November 2019
Dear Colleagues,
We have much to be thankful for here in Massachusetts. This month
we celebrate Thanksgiving, a cherished national
holiday with roots in Bay State history.
In this month’s MA Spotlight, Indian Affairs Commission’s Jim
Peters shares his thoughts on Thanksgiving and his Native American
heritage, and talks about upcoming Plymouth 400 activities in 2020.
We have a busy season ahead, with international opportunities in
Ireland, Germany, Japan and South Korea. Massport has more
good news about a new Boston-Vienna direct route on Austrian
Airlines, and a DC-Martha’s Vineyard direct route on JetBlue.
Finally, read about a cool new logo from the Cape Cod Cranberry
Growers Association, just in time for the holidays!
Sincerely,
Keiko Matsudo Orrall
Executive Director
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Industry
Spotlight
Jim Peters
Telling
the Native American Story in Massachusetts
Jim Peters is
a member of the Mashpee Tribe of the Wampanoag Nation. He serves as
executive director of the Massachusetts
Commission on Indian Affairs and is member of
the Plymouth
400 Commission.
We spoke with Jim about Thanksgiving and the experience of Native Americans
in Massachusetts. ...Read more
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International
News
International
Opportunities:
Aer
Lingus Irish Roadshow — February 11-14, 2020
Discover New England and MOTT invite you to participate in the 2020
Aer Lingus roadshow this February 11 – 14, 2020. This annual,
multi-city travel agent roadshow is for U.S. destinations with
direct service to Ireland on Aer Lingus. The roadshow visits
the key cities of Belfast, Dublin, and Cork.
Ireland remains a priority market for Massachusetts, which
maintains 5% of market share to the U.S. and has direct service to
Boston Logan International Airport. Western Massachusetts is
easily accessible as well, with direct service from Dublin to
Bradley International Airport in Hartford, CT. This is a great
opportunity to meet face-to-face with Irish travel trade in this
important international market.
Cost to attend: $1,500 per delegate.
Travel
expenses are on own.
Please contact Lori Harnois at Discover New
England for more details.
ITB
Berlin – March 4 – 8, 2020
Berlin,
Germany – ITB Berlin is the world’s largest travel
and tourism industry show. ITB exhibitors and trade visitors
represent all sectors of the international travel and tourism
industry: Leisure, Business, Incentive, Meetings and Conventions,
Health, Adventure, Education and Study. Join the Discover New
England booth this year for the 3-day trade show to meet directly
with tour operators, airlines, and media focused on the German
market.
Participation
Fee: $1,750 – Travel expenses on
own
Please contact Lori Harnois for more
information.
Sales
Mission to Japan & South Korea – April 6-10, 2020
Tokyo, Japan & Seoul, South Korea — Discover New England will
host a sales mission to Tokyo, Japan and Seoul, South Korea. The
mission will consist of a mix of in-company trainings and
one-on-one appointment style workshops, as well as market briefings
and seminar/luncheon for 50 key tour operators.
Participation
fee: $3,000 per person – Travel
expenses on own. Limited availability.
Contact Shoko
Hirao for more information.
Discover
New England Annual Summit — May 11-12, 2020
Bethel,
Maine — The only New England travel trade event
where New England hospitality businesses are able to meet directly
with international tour operators and receptive operators who
arrange trips for tens of thousands of international travelers
annually. Each year, DNE hosts international tour operators and US
receptive operators. These individuals meet with New England
tourism representatives from lodging properties, attractions,
destination marketing organizations and state tourism offices to
learn about travel products, establish relationships and initiate
contracts for both group and foreign independent travelers (FIT).
Cost to
Attend: Early bird registration is $795 per person and includes
all DNE Summit meals and networking events. Early bird Exhibitor
registration is $1,195 and includes
registration for one person.
As of February
21, 2020, standard rate will be $895 per person and
Exhibitor table standard rate will be $1,295 (includes one-person
registration).
