March 23, 2015 Tourism Staff Reports 10 a-g 1 of 36
DIRECTOR’S REPORT- Jack Wert
February- March 2015
ADVOCACY ACTIVITIES
Met with Florida delegation on Visit Florida funding and other tourism issues in Tallahassee
Met with Comm. Taylor on TDC agenda
TOURISM INDUSTRY ACTIVITIES
DMAI Advocacy Committee Meetings
HSMAI Adrian Awards- New York- 12 Creative awards and one personal award
Meetings in New York with Lou Hammond & Assoc. staff and calls on journalists
Florida CVB Association Audit Committee meeting
Planning meetings on May Tourism Rally
PUBLIC RELATIONS
Fox 4 News interview on Annual tourism statistics
Meeting with Naples Daily News Publisher Manny Garcia
TRADE SHOW ACTIVITIES
Attended ITB Trade Show in Berlin- meetings with 20 tour operators and journalists
Destinations Showcase in DC with National Association meeting planners
PROMOTIONAL ACTIVITIES
Participated in weekly updates on Miami Dade/Collier regional event
March 23, 2015 Tourism Staff Reports 10 a-g 2 of 36
GROUP SALES REPORT - Debi DeBenedetto February 12, 2015 – March 12, 2015
Industry Relations – Sales
Attended Seminole Hotel grand opening Interview information for Smart Meetings article Sales mission plans continued for NC and Midwest Site Silver Spot Mercato new meetings venue
New Product Development
Preparation for Meetings photo shoot Preparation upcoming trade shows
Trade shows attended
NYSAE trade show (New York Society of Association Executives) March 3 in New York City Collinson publication webinar sponsor introduction ITE – trade show (Incentive Travel Exchange) Las Vegas, March 18-21- appointment show 30 planners
Fams/Site Visits
Pre-planning for Golf Meeting Planner Fam Three site visits upcoming planned
Requests for Proposal (RFP’s) and Booked Business Current report dates –Feb. 12, 2015- March 13, 2015 We sent out 19 RFP’s Booking totals for report dates 9 booked for 2620 Room nights Economic impact estimate for bookings this report date $4,711,254.71
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Sponsorships & RFP Enhancements
We had 2 requests granted for RFP enhancements this period and one booked One Sponsorship offered by CVB for hosting XSITE show August 2015 with 50 meeting planners 50 suppliers and two hotels have bid this event We have 82 RFP’s pending that hotels need to follow up and report status for. Hotel reporting needed to determine bookings
March 23, 2015 Tourism Staff Reports 10 a-g 4 of 36
LEISURE & STATE ASSOCIATION SALES- Claudia Jonsson
February 14 – March 13, 2015
Industry Relations – Sales – Memberships
Met with Expedia reps Karli Turner and Nashara Frazier Bags to Naples Grande for UK FAM Attended Seminole Casino Hotel Ribbon Cutting Met with Cathy Ennis re FL Association plan Tourism Rally planning New Product Development
Final preparations for Travel Adventure Show. IPW appointment scheduling Registered for GTM Registered for ESTO Continued implementation of Marketing Plan Reviewing Virtuoso partnership opportunity. Sales Missions
On-going planning and conference calls with AVIAREPS re: Brazil Sales Mission. Working on Leisure Sales Missions. May/June Ohio and September Toronto. Familiarization Trips
British Airways Holiday’s Agent FAM Feb 27, 2015. German FIT HOY FAM for April finalized. DER Tour Austria FAM for June finalized. Trade Shows
Attended Peninsula Travel Agent Shows. GA/SC/NC Florida State Association
Final details for FSAE Power Lunch March 18 2015 in conjunction with Lee County. Registered for Capital Events in May. Established Contacts/Leads - Leisure
Presented and met with 50 Travel Agents in Atlanta. Presented to 25 Travel Agents in Greenville, SC. Presented to 45 in Charlotte, NC. Leads sent to partners. All agent leads entered into iDSS and shared with partners.
