| Weekly e-newsletter for VisitNC partners | February 27, 2019 |
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| IN THIS ISSUE: * Have you reserved accommodations for Visit NC 365 yet?
* N.C. Travel Guide Road Show sees strong ideas, participation
* Visit NC support of Brand USA venture yields coverage Down Under
* Group tour operators, media learn about N.C. during Domestic Showcase
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Have you reserved accommodations for Visit NC 365 yet?
Visit NC has secured room blocks at several of the Wilmington hotels near the convention center for Visit NC 365 Conference, March 31 - April 2, but the room block deadlines are ending soon. When making your room reservation at any of these hotels, don't forget to say you're part of the Visit NC 365 Conference so you'll receive the special conference rate. Hampton Inn Wilmington (direct booking link) - (910) 251-3930 - $139 rate available until this Friday, March 1. Coastline Inn - (910) 763-2800 - $129 rate available until March 16. This year's Visit NC 365 Conference is March 31-April 2 in Wilmington. The conference brings together more than 500 members of the tourism industry to discuss the latest trends and issues facing the industry and hear insights from other tourism industry professionals. Find out more details, including a schedule of events, at visitnc365.com. Register now through March 14 with a rate of $499/person. Tell Visit NC you've registered by tagging it using hashtag #VisitNC365 on Twitter @NCTourism and Facebook @NCarolinaTourism. For more information on the conference, contact Dana Grimstead at (919) 447-7761. Sponsorship opportunities are also available; to learn more, click here. |
N.C. Travel Guide Road Show sees strong ideas, participation
Last week's "North Carolina Travel Guide Road Show" was a huge success. Meetings with DMO partners in the Mountains, Piedmont and Coast regions provided the Visit NC and Meredith Travel teams a variety of information on what's new and what's being promoted in the participating partners' areas. Each DMO did a presentation using the Pecha Kucha format, a timed style in which 20 slides are shown for 20 seconds each (6 minutes and 40 seconds in total). A Q&A followed if there were questions for each presenter. In addition, representatives from the N.C. Welcome Centers from each region attended, allowing the information from each presentation to be shared with them, too. The Road Show, the first year this has been offered, provided a unique and succinct way for partners to offer potential editorial ideas for consideration for the 2020North Carolina Travel Guide. |
Visit NC support of Brand USA venture yields coverage Down Under
In partnership with destination hosts, Visit NC worked with Brand USA to bring an Australian writer to the state to explore "Moonshine and motorsports: The crazy cool history behind North Carolina." The article and multiple photos were published by News Corp Australia, one of the country's largest media companies with 142 daily, Sunday, weekly, bi-weekly and tri-weekly newspapers. The Wilkesboro TDA, Visit Cabarrus and the Charlotte Regional Visitors Authority provided hospitality and itinerary support for the story, which made its way along the backroads of history to modern-day distilleries. The visit was part of Brand USA's Mega Media Venture, which brought 50 journalists to 50 destinations. American Airlines and Marriott International were campaign sponsors. |
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Group tour operators, media learn about N.C. during Domestic Showcase
Visit North Carolina and many industry partners from the Coast, Piedmont and Mountain regions of the state attended Travel South Domestic Showcase this week. They met with domestic group tour operators and media to increase interest in group travel to North Carolina. This regional appointment-style marketplace focused on increasing travel to and within the southern states. Visit NC's Amanda Baker met with 27 tour operators, while Visit NC's Eleanor Talley and Hayes Norris met with 28 travel journalists for pre-scheduled appointments during the new-this-year media marketplace session of the Showcase. Participating partners were Explore Asheville with Biltmore and Asheville Outlets; Burlington/Alamance County CVB and Conservators Center; Billy Graham Library; Blue Star Hospitality; Cabarrus County CVB with Charlotte Motor Speedway, zMax Dragway and Southern Grace Distillery; Fayetteville Area CVB, Heart of NC VB, Kersey Valley Attractions and NC Zoo; High Point CVB; Holiday Inn Express Wilkesboro & Yadkin Valley Event Center; Johnston County VB; Visit Lexington with The Candy Factory; NASCAR Hall of Fame; Nash County T&T; Haywood County TDA with Leap Frog Tours and Lake Junaluska; Outer Banks Days Inn; Outer Banks VB; Ramada Plaza Outer Banks, Wilmington and Beaches CVB; Visit Winston-Salem with Historic Brookstown Inn and Korner's Folly; Greensboro CVB; Crystal Coast TA; and Mooresville CVB. On Tuesday morning, Mrs. Hanes' Handmade Moravian Cookies and Alamance Kaffee Werks coffee were enjoyed by attendees; in the afternoon, local and craft beverages such as Broadslab Distillery moonshine, Biltmore Estate wine, Bull City Ciderworks cider, Conviction Bourbon, and Dirtbag Ales beer were served as part of the Tastes & Tunes of the South. 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. |
| | Walters (rt) and one of the tour operators she met with | |
Visit NC meets with international tour operators
Visit NC's Heidi Walters attended Connect International Marketplace in Orlando last week. During the two full days of appointments, Walters met with 24 Chinese tour operators as well as additional operators from Latin America, India and Nordic countries. These emerging markets play an important part of Visit North Carolina's overall international marketing. For more information on international marketing efforts, contact Heidi Waltersat (919) 447-7762. |
| | | (lf-rt) Taylor, CH/OCVB executive director Laurie Paolicelli and vice-chair Rosemary Waldorf |
Chapel Hill/Orange County VB board learns about Visit NC
