Weekly e-newsletter for VisitNC partners
April 17, 2019
IN THIS ISSUE:
* AAA/CAA travel counselors tour Blue Ridge Parkway sites on fam trip
* Visit NC's new 2019-2020 Partner Program 
now available
* Select presentations from Visit NC 365 now online
* TRAC coming to Burlington/Alamance County 
and region tomorrow
The group at Wheels Through Time Museum
AAA/CAA travel counselors tour Blue Ridge Parkway sites on fam trip

Visit North Carolina partnered with Virginia and the Blue Ridge Parkway Association to host travel counselors from AAA and CAA to familiarize them with the areas. The 23 AAA/CAA counselors were from 6 states and 2 provinces. The North Carolina portion of the Parkway tour showcased several sites and towns, including Appalachian Ridge, Asheville, Biltmore Estate, Blowing Rock, Blue Ridge Parkway Visitor Center, Boone, Chimney Rock, Elevated Mountain Distilling Company, Grandfather Mountain, Hendersonville, Linville Caverns, Maggie Valley, Mast General Store, Mount Airy, Mystery Hill, Point Lookout Vineyards, Waynesville, West Jefferson, and Wheels Through Time Museum.
 
For more information on Visit NC's group travel program, such as ways to attract this market to a particular destination, contact Amanda Baker at (919) 447-7765.
Visit NC's new 2019-2020 Partner Program now available
 
Visit NC debuted its new 2019-'20 Partner Programs during the Visit NC 365 Conference in Wilmington. The Partner Program offers a wide range of programs for tourism partners that cover many different marketing needs, including print, digital, VisitNC.com, social media, public relations, industry relations and more.
 
Some options whose publications are coming this fall, now have limited availability for partner sign-ups.
  • Garden & Gun - Aug/Sept issue directory and quarter-page spots; deadline for materials April 22
  • Local Market Combo-Large Markets - September quarter-page spots; deadline for materials May 17
  • Local Market Combo-Northern Markets - September quarter-page spots; deadline for materials June 21
The full range of options for the Visit NC 2019-'20 Partner Programs can be viewed here. For questions or to sign-up for any of these or other Partner Programs, contact LGA's Hailey Weddington or Michelle Murdoch at (704) 552-6565. 
Visit NC 365 conference select presentations now online
 
Many of the presentations from the 2019 Visit NC 365 Conference are now available online. Select presentations include:
  • Visitor Services:  Insider Tips
  • Hotel Industry Trends in the U.S. and N.C.
  • AirDNA
  • Key Data
  • Come Hear NC
  • Dr. Billy Taylor Jazz Festival
  • PineCone
  • Festinomics
  • GDPR Info and Impacts
In addition, presentations from past Visit NC 365/N.C. Governor's Conferences on Tourism are also archived here.
 
Save the date for next year's Visit NC 365 conference in Asheville, March 22-24, 2020.
A previous TRAC at Lake Junaluska
TRAC coming to Burlington/Alamance County and surrounding region tomorrow

Tomorrow (Thursday), tourism-related businesses in Burlington/Alamance County - plus the surrounding counties - will have an opportunity to work with Visit North Carolina staff to learn about its research, development and marketing services, and discuss best practices in reaching travelers, the media and increasing tourism visitation and spending. Visit North Carolina's Tourism Resource Assistance Center (TRAC) is a community-based training program designed to help small tourism-related businesses. TRAC will be held 10 a.m. - 2 p.m. at the Drury Inn & Suites, 1767 Glidewell Drive in Burlington.
 
There is no charge to attend, no reservation is required, and there is no PowerPoint presentation. This is a come-when-you-can/stay-as-long-as-you'd-like event opportunity for all tourism-related businesses to meet one-on-one with program managers to discuss better ways to promote their property or event. TRAC brings Visit North Carolina's program managers to local communities to discuss the nuts and bolts of working with the organization. This invaluable program is designed to help tourism-related businesses engage more fully with programs offered by Visit North Carolina and its partners.
 
Representatives from the EDPNC's BLNC, N.C. Welcome Centers/Visitor Services, N.C. State Parks, Agritourism, and NC GreenTravel are often on hand to discuss services they can provide businesses, including strategic planning, assisting with identifying funding sources and serving as liaisons with other local, state and federal agencies. For additional information on this session or to learn more about scheduling a TRAC visit to your community, contact AndrĂ© Nabors at (919) 447-7771.
Visit NC, Visit Charlotte promote tourism to legislators in D.C.

