Cincinnati flourishing as tourist destination

By Lisa Cornwell

Associated Press

 

CINCINNATI – Cincinnati is getting a flood of recognition from national travel and arts publications for the first time since it started trying to improve its image after the 2001 race riots. 

 

In the past few months, the Zagat Survey, AmericanStyle magazine, the American Automobile Association and other groups have cited the quality and affordability of Cincinnati’s arts, entertainment, shopping, dining and lodging, and its success as a family-friendly tourist destination.

 

Several attractions received high marks in the recent U.S. Family Travel Guide published by Zagat Survey in association with Parenting Magazine.  The ratings resulted from a poll of more than 11,000 travelers who were asked to rate family-oriented attractions on child appeal, adult appeal, public facilities, service and cost.  “Cincinnati has received recognition from us for some of its restaurants and hotels in the past, but it has never received this type of recognition as a destination city,” said Zagat spokeswoman Alexa Rudin.

 

Full article at http://www.fortwayne.com/mld/journalgazette/living/9240560.htm

There should be another spate of articles and media attention when the Freedom Center opens next month and the Reds Hall of Fame in Sept. There was an article in the Enquirer today about the new director of the CAC who sounds like she may make a splash too.

Wow I think this is so great and as a person from another city I do think The City Of Cincinnati has really turned the corner........

From CNN Travel, some national coverage...

 

http://www.cnn.com/2004/TRAVEL/DESTINATIONS/07/28/cincinnati.tourism.ap/index.html

I saw that on Cincinnati Tomorrow too. How's the "Make Cincinnati Weird" campaign going?

This story made it to the front page of CNN.com:

 

http://www.cnn.com/2004/TRAVEL/DESTINATIONS/07/28/cincinnati.tourism.ap/index.html

Gee, couldn't get past the first paragraph without mentioning the riots.

 

Way to go!

Wait isn't that what I posted?

^ Yeah, it's the same story. CNN just jacked it from the AP wire.

Yeah, "this story" refers to the original post. Otherwise, I would have posted to the actual text. Good to see positive news about Cincinnati in the national news sites.

From the 5/14/05 Cincinnati Post:

 

 

Tourism officials court Midwest travel writers

By Greg Paeth

Post staff reporter

 

If you're bored silly in Cincinnati, you may need to look at things from an out-of-towner's perspective.  Members of the Midwest Travel Writers Association came to town this week for a four-day spring conference, wrapping up today, and they seem to be heading home with some upbeat impressions of the region.

 

"It has a very urban feel to it. Not like New York City, but it's certainly an urban center," said Frederick Karst of Culver, Ind., who writes freelance travel pieces for the Times of Northwest Indiana and other publications.  He was impressed with Thursday visits to Great American Ball Park, the Reds Hall of Fame and Museum, Newport on the Levee and the Newport Aquarium.

 

Any negatives?  "I never observed any police brutality, if that's what you're asking," said Karst.  He was referring, of course, to Cincinnati's reputation nationally, which was partly shaped by the 2001 riots sparked by the police shooting of an unarmed man in Over-the-Rhine.  It's exactly the reputation tourism officials want to erase.

 

Full article at http://news.cincypost.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050514/BIZ/505140311/1001/RSS04

 

From the 5/22/05 NKY Sunday Challenger:

 

 

Wish You Were Here

CVB Sells NKY to the World

By Jason Feldmann

The Sunday Challenger

[email protected]

 

COVINGTON - For years, Northern Kentucky has attempted to carve out its own identity separate from the rest of the state and the city of Cincinnati.  Booming populations across the three-county area over the last decade have resulted in a larger, more diverse workforce, and more of just about everything else - from shopping and entertainment to hotels and restaurants.

 

But when it comes to marketing and promoting tourism within NKY to travelers outside the Tristate area, Boone, Campbell, and Kenton counties remain joined at the hip with their metro neighbor to the north.  Tourism is one of the top three industries in the state of Kentucky.  And since entering office, Gov. Ernie Fletcher has led a push to bring more tourism dollars to the state, with tax abatements, the horse-racing industry and Kentucky heritage being principle selling points.