Visit NC's Marlise Taylor presented to the Chapel Hill/Orange County VB board of directors last Wednesday. Taylor gave an update on Visit NC's efforts to promote travel to the state, and also focused on research and data available at the state and local level. To find out more about Visit NC's research program, contact Marlise Taylorat (919) 447-7748. |
| | Nabors (upper left) narrating his presentation
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Mount Airy gets update about CRC program and its participation
Visit NC's André Nabors gave a presentation to Mount Airy city commissioners and residents on the N.C. Certified Retirement Community Program. Nabors presented updates regarding new guidelines, research, and the benefits Mount Airy has received in the last four years as a participant in the program. Mt. Airy has been part of the program since 2014 and is up for renewal in January 2020. To find out more about RetireNC, including the N.C. Certified Retirement Community Program, contact André Nabors at (919) 447-7771. |
Forbes Travel Guide Star Awards includes N.C. sites The Umstead Hotel and Spa in Cary was awarded 5-Star Hotels. Herons at The Umstead Hotel was recognized among 5-Star Restaurants. Among 4-Star Hotels are Inn on Biltmore Estate in Asheville, The Ballantyne and The Ritz-Carlton in Charlotte, Old Edwards Inn in Highlands, and Fearrington House Inn in Pittsboro. The 4-Star Restaurants include the Dining Room at Inn on Biltmore Estate, Gallery Restaurant at The Ballantyne and Fearrington House Restaurant. The 4-Star Spas are The Spa at Fearrington and The Umstead Spa. Forbes Travel Guide Recommended Hotels include Sanderling Resort in Duck, Washington Duke Inn in Durham, and The Carolina Hotel at Pinehurst Resort in Pinehurst. Recommended Restaurants include BLT Steak at The Ritz-Carlton in Charlotte, Fairview Dining Room at Washington Duke Inn, and Madison's Restaurant and Wine Garden at Old Edwards Inn. |
James Beard Awards semifinalists include N.C. sites, chefs
The James Beard Awards has announced its 2019 James Beard Award semifinalists and several N.C. restaurants and chefs are among those recognized. Ashley Christensen, with Poole's Diner in Raleigh, is nominated for Outstanding Chef. Ashley Capps, with Buxton Hall in Asheville, is nominated for Outstanding Pastry Chef. Sean Lilly Wilson, with Fullsteam Brewery in Durham, is among the Outstanding Wine, Spirits, or Beer Producer semifinalists. Best Chef: Southeast semi-finalists include Katie Button, with Curaté in Asheville; Gregory Collier, with Loft & Cellar in Charlotte; Steven Devereaux Greene, with Herons in Cary; Oscar Diaz, with The Cortez in Raleigh; Meherwan Irani, with Chai Pani in Asheville; Joe Kindred, with Kindred in Davidson; Cheetie Kumar, with Garland in Raleigh; and Dean Neff, with PinPoint in Wilmington. And The Stanley in Charlotte is among the semifinalists for Best New Restaurant. |
Vote for N.C. beer sites, event, tour
North Carolina has sites, events and tours among the nominations for many 10Best's Readers' Choice Awards regarding the best in craft beer. Online voting by readers is now open via USAToday.com's website; click on the hyperlink to vote. Voting ends March 25 at noon. |
Mountains-to-Sea Trail in the spotlight
The March issue of Our State magazine spotlights the Mountains-to-Sea Trail. "Downtown" tours Oriental; "Restaurant" features Fowler's Southern Gourmet in Fayetteville; "Short & Sweet" samples The Peppered Cupcake in Wilmington; and "Farm Tour" visits Shelton Herb Farm in Leland. The March issue is available now. |
Small savings create long-term big savings A magical thing happens when a business implements low-to-no cost energy efficiency measures: small savings from monthly energy bills start turning into big savings. It is relatively simple to calculate how much a single energy efficient light bulb can save: take the wattage of the current bulb and subtract the wattage of the energy efficient bulb; then multiply the difference in wattages by how many hours the bulb is used over a year to give the wattage saved per year. The final step is to multiply to calculate the wattage saved by the cost of electricity. Unfortunately, energy efficiency upgrades are often much more complicated than replacing just one light bulb. For example, replacing older inefficient exit signs with LEDs typically costs $20 - $40 to purchase and install but can save up to $37 a year in energy costs and $26 a year in labor costs, paying for the initial investment in the first or second year of installation. Although first year savings in energy might only be a few dollars, once the energy savings pays back the initial investment, guaranteed savings will grow over time by as much as $500 per sign during the life of the LED exit sign. In a building with 10 exit signs, that's a cost savings of $5,000 that, once the signs are installed, the business doesn't have to do any more work, and just enjoy the savings. And with energy prices trending upwards, savings will be even greater in the future. For more information on how to save energy and dollars, contact NC GreenTravel manager Tom Rhodes at (919) 707-8140. |
| | For the week of Feb. 28 on North Carolina Weekend, tempt your taste buds at King Chicken Inn in Washington. Explore the Levine Museum of the New South in Charlotte. Lift a glass at Angry Troll Brewing in Elkin. And the "House Special" samples the fare at the Mad Boar Restaurant in Wallace. (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. | Visitors from the UK represent 9 percent of total international visitors to North Carolina and represent 11 percent of total international spending in the state. For more North Carolina visitor information, visit the Partners Page, or contact Visit NC's Marlise Taylor at (919) 447-7748. |
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Upcoming Industry Meetings & Events
Feb. 28-March 1 - AENC Winter Conference, Durham March 5 - NC Civil War Trails Regional Meeting, Benson March 8-16 - SXSW Festival Conference, Austin, Texas March 19-21 - STS Connections / SETTRA Meeting, Daytona Beach, Fla. March 20 - NC Sports Assn. Quarterly Meeting, TBD April 2-5 - AFCI Week, Los Angeles |
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