Celebrate Tourism with the CVB
Reserve your seat for National Tourism Appreciation Day luncheon on Tuesday, May 19 at the Broward County Convention Center, as we celebrate the importance of tourism, and the importance of laughter with comedian Rob Bartlett. $30pp. Please RSVP to Kim Canter, kcanter@broward.org
And the Beach Goes On
The summer And the Beach Goes On will bring awareness to our 8 distinct beaches. The GFLCVB is creating and distributing a 12 page newspaper insert to reach 2 million consumers from New York to Miami, plus an online program to promote these values. A specially designed online sweepstakes called Bag Your Beach Getaway will be featured at sunny.org/win, as well as on the sunny.org homepage. Visitors will be asked to take a “Bag Your Beach” quiz. The winner will receive roundtrip air, a four-night stay at one of the four beach properties participating in the promotion which runs April 15-June 30, as well as dinner certificates and/or other activities. To increase summer business in Greater Fort Lauderdale the summer program will include 2-for-1 offers to attractions, cultural activities, spas, dive operators, and entertainment June 1-Sept 30. To view the offers go to http://sunny.org/summer
Lauderdale Spa Chic
Get ready for the second annual LAUDERDALE SPA CHIC presented by American Express, from September 1-30, with spa treatments for $99 (up to 50% savings). If you are a spa interested in participating in Lauderdale Spa Chic, please contact kcanter@broward.org. For more information go to http://sunny.org/spachic
Follow us on Twitter
Twitter, a popular online social networking and micro-blogging service, enables users to send and read other users' updates known as tweets. Tweets are text-based posts of up to 140 characters. Updates are displayed on the user's profile page and delivered to other users who have signed up to receive them. The service is free to use. Follow us at: www.twitter.com/VisitLauderdale (Arts & Dining), www.twitter.com/LauderdaleChic (Events), www.twitter.com/SpaChic (Health & Fitness), www.twitter.com/Lauderdale411 (Insider Info)
Tourism Sales Update
Alfredo Gonzalez and Fernando Harb, along with Jessica Taylor from the communications department, and TDC Vice Chair Richard Gray, attended ITB Berlin, meeting with tour operators and media and consumers to build international business.
Convention Sales Team Update
The convention sales team has showcased GFL to Laura Little, HelmsBriscoe, Diversity Communications Associates, Inc., Florida Pest Management Association, Governor’s Hurricane Conference, American College for Clinical Pharmacy, Experient, Reed Business Information/ UK, Direct Selling Association, American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, General Dynamics, Agilent Technologies, American Benefits Council, and Barr Enterprises. The sales team was recently in North Central Florida Meeting Planners Expo in Gainesville, Experient Envision Conference and Sales Calls in Kansas City, Raleigh/ Durham, North Carolina Sales Mission, and MPI- Southern California Chapter Annual Tradeshow and Meeting in Pasadena.
Catch the sales team soon at these upcoming events and tradeshows:
Apr: New England Meetings Industry Convention & Expo
Apr 15: PCMA Foundation Dinner, DC
Apr 16: ASAE & The Center’s Springtime Expo, DC
Apr 19–22: Private Meetings Summit, Miami
Apr 27–30: Minneapolis Sales Mission
Apr 28: South Florida Meeting Professionals Intl – South Florida Summit, Sheraton Fort Lauderdale Airport
Apr 30: Successful Meetings’ Virtual Meeting World, online
Meeting Sales Missions
In March the CVB completed a very successful sales mission to Raleigh/Durham, North Carolina the week of March 9 - 13, 2009. With 2 teams and 8 hotel partners, we conducted with more than 25 appointments and held two receptions. We also uncovered some valuable recession-resistant vertical segments (other than pharmaceutical/ healthcare) and are working on a few new business opportunities specifically generated by this mission. Thank you to our participants: Embassy Suites Deerfield Beach, GalleryOne Fort Lauderdale, Hilton Fort Lauderdale Marina (formerly Fort Lauderdale Grande), Coral Springs Marriott Hotel, Harbor Beach Marriott Resort & Spa, Riverside Hotel, Sheraton Suites Plantation, The Westin Diplomat Resort & Spa.
Mark Your Calendar for these Upcoming Sales Missions:
Apr 27-30: Minneapolis, MN (Stacy Copeland)
May 11-14: Dallas, Texas (Angella Lopez)
May 11-13: Toronto, Canada (Stacy Copeland)
June 11-13: Washington, DC (Tom Durkin)
June 15-18: Ohio (Stacy Copeland)
July 28-30: Chicago Cubs Event and Sales Calls (Nora Gorman)
September: Atlanta (Michele Bemis)
Contact the group sales team leader listed for more information or to let us know that you’d like to participate!