March 23, 2015 Tourism Staff Reports 10 a-g 5 of 36
PUBLIC RELATIONS & COMMUNICATIONS - JoNell Modys
March 23, 2015 TDC Meeting
Top Activities NYC trip – meet with Travel + Leisure magazine; LHA team meeting; HSMAI awards event - JoNell Develop visiting press itineraries – JoNell, Erin & LHA Write twice monthly Collier Tourism column for Fort Myers News-Press – JoNell Advertorial development and rewrites of ad copy for Plan Your Meetings & Destination Weddings & Honeymoons inserts – JoNell News release writing and updates - JoNell Backgrounder news release/story drafts – Erin Regional media relations, info submissions – JoNell National, international media relations, info submissions - JoNell Demos and review for new media monitoring tool - Team Direct and delegate activities for PR agency - JoNell Planning, coordination and escorts for individual media visits - JoNell Web updates – Buzzy, Erin, JoNell – LOTS of event and deals added, fixes by Buzzy Social media – Buzzy, initiated use of “Latergram” aggregation and sharing tool Local news monitoring & distribution – Erin Media requests and info fulfillment– Erin DMAI Re-accreditation planning/preparation – JoNell, Erin & Buzzy Supporting promotion of partner, Karen T. Bartlett’s book A (mostly) Kids’ Guide to Naples, Marco Island & The Everglades Tourism Rally Planning - team
Media in Destination Travel + Leisure, Tom Austin – Destination tour for upcoming Florida update Calgary Herald & WestJet Magazine, Lisa Monforton
9 News Releases
Over 50 Media Info Submissions
Over 80 Web site listing/article/event/deal additions by team
March 23, 2015 Tourism Staff Reports 10 a-g 6 of 36
FILM OFFICE – Maggie McCarty
PRODUCTIONS . HGTV/Beachfront Bargain Hunt – tv series (Season 6) TV crew follows a family making their dreams of living on the beach come true by finding a beachfront bargain in Collier County
. Arrowhead Agency – tv commercial Shot a Hyundai commercial in Lowdermilk and Cambier Park
WORKING LEADS . 495 Productions – TV reality series Producers scouted our area as a potential location for a 6-week reality series for CMT. City/county stakeholders met and agreed to move forward with the possibility of a series being shot this summer .
. Original Productions – TV reality series Project centered around small boat repair ship yard/boat salvage company considering area for docu-series
. “Dream Beyond the Sun”- on-line game show Production requested permit applications for both City of Naples and Collier County
. The Weather Channel – tv show “Fat Guys in the Woods” is interested in several Collier locations for a future episode
. Harper House – still photo shoot Hired local scout for a March shoot for high-end patio furniture Company out of Texas, have not applied for permits as yet
. Alaska TV- TV series for U.K. “Fishing Impossible” s eries is planning to shoot in May 2015
. Woman Within – still shoot National women’s retailer is scouting locally for upcoming catalog shoot. Hired local location scout March 23, 2015 Tourism Staff Reports 10 a-g 7 of 36
. Twentieth Century Fox - feature Female principal has now been cast, according to Variety. The start date has yet been set back. The current lack of a tax incentive will influence the possibility of the project being brought to the state but Collier is still in consideration
. Taste of Life Travel – tv segment Working with production company to arrange a scout/shoot in 2015
. Once Upon a Dream Productions – indie film Project is still in development and financing phase
. SON – indie film Company owner has verified that they are building a sound stage off Bonita Beach Road and anticipate having a number of projects in development shortly
. 25 – working title indie film No new start date set
OPERATIONS . Issued film permits . Location library upload . Lead/inquiry response . Monthly Revenue Tracking Followed-up with activity worksheets to clients Recorded data . Client Management . -Opened a production file for each inquiry . Provided content to social media . Working with Miles Media to update the look and content of the film commission’s website and location library . Developing network opportunity to reach the U.K.’s on -screen production industry. Working with FOCUS magazine to create a 2-day summit involving the APA (Advertising Producers Association) Possible Dec. 2015 launch
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. Redrafted resolution and executive summary to support setting the County’s legislative priorities to include FL’s Entertainment Tax Incentive. Resolution passed.
. Prepping for SXSW-Film Florida will be having a booth on the show floor along with a trade show block party. In addition, Film FL will be partnering to promote Netflix’s first series shot in the FL Keys.
. Co-organizing SW FL’s first regional Tourism Rally in conjunction with Lee and Charlotte counties. The event will be held on May 6 in Ft. Myers at Lakes Regional Park. The free event will be in support of U.S. Travel Appreciation Day-a way to give back to the community at large and those who work in the hospitality industry and their families.