Visit NC's Heidi Walters and Visit Charlotte's Mike Butts joined travel leaders from more than 45 states at the US Travel Association's Destination Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., last week. The event brought travel leaders from across the country to Washington to educate policymakers about the power of travel. The program combined a legislative day on Capitol Hill with advocacy training, guest speakers and peer-to-peer networking. Walters and Butts presented information to the entire N.C. legislative delegation. Destination Capitol Hill delegates conducted more than 300 congressional meetings during the event.
Uncle Frank begins filming in Wilmington
 
Production has begun on Uncle Frank in Wilmington. The independent feature film is set in 1970s New York City and the rural South, and several sites in Wilmington have been recreated by the production to portray this era. According to the Wilmington Star-News, the production is employing around 70 crew members and is expected to film through mid-May. The film is written and directed by Academy and Emmy award-winner Alan Ball, who was the executive producer for the Cinemax series Banshee, which filmed in N.C. 2012-'14.
Gov. Cooper touts outdoor recreation, tourism during western N.C. visit
 
N.C. Gov. Roy Cooper was in western N.C. this past weekend touting the  importance of outdoor recreation and tourism to the region. "You can have outdoor experiences in Western North Carolina like no other place. We have these amazing river rapids that provide family entertainment," he said. "We have amazing hiking trails. We have historic small towns with amazing artwork. There is a lot here in WNC that can attract people from all over the world."

As reported by Smoky Mountain News, according to statistics from the Outdoor Industry Association, outdoor recreation across the United States generates $887 billion in annual consumer spending, $65 billion in federal tax revenue, $59 billion in state and tax revenue and supports more than 7.6 million jobs.

In North Carolina, the industry accounts for $28 billion in annual consumer spending, $8.3 billion in salaries and wages for more than 260,000 workers, and $1.3 billion in state and local tax revenue. North Carolina is tied with Colorado for the sixth-largest outdoor recreation economy in the nation, according to William Irving, with the Nantahala Outdoor Center in Bryson City.

During his visit at the NOC, Cooper also cited the creation of an outdoor recreation department within the Economic Development Partnership of North Carolina in January 2018 as the best evidence of his commitment. At the time, North Carolina became only the fourth state to have such a department, but at least six other states have since added similar operations. Upon establishment of the department, officials conducted a listening tour, which revealed a number of ways in which the outdoor recreation industry could grow. Across the state additional lodging near attractions is a top priority, as is additional infrastructure - but not necessarily infrastructure directly related to activities like canoeing, hiking or kayaking; it's things like coffee shops, breweries or arts districts.
Pinehurst Brewing Co. in the spotlight

USA Today featured Pinehurst Brewery in Pinehurst in its "Pinehurst Brewing Co. brings beer and barbecue to North Carolina's famed golf resort." The Travel section's "Great American Bites" column notes, "The setting is as important as the food. The restaurant is located in the town's original steam plant, built in 1895 to provide [Pinehurst Resort] with electricity and heat. It sits on the edge of the quaint downtown, near Pinehurst's independent bars, restaurants and shops, and had been decommissioned and vacant for decades. The resort took the same meticulous approach to restoring the grand but crumbling brick edifice that they have applied to their golf courses, and the results are simply spectacular. The brewery perfectly captures the industrial chic feel. The steam turbines have been replaced with stainless steel beer-brewing tanks, visible though a glass wall at one end of the main dining room, which is divided from a glass-enclosed porch by a double-sided bar with eight beers on tap." In addition, the article also included a 31-picture photo gallery for the online article version.
Raleigh's Benchwarmers Bagels in the spotlight

Last week, Bon Appetit spotlighted Benchwarmer Bagels in "Yes, There Are Potato Chips in Your Very Crunchy Bagel Sandwich." Of the Raleigh eatery, the online article noted, in part, "At Benchwarmers in Raleigh, they take their bagels seriously. They use fresh-milled Red Turkey wheat and Einkorn. The dough goes through a three-day fermentation process. They bake everything in a 10,000-pound, ripping hot wood-fired oven. And then they stuff their No. 5 bagel sandwich with Lay's Kettle Cooked potato chips. Because, thankfully, they don't take themselves too seriously."
Surveys, Industry, Marketing & Travel Trends
 