March Destination Previews
The CVB Convention Sales team conducted two Destination Previews in the month of March for different groups of clients. Arriving on Mar 13, guests from the Mid-Atlantic region enjoyed the accommodations at the recently refurbished Embassy Suites Fort Lauderdale, visited a number of area hotels and the convention center before strolling down Las Olas and dining at Mango’s. On Saturday guests saw the newly transformed Fort Lauderdale Beach area and hotels before watching the Baltimore Orioles beat the Boston Red Sox in spring training. And capping off the day, clients visited the Harbor Beach Marriott Resort & Spa for a dinner “under the stars” on the spectacular Spa Terrace. For the weekend of Mar 26–29, the CVB hosted another group of prospective clients in conjunction with the Florida Derby. Along with visits to many area hotels, clients were able to see the transformation and experience some of our signature features. While in the area, guests stayed at The Westin Diplomat Resort & Spa, boarded a fabulous yacht by Charter One to enjoy a dinner cruise down the Intracoastal Waterway from Blue Moon Fish Co. back to Diplomat Landing. On Saturday, clients visited The Diplomat Golf Resort for brunch before viewing the Florida Derby from a suite at Gulfstream Park. To finish off the their visit on Saturday guests were entertained at the Tiki Bar at the Crowne Plaza Hollywood, before experiencing the Hollywood Broadwalk and dinner on the beach at Sugar Reef Tropical Grill.
April Group Sales Update
Groups meeting in April will generate more than $25 million to Broward County. Sample groups include:
Apr 4-18: Majestic Tours 2009 (500 attendees)
Apr 22-28: Qwest Communications – 2009 Circle of Excellence (650 attendees)
Apr 24-May 2: International Society of Beverage Technologists 2009 Conference (300 attendees)
Apr 29-May 9: ARVO 2009 Annual Conference (9,800 attendees)
SUNsational Summer Savings For Groups
Greater Fort Lauderdale's Sunsational Summer Savings Plan gets you more meeting for less.
• Free rental on space at the Broward County Convention Center June 15 - October 15, 2009, 2010, 2011 (using 750 rooms minimum for more than two nights).
• Free one-hour welcome reception with displayed and passed hors d'oeuvres and open bar for registered attendees
• 10% discount on food, beverage, electric, security, telecommunications and A/V services contracted through the Center's exclusive providers
• 2.5% additional commission or credit to hotel master account based on hotel revenues consumed*
*Some conditions apply. Contact GFLMeetings@broward.org for more details or go to www.sunny.org/meetings
Sport Lauderdale
Greater Fort Lauderdale welcomes the following sports groups in April, with over 23,020 competitors plus family and friends:
Apr 1-7: National Soccer Coaches Association Summit (900 attendees)
Apr 2-11: Baseball Spring Fling (3000 attendees)
Apr 3-10: YMCA National Short Course Swim and Dive Champs (4600 attendees)
Apr 3-5: Fort Lauderdale Open Dig the Beach Volleyball (500 attendees)
Apr 3-5: Sunshine Stampede Gay Rodeo (1000 attendees)
Apr 5-12: UST -20 Cricket Council USA (600 attendees)
Apr 6-10: Westminster National Classic (600 attendees)
Apr 9-12: Easter Baseball Classic at NOVA (350 attendees)
Apr 10-12: FLA Archery Association Shoot (300 attendees)
Apr 13-17: Westminster Last Chance Classic (500 attendees)
Apr 15-20: YMCA Masters National Swim Meet (1500 attendees)
Apr 18-19: Florida Beach Volleyball - Deerfield Bch (150 attendees)
Apr 18-21: USA Diving Senior National Qualifying Meet (200 attendees)
Apr 20-22: FLA Archery Association #8 300 Target (300 attendees)
Apr 22-26: USA Diving Spring National Championships (1000 attendees)
Apr 24-26: FHSAA Lacrosse (1500 attendees)
Apr 24-26: American Dance Awards Qualifier (4500 attendees)
April 24-26: USSSA Girl's Softball Regional (520 attendees)
Apr 27-29: FLA Archery Association #9 300 Target (1000 attendees)
AUSA Celebrates 10-Year Anniversary in GFL!
It’s refreshing to celebrate the Association of US Army’s most successful year yet in conjunction with their 10 consecutive year anniversary in Greater Fort Lauderdale ($70.1 million economic impact to date). Not only was demand strong enough to require four overflow hotels, but this February city-wide produced a record 1,758 RPN, 6,324 TRN and almost 5,000 attendees (21% increase). THANKS to the Convention Center staff and the entire destination team in delivering SUNsational Service—we look forward to AUSA’s return!