MEETINGS
. Film Florida Legislative Committee SB 1046 introduced by Sen. Detert (Sarasota) in regards to Entertainment Industry has been referred to 3 committees but has not been heard. It contains a lot of language change s including what would qualify as “high impact television.” In addition , HB 451 by Rep. Miller (Orlando) revises a lot of what has existed in the program’s past and now incorporates language regarding capital investment for qualifica tion. It too , has yet to be heard . . Film Florida Marketing Committee This committ ee by weekly conference calls is supporting the Rally in Tally with a Toolkit of Information for members and attendees. It has revised the FilmFlorida.org website to include th e latest on Industry legislative action. PROGRAMMING NOTE
. Local chef and caterer Brian Roland of Crave Culinaire appears on CNBC’s, Restaurant Startup on 3/17/15, 10 PM . Private screening, “Hybrids” (First SWFL film to receive tax incentives) @Paragon. First screening since premiere at Writer’s Guild Theatre in Los Angeles. March 23, 2015 Tourism Staff Reports 10 a-g 9 of 36
2015 SOUTHWEST FLORIDA TRAVEL RALLY
In celebration of National Travel & Tourism week in May,
The Collier County CVB in partnership with Lee and Charlotte Counties
are planning a regional celebration!
This is a family event and will include food, games for kids, and competitive races with teams from hotels, attractions and tourism boards. WEDNESDAY, MAY 6, 2015 4 - 7 p.m. Lakes Regional Park, Ft. Myers
Free Admission!
FORM A TOURISM RACE TEAM!
Competitions Include:
Kid’s Luggage Lug
Bellman’s Race
Make That Bed
Waiter’s Race for the Gold
And More!
Hotels, Attractions, Restaurants, Hospitality partners
Register your teams – there is no fee to participate.
Email: Simone Behr at [email protected] March 23, 2015 Tourism Staff Reports 10 a-g 10 of 36
EXHIBIT AT THE OUTDOOR TRADE SHOW!
An exhibitor’s tent will be available for tourism businesses to set up a display and showcase what your business is all about. We encourage games, contests and anything interactive that demonstrates how you make your visitors feel welcome.
Register to exhibit – there is no fee to participate
Email: Candice Cocco at [email protected]
PARTICIPATING SPO NSORS
ABC-7, JetBlue Airways, The News-Press Media Group,
Lakes Regional Park, Southwest Florida Attractions Association
March 23, 2015 Tourism Staff Reports 10 a-g 11 of 36
SPORTS COUNCIL – Rob Wells
Development
Met with Jeff Butzke and received update on Soccer project Met with Cliff Marshall of Ignition APG at North Collier Regional Park o Cliff had 8 NFL prospects in Naples training for the NFL combine in April Met with Miles regarding updates to Sports section of website Attended Golf to Paradise First Tee Champions Challenge Welcome Reception Met with Colin Burrows of Gulf Coast Clays regarding April event and other future events Met with Sports Council leadership to discuss the future of the organization Met with John Burton of Take a Soldier Fishing event Met with Steve Quinn regarding the future of the FBU National Championship Held conference call with Formula 2 boat race promoters regarding possible 2016 event in Collier County Held conference call with Jeff Ryan of the USTA to discuss potential Fed and Davis Cup Tennis events in Collier County Met with Greg Finn at Cambier Park to discuss use of the softball field for National Championship events Attended NASC webinar regarding NFHS meetings and events Met with promoters of Naples Holiday Shootout Met with FGCU athletics academic advising department regarding future internship opportunities Filmed Pro Watercross World Championship welcome video Conducted call with Bill Merylees of the Can-Am Police Fire Games regarding the 2022 games Evaluated resumes for Sports Marketing Manager position
Hosted Events - February
Event Date Attendees Room Nights Est Direct Spending
Atlantic South 2/6/2015 625 750 $270,000.00 Regional Pickleball Tournament
FYSA Region Cup 2/7/2015 585 200 $146,250.00 March 23, 2015 Tourism Staff Reports 10 a-g 12 of 36
Golf to Paradise 2/9/2015 30 75 $18,750.00 First Tee Champions Challenge
Ace Group Classic 2/11/2015 2250 2500 $1,593,750.00
Ignition APG NFL 10 49 $15,000.00 Combine Training
TOTALS 3,500 3,525 $2,026,750.00
Month by Month Comparison
February 2014 9,474 4,186 $3,917,700.00
February 2015 3,500 3,525 $2,026,750.00
Month Over Month -6,974 -661 - $1,890,950.00
Year Over Year -7,184 -1,606 - $1,755,350.00
March 23, 2015 Tourism Staff Reports 10 a-g 13 of 36
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OMMAC- UK REPRESENTATIVES- Oonagh McCullagh
HIGHLIGHT OF THE MONTH:
Gulf Coast Clay shooting event at Bisley Shooting Ground, 03 February 2015 The UK office secured headline sponsorship for Florida’s Paradise Coast in support of our industry partner Gulf Coast Clays at a prestigious shooting event in February.
