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 Live Passionately with the 2009 Virginia Travel Guide
2009 marks the 40th anniversary of Virginia is for Lovers, one of the most recognizable tourism slogans in the world. You can participate in the 40th anniversary year by purchasing an advertisement or listing in the 2009 Virginia Travel Guide, the VTC’s primary consumer fulfillment piece. The travel guide is printed in December, and the VTC will distribute 600,000 printed copies in 2009 and another 100,000 electronic versions of the guide.
For information about ad rates and sizes, contact Jo Diedrich at Leisure Publishing at 540-090-0052. For listing information, contact Jenny Dorsey at Leisure at 540-989-6138. For general questions, please contact Judy Watkins at VTC at 804-545-5563 or jwatkins@virginia.org. 2008 VACVB Virginia Tourism Summit
The VACVB Tourism Summit & Annual Meeting is the association's event of the year. Over two days, the membership comes together for networking, information, education and celebration. The Tourism Summit & Annual Meeting is a great opportunity for DMO representatives to learn what products and services are available from the Allied members, not to mention the invaluable exchange of ideas and thoughts among other bureaus and organizations across the Commonwealth. The meeting will be held April 21 - 23, 2008 at the Omni Charlottesville in Charlottesville, VA.
For more information visit http://www.vacvb.com/annual_meeting.php
National Tourism Week
May 10-18 is National Tourism Week. VTC is preparing a tool kit for DMOs to help localities spread the word about the economic impact and importance of tourism in Virginia. The kit will include a sample news release, graphics, a sample letter to legislators and other helpful items. The kit will be completed on April 30. VTC will post the kit on vatc.org and email directly to DMO Directors. If you have questions please contact Tamra Talmadge-Anderson, Public Relations Director at ttanderson@virginia.org. Sales Leads Available
CRUSA Sales leads are available from the recent ITB Berlin, Germany trade show and a sales mission to Ireland & England. Contact Matt Gaffney at mgaffney@capitalregionusa.org
Sales leads are also available from the American Bus Association Marketplace in Virginia Beach February 2-7, 2008. Contact Robin Mamunes at rmamunes@virginia.org New Photography Needed
Please send new photos of attractions, destinations, festivals & events, local restaurants and cuisine, outdoor recreation and other tourism-related activities to the VTC for possible inclusion in the 2009 travel guide and on www.Virginia.org.
We prefer digital Tiff files with minimum 300dpi resolution and 8"x10" in size. Please do not upscale images to specified resolution and size. Send your photos on a CD or DVD to the attention of Judy Watkins, Publications Manager, and include a note stating the VTC has permission to use the photos in its marketing efforts. Questions? Contact Judy at 804-285-3816 or jwatkins@virginia.org. The deadline for VTC to receive your photos is July 4, 2008. Workshop Opportunities
Building a Creative Economy in Southwest Virginia: Arts, Culture and Sustainable Development
An in-depth look at: • Community Development and the Creative Economy • Heartwood: Southwest Virginia's Artisan Gateway • The Emerging Green Sector: Organic Foods and Ecological Forest Products May 19 & 20, 2008 at the Southwest Virginia Higher Education Center in Abingdon, VA. For more information please visit www.roundthemountain.org The Entrepreneur Express Workshops are designed to provide information on available business resources and deliver practical, hands-on training covering key elements of business practice. Workshop segments include information on how to start and operate a business, grow an existing business, marketing strategies, financing and locating available resources. April events will be held in Halifax, Wytheville, Clarke County, Greene County, Botetourt, and Leesburg. For a complete schedule of dates and locations, click here: http://www.vastartup.org/dates.html For a complete list of upcoming workshops, please visit http://www.vatc.org/development/workshops.asp JOHN ADAMS on DVD
Virginia is tuning in to HBO to see the 7-part mini-series John Adams. The project is one of the highest rated in recent HBO history, and has been praised for its intimite and historically accurate portrait of the founding of our country. The majority of the project was shot in Virginia, at Colonial Williamsburg and on several backlot locations in the Richmond area. Don’t get HBO? You won’t have long to wait. The DVD of the entire series will be released on June 10.
Virginia Welcome Centers — 2008 Advertising Program
New locations and new options! As of Feb. 1st new product options and rates went into effect for Welcome Center advertising. Throughout the year we will introduce expanded and affordable advertising options that dovetail with brochure distribution and increase our partners’ exposure. These new components and products allow us to provide a variety of advertising options and deliver top-notch customer service to our tourism partners. For the newest rates and options visit the Virginia Welcome Centers on VATC.org. We look forward to working with you in 2008!
Virginia Welcome Center Demonstrations & Events
With the popular spring travel season approaching and peak travel following closely behind, schedule a "Demo Day." A demo day at a welcome center is an ideal opportunity to showcase your destination or organization. Increase awareness and gain valuable hands-on exposure with Virginia visitors without participation fees or monetary investment.
For more information on the Virginia Welcome Center Demonstration Program, visit http://www.vatc.org/csir/Demonstrations.asp Clear Brook Grand Opening
The Virginia Welcome Center at Clear Brook, a state-of-the-art, environmentally responsible facility, will be opening soon to again allow our travel counselors to serve the traveling public on I-81 South. For more information please contact Sandra Hicks, shicks@virginia.org.
Merchandise
of the Month
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Virginia Pack-Away Jacket 100% nylon with hidden hood in high collar, full zip front and side pockets. Folds to fit inside zipper pocket. Embroidered with "Virgnia is for Lovers" logo on left chest. Go to the Virginia is for Lovers Shop to Order. |
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Website Visitation Through March 2008  UP 15% YTDLodging Occupancy Rates Through February 2008  DOWN 3.3% from same period of 2007 Car Rentals Through February 2008 DOWN 1.9% from same period of 2007 Gas Sales Through October 2007 UP 2.4% from
the same period of 2006Click here to download the pdf for more information ...
New and Updated Virginia.org Features New and updated features added to Virginia.org in the last few weeks are:
Not on the
email list?Sign up for the Dashboard. If you have comments or suggestions for future issues of The Dashboard please contact Mary Bishop at mbishop@virginia.org or 804-545-5556. |
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