Multiculturally Speaking
Greater Fort Lauderdale will be hosting the National Convention of Gospel Choirs and Choruses at the Sheraton Suites Hotel Apr 20-25; The Florida Regional Minority Business Council will be hosting their 24th Annual Business Expo at the Broward County Convention Center Apr 23-24, and the Kappa Alpha Psi Foundation will be hosting their 7th Annual Kappa Golf Klassic at the Jacaranda Golf and Country Club Apr 25 and Kappa Alpha.
Hotel News
The Westin Beach Resort, Fort Lauderdale (formerly Sheraton Yankee Trader) officially opened their doors Mar 15. Their North Tower is fully operational and the South Tower will open on June 1, and the Conference Center on Dec 1. The Coral Springs Marriott is now the official hotel of the BankAtlantic Center and now a partner hotel with the Sawgrass Mills Mall. Sheraton Suites Cypress Creek Piggy's with a purpose, offers companies a piggy bank for loose change. For every pig filled, receive special offers like free lunch and free stays. At the end of the year, they will host a Holiday/Client appreciation event, where all funds will be donated to four local charities. You Deserve The Royal Treatment Ô Yoga Workshop & Book Signing Apr 19 from 10:30am-1:30pm. Join Stacey Joiner for this delicious workshop, held at the Ocean Sands Resort in Pompano Beach. This day has been specially designed to help tap into your true worthiness and support a life of peace, ease and royalty. $53 includes workshop, lunch & valet parking. Add spa treatment for $100. Reserve to Stacey@staceyjoiner.com by Apr 9. www.YouDeserveTheRoyalTreatment.com
Congratulations to the ARFF 20th Anniversary
Bob Barker, of The Price is Right fame, hosted the Animal Rights Foundation of Florida's (ARFF),a non-profit animal advocacy group, 20th Anniversary Gala on Mar 14 at the Broward County Convention Center, with special guest Pamela Anderson. Highlights of the gala included a gourmet vegan dinner and an awards ceremony emceed by Barker. Award recipients included Nicki Grossman and former Hollywood City 
Commissioner Cathleen Anderson.(photo courtesy of FilmMagic)
Sublime Releases First-Ever Cookbook
The Sublime Restaurant Cookbook: Florida’s Ultimate Destination for Vegan Cuisine by Nanci Alexander, has hit the shelves of bookstores. For the first time ever, Fort Lauderdale’s vegan hotspot has compiled its most famed culinary creations in an informative guide to gourmet vegan cooking. Fabulously flavorful and enticingly exotic, the dishes in Sublime’s cookbook elevate health food to haute cuisine. The 118-page, full-color book retails for $19.95 and may be purchased at all major online retailers including Amazon.com, bookstores including Barnes & Noble and Borders, as well as at Sublime.
Port Everglades News
Broward County's Port Everglades has been selected Best U.S. Homeport by Porthole Cruise Magazine. Beginning in fall 2009, Port Everglades will be the home of Royal Caribbean International's first new 5,400-passenger Oasis of the Seas, largest cruise ship in the world. Port Everglades unveiled its plans for Terminal 18 to become the largest single-ship cruise terminal in the world in November, with a total of 240,000 square feet on two floors, where guests will debark and embark through entirely different sections of the building. Once the ship is cleared for embarkation, the transition for guests to go from curbside to the ship can be completed in 15 minutes.
Attraction News
Museum of Art | Fort Lauderdale has a new main number (954) 262-0200. Downtown Hollywood's Functional Art Program debuted an attention-grabbing 6-foot "diamond" ring sculpture that will serve as a bicycle rack outside Morningstar's Jewelers in Downtown Hollywood. Really Good Cookies is launching “All About Entertaining, interactive food, wine & entertaining seminars.” Seminars, podcasts and more revolving around food, wine and entertaining. www.AllAboutEntertaining.com. At Shooters Waterfront Café, Apr 4 (2-3:30pm): “Entertaining my busy life” and at Spa@Location in Fort Lauderdale, Apr 14 (7-9pm): “Ladies who lunch, women who wine and girls who garnish.”
2009 Sea Turtle Nesting Season
The 2009 sea turtle nesting season began Mar 1 and continues through September. Female sea turtles of three different species of these large, threatened and endangered marine reptiles come ashore, with regularity at night, to dig a nest, deposit and bury their eggs, and return to sea. The peak of the nesting season in Broward County is usually during the months of June and July. If you are on the beach at night and see a large turtle coming ashore, observe the phenomenon from a distance and avoid the urge to get close. To participate in an organized tour to witness the nesting ritual, contact Broward County Sea Turtle Conservation Program at (954) 519-1255 for information.