 

But in NKY, officials with the Northern Kentucky Convention and Visitors Bureau (NKCVB) use Cincinnati as their geographic locator in helping potential visitors find the area on a map.  The bureau's tagline for NKY as "the southern side of Cincinnati," says it all.

 

Full article at http://www.challengernky.com/articles/2005/05/22/around_nky/doc428e3b9518ee3428667045.txt

 

Here's a column from Cliff Peale from the 5/22/05 Enquirer:

 

 

We're fun, not fancy

By Cliff Peale

Enquirer staff writer

 

Breakfast at the Contemporary Arts Center. Behind the scenes at Great American Ball Park. A tour of the renovated Taft Museum. Lunch at the Hofbrauhaus in Newport. A stroll through the antique shops of historic Lebanon. Rafting on the Little Miami River. Dinner at - Jungle Jim's?

 

This, apparently, is how you dazzle tourists here. You point out the Ohio River at every opportunity. You mix fine food and unusual places. You pull strings, get them into places ordinary people here wouldn't get to see.

 

Last week, the lucky visitors were a group of travel writers from around the Midwest, converging on Greater Cincinnati for their annual conference. These writers know about all the traditional events, from Reds and Bengals games to Oktoberfest Zinzinnati. They want to be enchanted, to be surprised.

 

Full article at http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050522/COL01/505220362/1081/BIZ

 

From the 5/30/05 Cincinnati Business Courier:

 

 

Network lights the 'fusion'

Tourism packages to draw visitors for summer weekends

Dan Monk and Lucy May

Staff Reporters

 

The Cincinnati USA Regional Tourism Network will use three discount packages and two "fusion events" to convince visitors from other markets to spend their time and money in Greater Cincinnati this summer.

 

The packages, priced under $50, are designed to bring Louisville, Lexington, Columbus and Indianapolis residents to Cincinnati's most popular attractions, including Paramount's Kings Island, the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden, the Newport Aquarium and the Cincinnati Museum Center. Organizers hope to sell more than 50,000 of the packages this summer, all the while gathering data on what local attractions are the region's strongest draws.

 

Plans for the discount packages were unveiled in March, but details on how the program will work have only recently emerged. Two of the discount packages were finalized days ago, while a third so-called "super" pass is close to receiving final approval from the attractions that will be involved, Usitalo said.

 

Full article at http://cincinnati.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/stories/2005/05/30/story5.html

 

From the 4/3/06 Cincinnati Business Courier:

 

 

Cincinnati lags other Ohio cities in tourism business

$19M economic impact jump pales vs. Columbus' $43M

Cincinnati Business Courier - March 31, 2006

by Lucy May

Senior Staff Reporter

 

The good news is the region's hotels have finally recovered from the beating they took in 2001, the year the Tri-State was walloped by Comair's pilot strike, Cincinnati's race riots and travel cutbacks after Sept. 11.  The bad news is the region still has a long way to go to catch up with the cities Cincinnati competes with for tourism spending, said Scott Usitalo, executive director of the Cincinnati USA Regional Tourism Network.

 

At the network's first annual meeting Friday, Usitalo will explain how our region stacks up against Columbus, Louisville, Lexington and Indianapolis, the cities he is using as a competitive set.  For 2005, Greater Cincinnati hotels posted an average occupancy of just over 56 percent, which is on par with the region's 2000 results and 5 percent higher than in 2004, Usitalo said.

 

Full article at http://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/stories/2006/04/03/story6.html?from_rss=1

 

The economy there has grown faster than Cincinnati's or Cleveland's, and Columbus has "the only large first-class convention center in the state as Cleveland's is outdated and Cincinnati's is under construction," said David Sangree, the firm's president.

 

Basically.

Cincy finalist for NAACP meet

'08 convention has political overtones

BY ALEXANDER COOLIDGE | ENQUIRER STAFF WRITER

September 15, 2006

 

CINCINNATI - Cincinnati is one of two finalists to host the 2008 NAACP national convention.  Though it wouldn't be the largest-ever convention to grace the Queen City, convention officials say it would deliver considerable panache - especially in a presidential election year.