Prior to the event we invited over 60 media from key national consumer & travel publications, travel trade, sporting magazines, as well as our industry partners from Visit Florida and Brand USA. Unfortunately due to timing and location many media were able to attend as we anticipated. The invitation, however, served to draw attention to this little-known, alternative sporting activity in Florida.
The event was a success with our industry partners and attendees included Visit Florida and Brand USA’s UK and Ireland PR team. Partners were excited about the prospect of working with Gulf Coast Clays & will ensure the message is passed on as them interact first hand with UK & Ireland Media in the future.
We also had the opportunity to meet with the presenter of ClayShooting.tv, Phil Coley - he conducted brief interviews with all participants following their experience of clay shooting and feedback about the sport. The total number of viewers of the programme covering the event at Bisley currently stands at 5,082. Clip to follow
ClayShooting.tv is weekly broadcast channel, covering the World of Clay Shooting, bringing National and International content from around the world. ClayShooting.tv currently has a social media following of 3,643 likes on Facebook and 2,740 followers on Twitter.
Following the event we distributed a press release to over 100 media including: UK and Irish travel trade publications; sporting magazines and our industry partners. The release highlighted clay shooting as an alternative activity that UK, Irish & French visitors can participate with when visiting Paradise Coast. See attached release & distribution list
MARKET UPDATE:
British Airways retains title of UK's top 'superbrand'. British Airways has retained its title as the UK's leading 'Superbrand', beating more than 1,500 companies to stay at the top of the annual consumer rankings. Virgin Atlantic joined Dyson (a household vacuum company) as a new entry in the top 20 most popular big brands, a list based on an annual survey of 2,500 British consumers carried out by the Centre for Brand Analysis.
ABTA hails success of 'travel with confidence' campaign. A multi-channel advertising campaign around ABTA’s new consumer strapline ‘Travel with confidence’ has been hailed as a success by the association, despite a “relatively modest” spend. The turn of year promotional activity aimed to highlight the benefits of booking with an ABTA member and explaining the association’s offer of support, protection and expertise. Nine out of ten people who saw the advertising in the Mail on Sunday stated that they intended to take action as a result. Web March 23, 2015 Tourism Staff Reports 10 a-g 15 of 36
traffic to abta.com increased with the ‘Find a Member’ page seeing an increase in traffic of 56% compared to the same period last year. They reached a total of 3.2 million readers.
More Brits visiting US as airlines invest in 'prestigious' transatlantic route. Renewed interest from the airlines has been credited with helping to drive an increase in the number of Brits travelling to the US. Brand USA travel trade director Gerry Boyle said the destination had seen a 2.4% increase in UK visitor numbers for the first 10 months of 2014, with a total of 3.35 million travellers. Adding that the increase had been assisted by airlines increasingly seeing the transatlantic route not only as profitable but also as prestigious.
Tui - Operating profit will rise as much as 15% this year.
The world’s largest holiday business after the £5.6 billion merger of the two German & UK businesses of the same name say their operating profit will rise as much as 15% this year. This is mainly due to holidaymakers paying slightly higher prices for summer & winter breaks. Tui reports they are on track to hit 1 billion Euro earnings in the financial year; the merged business is planning to ‘streamline’ it’s airline business, which includes six different brands, and wants more cooperation between its cruise units Thomson Cruises & TUI Cruise Cruises. Tui’s joint chief executives are confident of delivering full-year underlying operating profit growth of 10% to 15%.
UPCOMING EVENTS
DATE SPECIAL EVENT LOCATION
16 March Meetings for & with Marco Island Marriott, Sales Mgr London
23 -27 March Visit Florida Media Mission UK, Dublin
15 April British Airways training day London Heathrow
28 April British Airways Holidays Training - TBC Newcastle
MARKETING/SALES/PROJECTS & ACTIVITIES:
Market update for Visit USA Committee Ireland Stats:
6.7% increase up to October 2014. Overall a very positive growth to date following 10.6% increase for 2013.