Celebrity Watch
Football icon Lawrence Taylor takes TV spin as a dancer. Lawrence Taylor, who made a living stomping quarterbacks before retiring to Pembroke Pines, is the latest ex-jock to take a spin in the spotlight on `Dancing with the Stars.’ Taylor and his dance partner, EdytaSliwinska, have been practicing for weeks on the second floor of the Pembroke Pines health club, Metamorphecise. Dara Torres, legendary Olympic gold medalist, will be at the International Swimming Hall of Fame for a book signing of her new book for participants in the YMCA National Championships and their families, Apr 5 from 6:30–8:30pm.
Join SITE Florida at their next event
You're invited to the Jersey Boys Theatre Event on Apr 30. The pre-show reception will take place at the Side Bar at Himmarshee Bar & Grille, a short walk from the Broward Center for the Performing Arts, where you will enjoy an open premium bar and an eclectic array of mouth watering hot and cold hors d’oeuvres before the Jersey Boys show. Click here to view the invitation.
Happenings Around Town
Through May 7: Monsters vs. Aliens 3D, Museum of Discovery & Science
Through May 31: Wild Music: Sounds and Songs of Life, Wild Ocean 3D, and Dinosaurs Alive! 3D, Museum of Discovery & Science
Through Dec 31: Under the Sea 3D, Museum of Discovery & Science
Apr 1: Baltimore Orioles vs. Florida Marlins (Spring Training ), Fort Lauderdale Stadium
Apr 1-May 16: Romero Britto, Coral Springs Museum of Art
Apr 2: 2009 Mercedes-Benz Corporate Run Series, Downtown Fort Lauderdale
Apr 2: Iron Maiden, BankAtlantic Center
Apr 2, 4: Junie B Jones, Miramar Cultural Center
Apr 2, 4: The Marriage of Figaro – Florida Grand Opera, Broward Center for the Performing Arts
Apr 3: First Friday Jazz Jams, ArtServe, Fort Lauderdale
Apr 3: Florida Panthers vs. Atlanta Thrashers, BankAtlantic Center
Apr 3: Riverwalk Get Downtown!, Plaza at Las Olas
Apr 3-5: Sunshine Stampede Rodeo, Bergeron Rodeo Grounds
Apr 3-10: YMCA National Swimming & Diving Championship, Fort Lauderdale Aquatic Complex
Apr 4-5: Ballet Florida – A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Broward Center for the Performing Arts
Apr 4: Get Back! Beatlemania, Coral Springs Center for the Arts
Apr 4: The EGGtacular, Cinema Paradiso
Apr 5: Florida Panthers vs. Pittsburgh Penguins, BankAtlantic Center
Apr 5: SunTrust Sunday Jazz Brunch, Riverwalk, Downtown Fort Lauderdale
Apr 6: Florida Marlins vs. Washington Nationals, Dolphin Stadium
Apr 6-9: YMCA National Short Course Swimming & Diving Championship, Fort Lauderdale Aquatic Complex
Apr 7: Chicago, Hard Rock Live
Apr 7-8: Florida Marlins vs. Washington Nationals, Dolphin Stadium
Apr 8-May 3: Jersey Boys, Broadway, Broward Center for the Performing Arts
Apr 9: Marc Anthony, Hard Rock Live
Apr 10: Broadwalk Friday Fest, Hollywood Beach Theater
Apr 10-12: Florida Marlins vs. New York Mets, Dolphin Stadium
Apr 10, One Night of Queen, Parker Playhouse
Apr 10: Yanni, BankAtlantic Center
Apr 11: Florida Panthers vs. Washington Capitals, BankAtlantic Center
Apr 14: Symphony of the Americas, Broward Center for the Performing Arts
Apr 16: Clueless on Las Olas
Apr 17-May 24: A Little Night Musical, Stage Door Theatre
Apr 17: Chuck Mangione, Parker Playhouse
Apr 17-19: Fort Lauderdale RV Show, Broward County Convention Center
Apr 18-19: Global Groove, Artspark at Young Circle, Hollywood Beach
Apr 18-Jan 10, 2009: With You I Want To Live, Museum of Art / Fort Lauderdale
Apr 23: Fleetwood Mac, BankAtlantic Center
Apr 23: Smokey Robinson, Hard Rock Live
Apr 24: Broadwalk Friday Fest, Hollywood Beach Theater
Apr 24: Wine & Culinary Celebration, Museum of Discovery & Science
Apr 24-26: Bob the Builder Live!, Parker Playhouse
Apr 24-26: Florida Marlins vs. Philadelphia Phillies, Dolphin Stadium
Apr 24-26: Pompano Beach Seafood Festival
Apr 24: The Three Little Pigs, Miramar Cultural Center
Apr 25: The Three Little Pigs, Miniaci Performing Arts Center
Apr 26: Denis Leary, Hard Rock Live
Apr 27-May 2: Fleet Week 2009
Apr 29: Expo Alfresco, ArtsPark at Young Circle, Hollywood
With all best wishes,
Nicki E. Grossman
President