 

Cincinnati could likely expect the same national attention it got in 2004 when the Veterans of Foreign Wars convention came, because both presidential candidates spoke to the VFW delegates and likely would come again for the NAACP.  "It would be a grand slam for us," said Julie Calvert, spokeswoman for the Greater Cincinnati Convention and Visitors Bureau.  She said a delegation of 40 NAACP officials will visit the Duke Energy Center downtown next month before making a decision.

 

Calvert said the NAACP convention would bring in 4,500 attendees and generate 11,575 room-nights for local hotels.  The convention would rank among the 10 largest to visit the convention center, she said, and would be the biggest convention here since the National Square Dance Association in 1992.

 

Full article at http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060915/BIZ01/609150355

From the 10/4/06 Cincinnati Business Courier:

 

 

Cincinnati CVB changes name, moves headquarters

Cincinnati Business Courier - 9:59 AM EDT Wednesday

 

The Greater Cincinnati Convention & Visitors Bureau is moving to the center of downtown and changing its name to identify with the Cincinnati USA regional brand.

 

The bureau, according to an e-mail from President and CEO Dan Lincoln, will now be known as the Cincinnati USA Convention & Visitors Bureau. Its communications and marketing materials will incorporate the new name and logo.

 

The organization also has moved from its 15-year home on West Sixth Street to a new headquarters at 525 Vine St., overlooking Fountain Square, Lincoln said in the e-mail. Its phone numbers and e-mail addresses won't change.

 

The Cincinnati USA Convention & Visitors Bureau promotes the Greater Cincinnati area as a convention and leisure destination, booking conventions and other special events.

 

http://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/stories/2006/10/02/daily28.html?from_rss=1

 

I don't see how I could possibly dislike anything in this article.....GOOD NEWS!!! :-D

NAACP checking out Cincy

BY ALEXANDER COOLIDGE | ENQUIRER STAFF WRITER

October 12, 2006

 

CINCINNATI - Hoping to bag a high-profile conference in 2008, city and downtown convention officials are rolling out the red carpet for NAACP dignitaries who are scouting Cincinnati.  The Queen City is one of two finalists for the Baltimore-based civil rights group annual July gathering.

 

Local convention officials are hopeful Ohio’s must-win status in a presidential election year could help them outbid the other contender Las Vegas.  “This is an opportunity for them to see how fabulous Cincinnati is,” said Jeanette Altenau, a local trustee for the national board for the NAACP.

 

Cincinnati Mayor Mark Mallory is slated to bid NAACP officials a formal welcome at a dinner held tonight night downtown at the Bankers Club.  On Friday and Saturday the visitors will hear presentations by the Greater Cincinnati African American Chamber of Commerce and the local chapter of the NAACP and tour Duke Energy Center, the downtown convention center.

 

Full article at http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061012/BIZ01/310120017/1076/BIZ

City woos NAACP convention

Committee here to check out facilities

BY ALEXANDER COOLIDGE | ENQUIRER STAFF WRITER

October 13, 2006

 

PHOTO: Edith Thrower (left), Cincinnati's NAACP branch president, stands with Hazel Dukes and Roslyn McCallister Brock, NAACP leaders. The Enquirer / Ernest Coleman

 

CINCINNATI - Hoping to bag a high-profile conference in 2008, city and downtown convention officials rolled out the red carpet Thursday for NAACP dignitaries, who are scouting Cincinnati. 

 

NAACP President Bruce S. Gordon and Vice Chairman Roslyn McCallister Brock will be among the 27 NAACP officials visiting Cincinnati this weekend.  They will leave Sunday for Las Vegas, which they will also tour for three days.  A decision by the NAACP is expected later this month.

 

Convention officials estimate the conference would attract more than 4,500 attendees, generate 11,575 room-nights for hotels and infuse about $3.2 million into the local economy.  While the downtown convention center has hosted larger conventions, winning the NAACP's would deliver the local center considerable prestige.