Symantec: Two out of three hotels accidentally leak guests' personal data - Two out of three hotel websites inadvertently leak guests' booking details and personal data to third-party sites, including advertisers and analytics companies, according to research released by Symantec Corp last week. The study looked at more than 1,500 hotel websites in 54 countries that ranged from two-star to five-star properties. Compromised personal information includes full names, email addresses, credit card details and passport numbers of guests. The research showed compromises usually occur when a hotel site sends confirmation emails with a link that has direct booking information. The reference code attached to the link could be shared with more than 30 different service providers, including social networks, search engines and advertising and analytics services. "Some admitted that they are still updating their systems to be fully GDPR-compliant," said a Symantec researcher, referring to Europe's new privacy law, or the General Data Protection Regulation, which took effect about a year ago and has strict guidelines on how organizations should deal with data leakage.
 
Plastic plates, cutlery, cups to be banned in Europe as of 2021- The European Union decided to ban plastic consumer items including plates, cutlery and straws as of 2021 to help clean up oceans, reports Bloomberg. The prohibition on single-use plastics approved by the European Parliament on Wednesday in Strasbourg, France, also applies to beverage cups, food containers and cotton bud sticks. EU governments have already signaled support for the ban, making their final approval due [this week] a formality. The new legislation also sets a 90 percent collection target for plastic bottles by 2029 and a 30 percent goal for recycled material in them by 2030.

GPS doodling growing in popularity - A trio of cyclists rode in Nashville recently with one goal in mind: Create an image of Elvis. To draw him, they had to travel 100 miles of Nashville streets with just two things - their bicycles and a GPS tracking device. The Music City-themed bike route is part of a global trend some call GPS doodling, or "Strava art." Runners, cyclists, skateboarders and other athletes trek around towns, and even across countries, with GPS devices strapped to their wrists or handlebars to create pictures with their activity routes. When they are done, they post them to networks like Strava, which is essentially social media for athletes. It's meant as a training tool, where people can compare their performances and friends and followers can like and comment on them.
Earth Day Every Day

Celebrating Earth Day on April 22 is a special opportunity to promote sustainable tourism. Lodging, dining, eco-farms, breweries, wineries, distilleries and many other tourism-oriented businesses have implemented a variety of practices that help to preserve the environment. Examples include recycling, installing LED lighting and low-flow plumbing fittings, serving locally produced foods, creating and promoting green events, and other sustainable methods that not only protect the Earth's resources, but can enhance a business' bottom line. Earth Day is an excellent opportunity to promote the sustainable practices that a business has implemented. However, you don't have to wait until Earth Day to share environmental accomplishments. Every day presents a unique opportunity to share with customers and colleagues in the industry just how green a business is and how it developed its sustainability program. Best of all, show how the business is saving money and protecting the environment by conserving energy, water and recycling. For information about how a business can "go green, and how to become recognized at no cost as an environmental leader by the NC GreenTravel Initiative, contact Tom Rhodes at (919) 707-8140.
For the week of April 18 on North Carolina Weekend, the program repeats the episode that originally aired on Feb. 14. Segments feature The Barn Dance in Julian; French Connections in Pittsboro; bluegrass music across the state, notably in Wake and Stokes counties; and Fiction Kitchen in Raleigh. (Check local listings; segments are subject to change.) North Carolina Weekend is underwritten by Visit North Carolina. In addition, UNC-TV has recent editions of North Carolina Weekend available online.
Hotel/motel revenues in North Carolina increased 7 percent in 2018 from 2017. Revenues have grown 42 percent in the last five years and are nearing the $4 billion mark. For more North Carolina visitor information, visit Lodging Reports, or contact Visit NC's Marlise Taylor at (919) 447-7748.
Upcoming Industry Meetings & Events

April 18 - Visit NC's TRAC, Burlington
May 2 - NC Coast Host Annual Meeting, Topsail Beach
May 5-11 - National Travel & Tourism Week, nationwide
May 7 - Visit NC Travel & Tourism Board Meeting, Raleigh 
May 12-17 - STS Marketing College, Dahlonega, Ga.
June 6 - Visit NC TRAC, Goldsboro
June 25-27 - TTRA International Conference, Melbourne, Australia
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