March 23, 2015 Tourism Staff Reports 10 a-g 16 of 36
Tour op/ airline updates: Virgin Atlantic – Virgin is one of the first airlines to reduce fuel surcharges to €15. Two new 787 have been launched one on the Boston route and one on Dulles rate. The aim is to introduce one new 787 per month for the next 18 months. Capacity has increased by 16% to the US overall; SFO 35% LAS 9% Boston 6% American Holidays - Best year since 2008 – All destinations are selling particularly well Aer Lingus – 40% capacity increase on transatlantic routes in the past two years Platinum / Fly Drive USA – very strong January so far. Fly Drives are particularly strong and concerns about the exchange rate have been unfounded. City breaks not as strong as fly drives, however lead in times for both last minute and future bookings are both improving United Airlines – great 2014 having reported a two billion profit
Travel industry events: Travel Media Event – Visit USA is partnering with Brand USA as one of the main sponsors for the Travel Media Event in Shelbourne hotel on 9th July 2015. There are opportunities for both trade and media to attend.
Adrians, hospitality’s “Oscars” Collier County received 13 Adrians, which is a huge accolade for the destination. This was shared on Paradise Coast UK social media pages.
TOUR OPERATOR ACTIVITY
Virgin Holidays OMMAC is coordination the participation with the Virgin Holidays co-op Florida campaign for 2015 and assisting with supplying creative to ensure Florida’s Paradise Coast is highlighted in the best possible way.
BA Holidays Fam trip – 26th Feb 15 Assisted BA Holidays’ planned fam trip to Naples for their new dedicated Florida team. The agents were hoping to visit Naples on 26th Feb via a coastal route, stopping in Naples for 1 night. The UK office had informed BA Holidays occupancy is high at this time – BA Hols requested accommodation at Naples Grande, their top seller for 2015, but due to high occupancy they were unable to secure any rooms.
However, the agents visited Naples for lunch, and a site visit to Naples Grande was included. OMMAC provided support where possible and requested a welcome bag for the agents, which they received on arrival.
Stella Travel Services OMMAC is working with Stella Travel Services to supply copy for Florida’s Paradise Coast top 5 things do, as well as images for their 2016 Florida brochure.
March 23, 2015 Tourism Staff Reports 10 a-g 17 of 36
Jetsave OMMAC is assisting with supplying artwork for the new Jetsave brochure, launching 7th April. Paradise Coast will be featured with a full single page destination intro, as well as 2 pages of hotels – with 5 hotels being featured in total across the destination.
Visit USA’s member’s listing OMMAC is currently updating listings for Florida’s Paradise Coast on Visit USA’s UK, Ireland and France member’s page to ensure all details are up to date, which we aim to check twice a year.
Elegant Resorts OMMAC worked with Elegant Resorts, to create an email on family friendly Florida which was distributed at the end of February. OMMAC assisted with points/items for our top 5 reasons why Florida’s Paradise Coast is so good for families.
TRADE EVENTS
Visit Florida Media Mission, 23rd – 27th March 2015, London, UK and Dublin, Ireland. In preparation for Florida’s Paradise Coast’s participation in Visit Florida’s UK & Ireland Media Mission, OMMAC is assisting with providing pitch points ahead of the Media Mission and supplying creative. This will reflect the “Natural Florida” theme, as well as highlighting key selling points for the destination, as a guide. OMMAC has also ensured the correct listing for Florida’s Paradise Coast for media mission invite.