 

Full article at http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061013/BIZ01/610130349/1076/BIZ

NAACP picks Cincy over Vegas

Look for 4,500 delegates, $3M impact - and (likely) presidential candidates

BY ALEXANDER COOLIDGE | ENQUIRER STAFF WRITER

 

Cincinnati will host the annual NAACP Convention in 2008.  Local convention officials learned Saturday that they had won their hard-fought campaign to bring the group's 99th annual gathering to the city after the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People's quarterly board meeting in St. Louis.

 

The Queen City beat out convention super-heavyweight Las Vegas, the other finalist.

 

"We got it. This is huge," declared an elated Dan Lincoln, president of the Cincinnati USA Convention and Visitors Bureau.  The event is expected to attract 4,500 attendees, pump up to $3.2 million into the local economy and lend considerable prestige to the downtown Duke Energy Center, where the convention will be based.  Local leaders had lobbied the Baltimore-based civil rights group all summer to win the nod, even when the nation's largest and oldest civil rights organization had appeared to be leaning toward Las Vegas.

 

Full article at http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061022/BIZ01/610220335

^GREAT NEWS!!!!!

Awesome.

 

We told them: 'What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas, but what happens here makes national news.'

 

That's a great line...

Hispanic MBAs to visit Cincy

CHRIS DUMOND / HAMILTON JOURNAL NEWS

October 21, 2006

 

CINCINNATI - More than 9,000 students and professionals will be coming to town next week to take part in the National Society of Hispanic MBAs' 17th annual conference and career expo.  The conference, which is expected to generate about $6 million in Greater Cincinnati, is also an opportunity for the region to show off to the 300-plus companies visiting, said Fifth Third Bank Hispanic Initiatives Manager Gema Bahns.

 

Bahns, who serves on the society's executive board, said area companies and universities have teamed up to market the region during the event, and they also want to attract young talented workers.  "We constantly hear a concern from companies about the brain drain," she said.  "Young professionals stay here a short amount of time, then they leave.  With companies like (Proctor & Gamble), if their workers don't want to stay here, they could decide to relocate their headquarters."

 

Full article at http://www.journal-news.com/n/content/oh/story/news/local/2006/10/21/hjn102106hispmba.html

Hispanic MBAs to visit Cincy

 

CINCINNATI - More than 9,000 students and professionals will be coming to town next week to take part in the National Society of Hispanic MBAs' 17th annual conference and career expo.

 

That is awesome - hopefully some of them will return to cincy to work/start businesses, etc.

Funds sought for NAACP event

BY ALEXANDER COOLIDGE | ENQUIRER STAFF WRITER

October 23, 2006

 

CINCINNATI - With the NAACP convention headed here in 2008, local officials say they must now turn their attention to raising money to accommodate the visitors.  The local NAACP will assemble a fund-raising committee to solicit corporate and individual donations to pay next year the national NAACP its cash guarantee – money used to cover the initial costs of holding the convention.

 

Local officials did not release a target figure.  A planning committee will also be set up in the next several days.  Convention officials estimate the event will attract 4,500 attendees but Thrower and others hoped excitement generated by the presidential election year as well as Cincinnati’s central location, relatively low costs and other attributes will possibly double that estimate.

 

Cincinnati beat out Las Vegas – a formidable contender for any convention.  But local officials from the mayor’s office, the convention bureau, the Greater Cincinnati African American Chamber of Commerce, the police department as well as the local NAACP chapter touted Ohio’s must-win status in a presidential election year as a critical consideration.

 

Full article at

http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061023/BIZ01/310230020/1076/BIZ

So what do we need to pay for?  Are we talking about maybe some city liaison salaries, maybe some police overtime, maybe some bunting and flowers?  Or what?

 

Hispanic MBAs gather here

BY JEFF MCKINNEY | ENQUIRER STAFF WRITER

October 26, 2006

 

DOWNTOWN - More than 7,000 Hispanic MBAs and students will visit Cincinnati this week to attend the National Society of Hispanic MBAs Conference & Career Expo at Duke Energy Center.  The 17th annual event, which will run today through Saturday, will mark the first time the Irving, Texas-based group has held its annual event in the Midwest.