For more information, please visit: www.discovernewengland.org/dne-summit
IPW
2020 – May 30 – June 3, 2020
IPW, the leading international
inbound travel trade show for U.S. destinations, takes place this
year in Las Vegas, Nevada from May 30-June 3, 2020. In 2020, IPW
will have more than 1,300 exhibitor booths held by U.S. suppliers
of USA travel products and destinations and more than 6,200
attendees, including 1,300 international and domestic travel buyers
and 500 journalists representing more than 70 countries.
Early bird
rates for registration end on November 22, 2019.
If you are interested in participating as a delegate in the
Massachusetts booth at IPW, or are planning to have a booth of your
own, please contact Annie Thompson.
International News:
Brand USA
Korea Senior-Executive Travel Trade FAM: October 2019
In conjunction with the new Seoul-Boston flight that launched in
April 2019, MOTT and the GBCVB hosted a travel trade FAM of key
senior executives of Korea’s leading tour operators, the top
sellers of the USA. Below, the delegation is pictured at the John Harvard
statue at Harvard University along with Trademark Tours (one of the
local hosts for this FAM). Thank you to all who made it a success!
International
MOTT Press Result (Germany): Mitteldeutsche - Michael Heinrich
With a print run of 180,000 and an audience reach of 500,000
German-speaking readers, German journalist Michael Heinrich’s
articles Grey Lady and Moby Dick ß-Link highlighted to
PDF in Mitteldeutsche
Zeitung explore coastal Massachusetts and the
Massachusetts Whale Trail, including New Bedford, Provincetown,
Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard. Thank you to the local hosts and
Regional Tourism Councils for helping to make this FAM a success!
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By the Numbers
Lodging Data for U.S. &
Massachusetts: September 2019 vs. September 2018
- The Occupancy
Rate across the U.S. for September 2019
(67.4%) decreased by 0.9% compared to September 2018. The Occupancy Rate in
MA (76.1%) decreased by 3.7% compared to September 2018.
- In the U.S., Rooms Sold grew
by 1.2% to 108.5 million. Rooms Sold in MA
totaled 2.1 million, a decrease of 1.3%.
- The Average Daily Rate in
the U.S. of $131.93 in September, 2019 was a 0.6% increase. In
MA, ADR
growth was 2.3% to $207.87.
- Revenue Per Available Room (RevPar) decreased by 0.3% in the U.S. to
$88.91, while in MA there was a decline in RevPar
of 1.4% to $158.17.
- Room Revenue in the U.S. totaled $14.3 billion, up 1.7%
from September 2018. In MA, Room Revenue grew by
1.0% to $426.5 million.
Lodging Data for U.S. &
Massachusetts: Calendar Year to Date September 2019 vs. September
2018
- From January through September of CY 2019,
the Occupancy
Rate across the U.S. (67.6%) remained the same
as in 2018. The Occupancy
Rate in MA (70.0%) decreased by 2.0% over the
same periods.
- Rooms Sold in the U.S. totaled 978.3 million, an
increase of 2.0%. The MA Rooms Sold increased
by 0.4% to 16.5 million.
- The Average
Daily Rate (ADR) in the U.S of $131.92 was a
1.0% increase, which was less than the MA ADR
growth of 2.1% to $191.39.
- Revenue Per Available Room (RevPAR) increased by 1.0% in the U.S to$
89.18, and outperformed the 0.1% growth to $134.06 in MA.
- Room Revenue across the U.S. totaled $129.0 billion, up
3.0%. While in MA, Room Revenue was up 2.5% to $ 3.2 billion.
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Industry
News
Restaurant
Promotion Commission Meeting – Tuesday, Nov. 26
The second public meeting of the Restaurant Promotion Commission
will take place on Tuesday, November 26 from 1-3pm at the Newton
Free Library, the Druker Auditorium, 330 Homer Street, Newton, MA
02459. Topics to be covered will include training, development, and
retention of the restaurant industry’s workforce.
Comments for the Restaurant Promotion Commission’s consideration
may be submitted here.
MCCA
Board Approves BCEC Expansion
The Baker-Polito Administration announced plans to pursue an
expansion of the Boston Convention & Exhibition Center in South
Boston and to sell the Hynes Convention Center in Back Bay. Read Press Release here.
