:30pm. Donations needed. Click here for info on tickets or sponsorship.
Blue Wild Expo
Florida’s diving event will kickoff June 4 at the Courtyard by Marriott Beach 6-10pm. The expo will take place June 5-6 at the Broward County Convention Center. Featuring over 100 vendors, the top marine artist, and a speaker list that includes the best names in freediving, scuba, and technical diving, underwater cinematography, spearfishing, shark experts, and more. For ticket info visit www.bluewild.com.
Happenings Around Town
Through May 1: Girls Night: The Musical, Hard Rock Live
Through May 2: Riverdance, Broward Center for the Performing Arts
Through May 2: Malic Jewels Jewelry & Gift Show, War Memorial Auditorium
Through May 8: National Week of the Ocean Sea-son
Through May 23: SUDS, Stage Door Theatre
Through May 30: Full Circle, Stage Door Theatre
Through May 31: Dinosaurs: Giants of Patagonia 3D, Museum of Discovery & Science
Through May 31: Van Gogh: Brush with Genius, Museum of Discovery & Science
May 1-2: Florida Marlins vs. Washington Nationals, Sun Life Stadium
May 1-Sept 30: Greater Fort Lauderdale 2-for-1 Summer Deals, www.sunny.org/241
May 2: SunTrust Sunday Jazz Brunch, Riverwalk, Downtown Fort Lauderdale
May 2: Gipsy Kings, Hard Rock Live
May 4-6: Florida Marlins vs. San Francisco Giants, Sun Life Stadium
May 5: Van Morrison, Hard Rock Live
May 6-9: AT&T USA Diving Grand Prix, Fort Lauderdale Aquatic Complex
May 7-9: Fort Lauderdale Flower, Garden and Patio Show, War Memorial Auditorium
May 7-9: Pro Footvolley Tour 2010 Hollywood Beach Open
May 9-Dec 5: Pearl and Stanley Goodman Latin American Collection, Museum of Art | Fort Lauderdale
May 9-Dec 5: Recent Acquisitions from the Museum’s Latin American Collection, Museum of Art | Fort Lauderdale
May 12: HSMAI South Florida networker, Trina at The Atlantic, Fort Lauderdale
May 12-15: Pompano Beach Fishing Rodeo
May 13-16: Florida Marlins vs New York Mets, Sun Life Stadium
May 15: 15th Annual Las Olas Wine & Food Festival, Las Olas Blvd
May 15: Ballet Gala – Arts Ballet Theatre, Broward Center for the Performing Arts
May 15: Hospice Regatta 2010 and Lobster Clambake, Fort Lauderdale Beach
May 15-16: EvolveCG Conference, Hilton Marina Fort Lauderdale
May 17-18: Florida Marlins vs. Arizona Diamondbacks, Sun Life Stadium
May 19: Jeff Dunham, BankAtlantic Center
May 21-June 17: Shrek: Forever After, Museum of Discovery & Science
May 23: Unifest 2010 Caribbean Celebration, Vincent Torres Memorial Park, Lauderdale Lakes
May 25-27: Florida Marlins vs. Atlanta Braves, Sun Life Stadium
May 26: HSMAI South Florida's Passport to Fashion networker, Grand Lux Cafe, Sawgrass Mills
May 28-31: Belly Dance Spirit of the Tribes #10, War Memorial Auditorium
May 28-30: Florida Marlins vs Philadelphia Phillies, Sun Life Stadium
May 28-29: For Art’s Sake! Birdwatch, Gallery 101
June 1-30: Learn to Dive Month in Greater Fort Lauderdale, www.sunny.org/learntodive
With all best wishes,
Nicki E. Grossman
President