 

Cincinnati beat out Detroit for the convention, which will give the more than 250 companies and 90 academic institutions expected to attend the event a chance to recruit from the largest annual gathering of Hispanic MBAs and students in America, said group spokesman Mauricio Navarro.

 

The event will be Duke Energy Center's largest convention so far this year, based on projected attendance and exhibition space, said Justin Markle, the center's marketing manager.  He said the Hispanic group expects the convention to have a local economic impact of $5 million.

 

Full article at http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061026/BIZ01/610260321/1076/BIZ

Tourism chief leaving

BY CLIFF PEALE | ENQUIRER STAFF WRITER

December 7, 2006

 

CINCINNATI - Scott Usitalo, president of the two-year-old Regional Tourism Network of Greater Cincinnati, will leave the group in January to join a new brand consulting firm. He will be replaced by Sean Rugless, marketing vice president.

 

The group, which gets most of its revenue from hotel-tax revenue in Northern Kentucky and Hamilton County, hopes to build a $3.3 million budget this year after getting approval for a $1 million annual grant from Procter & Gamble Co. It uses that money mostly for marketing programs in Indianapolis, Columbus, Lexington and Louisville.

 

Usitalo, 48, will join Seed Strategy, a brand consulting firm, as a partner. The former P&G executive was on loan to the tourism network for a year starting in late 2004 before retiring from P&G and becoming a full-time employee. He will remain an advisor to the tourism network.

 

Full article at

http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061207/BIZ01/312070009/1076

umm yeah...can't say I'm shocked at this one.

If this continuous bashing of other cities keeps happening, this will be deleted (except for the initial article).

very surprising, i would have thought at the least kings island would bump it up? still, this is temporary and no big deal as when the new cc comes online that will change.

 

otoh i guess it could be related to image problems, but even that is all changing. the positive article about renos in otr from the nytimes we posted recently is one example. but eh, i dk about that anymore -- i really think the new cc will turn the tide on those numbers.

 

If this continuous bashing of other cities keeps happening, this will be deleted (except for the initial article).

 

BAH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

why did my posts get deleted?  i only said good things!!!!!!

They were not relavant towards the article.  So now you can post :)

I guess this sounds reasonable...but I would prefer the money stay in the CBD  :|  I guess regionalism is a two way street.

 

Extra funds may help Sharonville

Expanding its convention center proposed

BY ALEXANDER COOLIDGE | [email protected]

January 30, 2007

 

CINCINNATI - Hamilton County Commission President Todd Portune wants to use extra money raised to expand the downtown Cincinnati convention center to pay for a renovation of Sharonville's convention center.  County officials say they have $1.45 million in extra funding from 2006 to apply toward debt service for the Duke Energy Center as well as a projected $1.1 million annually in future years.  The money comes from the tax on hotel and motel rooms paid by guests.

 

The extra money is a result of revenue exceeding conservative estimates made in 2002 at the time funding was set up for the downtown expansion, as well as the project being completed under budget.  Portune said when funding was set up to pay for the downtown expansion, the Sharonville center was cited as a beneficiary of any extra funding. Sharonville convention officials have a $20 million plan to expand their center from roughly 50,000 square feet to about 125,000 square feet.

 

Full article at http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070130/NEWS01/701300349/1056/COL02

From the 12/22/06 Cincinnati Business Courier:

 

Visitors get welcome mat

Out-of-towners are priority for new leader of tourism network

Cincinnati Business Courier - December 22, 2006

by Lucy May

Senior Staff Reporter

 

When Sean Rugless talks about the Cincinnati USA Regional Tourism Network, he doesn't dwell on funding or politics or the challenges of building a new organization.  It's all about the visitor.

 

Those who helped create the RTN say that focus will be critical for Rugless as he prepares to become its president. 

"He puts the visitor first," said Scott Usitalo, the founding president who will leave the RTN in late January for a senior-level job with a local branding agency.