MA wins
Whale of an Award
The British Guild of Travel Writers International Tourism Awards
has awarded the Massachusetts Whale Trail a MERIT Award, confirming
it as one of 2019’s top
new tourism initiatives in the ‘Wider World’
(outside of Europe) category. Read more about the award here!
Cranberry
Logo for the Holidays
The Cape Cod Cranberry Growers Association unveiled its new logo
this month. Read the story here.
Tourism
Winners from North of Boston
Congratulations to the 2019 Tourism Winners at the recent North of Boston CVB Annual Awards
event.
(L-R) Jennifer Durocher, General Manager, Cider Hill
Farm (Amesbury); Bob Meehan, Concierge, Beauport Hotel
(Gloucester); Paul Gentile, Owner, Gentile Brewing Company
(Beverly); Harold Burnham of H.A. Burnham Boatbuilding and Design
in Essex and Master Shipwright, Captain and Builder of the Schooner
Ardelle (Essex and Gloucester); Ben Lithgow, Assistant Manager of
Visitor Services at The House of the Seven Gables (Salem); Briar
Forsythe, Owner Bramble Hospitality- Willowdale Estate and Briar
Barn inn (Topsfield and Rowley)
MetroWest
Visitors Bureau Honored
Congratulations to Jill Schindler, Interim Executive Director of
the MetroWest Visitors Bureau, who received the “Service above
Self” award at the 124th Annual MetroWest Chamber of
Commerce Meeting and Gala.
(L-R) Jill
Schindler, Senate President Karen Spilka and Chamber President
& CEO Jim Giammarinaro.
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Travel
News
Austrian
Airlines Launches Boston-Vienna Route in March 2020
The Lufthansa Group announced that Austrian Airlines is launching
the very first nonstop flights between Boston and Vienna,
Australia, starting on March 29. Read story here.
JetBlue
Launches DC-MVY Route in June 2020
JetBlue is launching a new nonstop service between Washington
National (DCA) and Martha’s Vineyard (MVY). The seasonal
service begins June 12, 2020 and runs three days a week,
Friday-Saturday-Sunday. Read story here.
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Industry
Calendar
The next ACT&T meeting takes place on Monday, December 9 at the
Massachusetts Transportation Building in Boston.
The next MMP meeting takes place on Wednesday, December 11 at the
Massachusetts Office of Travel & Tourism.
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Massachusetts
Film Office
For a schedule of film festivals in Massachusetts this month and
throughout the year, visit MAfilm.org/.
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Massachusetts
Sports Marketing Office
Congratulations to TD Boston Garden in Boston’s historic North End,
which unveiled The Hub on Causeway, a new mixed-use retail, hotel
and entertainment complex at the home of the Celtics and
Bruins. Read the story here.
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MOTT
Bulletin Board
FREE
means FREE!
With so many amazing free things to do in Massachusetts, we created
a FREE category
listing in our online calendar of events at massvacation.com. Now,
you can add your organization’s cost-free events to MOTT’s
year-round calendars. Just visit massvacation.com and click on
‘submit your listing’ on the bottom of the homepage. With
questions, please reach out to John
Alzapiedi.
50
Great Things to do Under $50
MOTT’s ‘50 Great Things to do Under $50’ is consistently
ranked as one of our most visited web pages each month. To
list a special deal offered by your organization, the offer must be
valid for a two-month duration and the admission of under $50
must cover either: two adults separately or two adults with two
children 12 and under. We are currently accepting ’50 Under $50’
submissions for January/February and March/April 2020. Please send
your offers for consideration to Phyllis
M. Cahaly.
Call
for Brochures
Our friends at Lee Premium Outlets/Simon Properties are happy to
display your latest brochures, rack cards and travel guides at
their very active visitor information center. Please send one box
of material to Carolyn Edwards, Area General
Manager, Lee Premium Outlets, 17 Premium Outlets Blvd., Lee, MA
02138; 413-243-2063. Thanks to Carolyn Edwards and Lee Premium
Outlets for this service, and for storing the material at no
charge!
*Header image: Island
Creek Oysters, Duxbury, MA
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