PUBLIC RELATIONS AND SOCIAL MEDIA ACTIVITIES:
CONTACT ACTIVITY RESULT
Social Media: Weekly channel updates OMMAC continues to share posts across Facebook and Twitter Facebook and Twitter in order to increase traffic to Paradise Coast UK Facebook and Twitter pages. February focused on the clay shooting event and Adrian awards. March 23, 2015 Tourism Staff Reports 10 a-g 18 of 36
Jane Knight, The Times OMMAC reviewed an We suggested an overnight stay in opportunity via Visit Naples. The Times was founded in Florida PR to support Jane 1788 and is owned by Knight on a press trip, However, due to time constraints, Jane is News UK, the main UK who is flying out to Florida unable to extend her trip but she will be subsidiary of the News in May for the opening of using OMMAC’s suggestion to travel from Corporation and Fox the LEGOLAND hotel with Key Largo by boat to the Everglades and Entertainment Group which her son. have requested for Visit Florida to contact also owns The Sunday the Keys to advise accordingly. Times, The Sun and The They were interested in a Sun on Sunday. trip to the Everglades from We have offered to accommodate Jane Key Largo on May 24th for a longer time in the future. We will Circ: 396,621 May 2015. follow up accordingly
Readership: 1,110,539
Facebook and Twitter updates
March 23, 2015 Tourism Staff Reports 10 a-g 19 of 36
March 23, 2015 Tourism Staff Reports 10 a-g 20 of 36
Pictures from the Clay Shooting event
From left to right, Visit Florida’s Director Europe, Colin Brodie, Oonagh McCullagh, Florida’s Paradise Coast, Director UK, Ireland and France and Colin Burrows, UK owner of Gulf Coast Clays at Bisley Shooting Ground
From left to right, Sarah Barnett, Siobhan Burke, Jennifer Guiver and Jean Paul Zapata, of Brand USA’s UK & Ireland PR team at the Gulf Coast Clays shooting event at Bisley Shooting Ground
March 23, 2015 Tourism Staff Reports 10 a-g 21 of 36
Pictured above travel Industry group, including representatives from Brand USA’s UK & Ireland PR team, Visit Florida, Florida’s Paradise Coast, plus UK owner of Gulf Coast Clays and instructors at Bisley Shooting Ground.
March 23, 2015 Tourism Staff Reports 10 a-g 22 of 36
DIAMONDE- EUROPEAN REPRESENTATIVES – Stefanie Paul, Natasa Manic TOUR OPERATOR ACCOUNTS
Key Accounts Tour Operator Achievement Cost
TUI Switzerland, Secured training session for the reservation team in their head office in Karin Bachmann Zurich for March 25, 2015.
FTI, Laura Hütter Received first results on the Florida Highlight of the Year campaign. So far the roomnights show an increase of over 33%, pax numbers have increased by 25%, revenue and amount of booking numbers is up by almost 30%. This is a great accomplishment as we are almost on the same level as last year end of season.
Meier’s Weltreisen Secured and confirmed marketing 4,500 € (MWR) campaign including participation at 2 (negotiated) TA events, 2 B2C newsletters and a full Daniela Schaeffer page advertorial in the MWR customer magaine Meier’s Welt. The campaign will run from April till November 2015.
America Unlimited Secured and confirmed online 7,000 USD (AU), marketing campaign including a 3 weeks facebook campaign on AU Sarah Harwardt facebook fan page, a promotion banner on AU website as well as a dedicated microsite being promoted for one moth. Campaign will start on March 16th. The third week of the facebook campaign was negotiated FOC. March 23, 2015 Tourism Staff Reports 10 a-g 23 of 36
Hotelplan, Skytours, Scheduled meeting in the Hotelplan headoffice in Frankfurt for March 18, Anja Meier 2015.
Dertour, Setareh Published the Supplement in the Geo Zahir-Fard Magazine, which has a circulation of 110,000. The supplement is an 8 page folder, featuring 6 different Florida CVBs; a full page each. Please find it attached.
FTI, Christina Published 1 B2B and 1 B2C Newsletter Brückner teaser as part of the Highlight of the Year Campaign. Please find the teaser attached.
Benelux Accounts Tour Operator Achievement Cost
USA Travel Secured a visit in the Everglades of staff Consultants member Sabine Keppenne on March 19th.
Secondary Accounts Tour Operator Achievement Cost
Fairflight Sent out newsletter introducing the new dedicated Florida brochure to their database of 9,200 clients.
Schauinsland Reisen Resulting from the Visit Florida fam the Naples Bay Resort will be the first hotel in Naples to be inlcuded into their Florida program
TRAVEL AGENTS
Sales calls: Total of 72 personal visits to travel agents in the greater Passau and Stuttgart area, Baden-Baden and the Rhein-Ruhr area. Booking Assistance: Assisted 1 agency request on tours and accommodations Support: Supported 3 agencies with give-aways and brochures.