 

"How will they think?" he said. "How will they get here? And when they get here, how will we put our best foot forward to make sure that visitor wants to come back?"

 

That's the mission of the RTN, an organization formed in late 2005 by the Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky convention and visitors bureaus to bring more visitors to the Tri-State.

 

Full article at http://cincinnati.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/stories/2006/12/25/story4.html

 

It was reported in the Hamilton County Jail thread that the hospitality tax is exceeding projections, and has a $2.5 million surplus this year alone....and possible $87 million over the lifespan of the tax (25 years).  What should the regional tourism beauru do with this surplus...here is a suggestion from thomasbw (I think its awesome):

 

-Offer free streetcar rides to people with tix to various venues (Reds, Bengals, a museum, theatre, or something else along the line of the streetcar route).  Some of this money could help subsidize those efforts and you could then market the 'free streetcar access' with hotel and other tourism packages.

 

What are everyones thoughts/opinions??

well seeing how we dont have a streetcar i think that would be a little difficult.

Well seeing as how projections for completion are 2-3 years out...it doesn't sound too early to plan ahead.  It is a 25 year tax.

Hotel tax surplus plan OK'd

BY HOWARD WILKINSON | [email protected]

February 22, 2007

 

CINCINNATI - Hamilton County commissioners voted 2-1 on a plan to spend this year's $1.67 million in surplus hotel-motel tax money.  Commissioners Todd Portune and David Pepper want the money split among Sharonville convention center expansion, Duke Energy Center marketing and the Cincinnati Film Commission.

 

They rejected Commissioner Pat DeWine's suggestion to get Ohio law changed so the money could be used for jail expansion. Money for the Northern Cincinnati Convention and Visitors Bureau and marketing the Duke Center as a convention destination will pay off in generating more convention and tourist dollars for the region, Portune and Pepper said.

 

DeWine, along with Cincinnati Councilman Chris Monzel, proposed Monday that the money could be used to add jail space, although it would take an act of the Ohio General Assembly to allow it.  But both Portune and Pepper argued Tuesday that using the money to market the area as a convention and tourism destination can be done without changing Ohio law.  The plan approved by the commissioners Wednesday must be OK'd by Cincinnati City Council before the end of February.

 

Full article at http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070222/NEWS01/702220366/1056/COL02

Money for the Northern Cincinnati Convention and Visitors Bureau and marketing the Duke Center as a convention destination will pay off in generating more convention and tourist dollars for the region, Portune and Pepper said.

 

WOW, investing in our future...what a revolutionary concept!!!  Thank goodness the Dems are in charge; those idiot Republicans would have wasted a bunch of time trying to illegally spend the money on the jail.  The Dems on the other hand understand the legal agreement and the potential return on investment by putting the money back into regional tourism effort!

 

:clap: :clap: :clap:

New tourism plan unveiled

BY ALEXANDER COOLIDGE | [email protected]

February 28, 2007

 

CINCINNATI - Coming off a heady year when it unveiled a newly expanded convention center and nabbed a high profile annual meeting by the NAACP, the Cincinnati USA Convention & Visitors Bureau wants to keep the momentum in 2007 and beyond.

 

Toward that end, the bureau is unveiling a new marketing strategy at its annual meeting today to draw more bigger and better conventions to the region. “Plan for More” is a targeted pitch to professional convention planners designed to win the area higher-end gatherings.

 

But don’t expect to be hearing new ads on the radio any time soon. The specialized campaign, targeted for planners based in Washington, D.C., Chicago and other cities, is the first national effort in nearly seven years and will appear trade magazines, direct mail and the organization’s Web site.

 

Full article at http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070228/BIZ01/302270054/1076/BIZ

Here is the Post story...I think this is all VERY encouraging news for the region!  The CVB seems to have their act together and are aggresively working towards their goals.

 

Bureau effort targets planners

GREG PAETH | CINCINNATI POST

February 28, 2007

 

CINCINNATI - The Cincinnati USA Convention and Visitors Bureau plans to launch a new sales and marketing campaign designed to convince meeting planners that multimillion-dollar investments downtown allow the city to deliver more than it has in the past.  The "Plan For More" campaign, unveiled at the bureau's annual meeting, is based on the premise that many of the people who organize major meetings and conventions aren't familiar with improvements that have been made downtown in recent years.  "We want to break through the clutter and get back on the radar screen of the meeting planners," said Dan Lincoln, president and CEO of the bureau.

 

Lincoln said the $135 million expansion and renovation of the Duke Energy Center, the $43 million makeover of Fountain Square as well as new restaurants and clubs that have opened downtown add up to new experience for people who may not have visited Cincinnati recently.  Lincoln said the city may have dropped off planners' radar for a variety of reasons, including management changes at the bureau over the last six years, Duke center construction that lasted more than two years and the riots in 2001.

 

Full article at http://news.cincypost.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070228/NEWS01/702280388

3 hotels scheduled for 2008

City, market growth spurs developers

BY BRENNA R. KELLY | CINCINNATI ENQUIRER

March 8, 2007

 

FLORENCE - There will soon be more places to stay in Florence.  Marriott, Hilton and Holiday Inn are all planning new hotels, which will add 288 rooms to the city.  Two of the hotels will be in the Houston/Turfway area, while the third will be near the Florence Freedom stadium.  All three are expected to begin construction this year and will likely open in 2008.

 

Florence is an attractive market for hotels because of its proximity to the interstate, airport and restaurants, said Tom Caradonio, president of the Northern Kentucky Convention and Visitor's Bureau.  "They see the growth market, they see the traffic on 71/75, they see the tremendous growth in Boone County," Caradonio said.

Tourism network posted gains in 2006, unveils plans for 2007

BY LUCY MAY | CINCINNATI BUSINESS COURIER

March 22, 2007

 

CINCINNATI - The Cincinnati USA Regional Tourism Network helped increase occupancy in the region's hotels in 2006 and has ambitious plans to draw even more visitors this year. At the network's annual meeting March 22, RTN President Sean Rugless noted that weekend hotel occupancy in the region was up nearly 4 percent between May and October of last year. That's significantly more than the 2.1 percent increase that competing markets saw and far more than the U.S. average increase of 0.1 percent.

 

Average daily room rates increased by 4.3 percent during that time, which was less than the 5.2 percent increase that competitors saw and the U.S. average increase of 5.8 percent. But revenue per room increased a healthy 8.4 percent, which was stronger than the 7.4 percent increase posted by competitors and the U.S. average increase of 6 percent.

New efforts target tourism

BY GREG PAETH | CINCINNATI POST

March 23, 2007

 

CINCINNATI - Two of the region's tourism agencies are launching campaigns to bring in more visitors.  The Cincinnati USA Regional Tourism Network plans to target its marketing efforts at the "Family Trip Planner," working women between the ages of 25 and 54 who are college educated and part of a family with an annual income of more than $50,000, according to Sean Rugless, president of the tourism development agency that was created about 18 months ago.

 

The Northern Kentucky Convention & Visitors Bureau also unveiled a marketing theme Thursday in its effort to attract conventions and corporate meetings.  "Northern Kentucky: Like Nowhere Else" will promote "what's unique about the area to pique the interest of a convention buyer,'' said Tom Caradonio, president and CEO of the bureau.

Well personally I think the advertising for 5/3 and Skyline is terrible...its incredibly cheesy and even seems elementary at times.  I don't know...hopefully it turns out to be a good decision.

 

Cincinnati USA picks Sunrise Advertising to promote 2007 events

BY CLIFF PEALE | CINCINNATI ENQUIRER

March 27, 2007

 

CINCINNATI - Sunrise Advertising has been chosen by the Cincinnati USA Regional Chamber as its agency of record for 2007.

 

Sunrise will create a marketing campaign for the 6,000-member chamber, and also help promote special events including Taste of Cincinnati, Oktoberfest-Zinzinnati and the Union Centre Boulevard Bash.

 

Sunrise also is the agency for local companies including Fifth Third Bank, Skyline Chili and John Morrell & Co.