March 23, 2015 Tourism Staff Reports 10 a-g 24 of 36
EVENTS
Consumer Show Reisen o Dates: February 4-8, 2015 o City: Hamburg o USA Booth Members: Meier’s Weltreisen, Universal Orlando, US Bike Travel, Colorado & Arizona, Faszination Fernweh, New England, Fairflight, Wichmann Toursim Services, Virgin Atlantic, Kansas&Oklahoma o Profile /Number of attendees: 70,000 consumers (2014: 78,000) o Feedback: This year,we experienced a slight decrease in visitors during the show. For the first time, the USA booth has been allocated to another hall, away from major long-haul destinations. We felt that this had a definite impact on the amount of people that have come by our booth. On the positive side, we have experienced a strong interest in Florida and the gulf coast especially. Many of the visitors have made definite travel plans for Florida for this year and needed guidence on how to allocate their time in the different areas. It gave us a great platform to introduce the Paradise Coast and highlight its features. Natual to the hanseatic city, boating was of much bigger interest than in other cities. More than once we have heard that the visitors want to experience orlando and were looking for a beach town to stay afterwards with their families. As Naples offers beautiful beaches and the proximity to the Everglades they have highly appreciated more detailed information on the area. Visit USA Switzerland Seminar o Dates: February 4, 2015 o Cities: Zurich, Switzerland (location: Mövenpick Hotel Regensdorf) o Profile /Number of attendees: About 372 travel agents from all over Switzerland, including the French and Italian speaking part of Switzerland. o Feedback: The event format was a travel mart during the day at which we had our own NAP booth. The agents were prepared with a questionnaire which made them visiting every booth to find the answers on the questions about each participating industry partner. Compared to the previous years, the number of participants was very low (416 participating travel agents in 2014!). One reason is that Visit USA received many last minute cancellation due to a flue virus going around. Another reason March 23, 2015 Tourism Staff Reports 10 a-g 25 of 36
might also be the current situation in Switzerlands travel sector which is very unstable at the moment. Beginning of year, Kuoni announced to exit the TO business until end of this year, the Swiss Franc faces a strong fluctuation at the moment and additionally has to “compete” with a very weak Euro. This means, the Swiss TOs and Tas are faceing the challenge (especially along the border to Germany and Austria) that clients book with a German TO/TA. However, looking at the networking aspect, this event gave us again an excellent opportunity to maintain our relationship with the Swiss tour operators, agents and travel industry partners and would strongly recommend to participate in this event next year again. It still is the main event with USA focus in the Swiss travel industry sector and we are confident that the number of attendees will be back on track next year again.
Please find an article from the Swiss travel trade magazine Travel Inside attached.
Consumer Show free o Dates: February 18-22, 2015 o City: Munich o Profile /Number of attendees: 118,000 (2014: 112,000) o Feedback: We have participated the show with brochure distribution at the Visit USA booth. In terms of visitor numbers, we have received excellent feedback from the show, increasing their numbers to records for the second year in a row. Compared to 2013, the show could attract 8,000 people more which is a fantastic outcome! The interest in the USA was great and they have received many requests for Florida in particular. As we have been alternating between the Munich and Hamburg show, we definitely recommend personal attendance next year. Registrations / Preparations o Ongoing preparation for FTI Highlight of the Year fam (Apr 15) o Preparations TUI North America Training Day (Mar 15) o Registration for Visit USA Bowling Workshops (May 15) o Final preparation for ITB (Mar 15) . Finalizing the Appointment Schedule . Preparing the Meeting Notes and gathering background information March 23, 2015 Tourism Staff Reports 10 a-g 26 of 36
. Collecting the roomnights from tour operators and preparing the roomnights report . Preparing a Market Update for the DACH and Benelux markets, including information on the economy and tourism industry of each country MARKETING
Type of Activity Details Cost
Naples Newsletter Sent out dedicated Naples newsletter B2B featuring the most popular animals in Florida (Dolphin, Aligator and Manatee) and the associated tours to 3308 agencies in DACH on February 10, 2015
Naples Newsletter Sent out dedicated Naples newsletter B2C featuring the most popular animals in Florida (Dolphin, Aligator and Manatee) and the associated tours to 579 consumers in DACH on February 11, 2015
Facebook # posts: 5 #fans: 7,258
MEDIA / PR
Golfhome.ch: Resulting from our published press release in January, we have been featured on this Swiss golf portal. The portal covers all aspects of golfing, from travelling to fashion and thus was very interested in the Paradise Coast. Please find the clipping attached. Visit USA: Secured the publication of our press release on the Visit USA Germany website, within the media section. CONSUMER
Brochure fulfillment: 12 in total PROJECTS
Collected feedback from the Visit Florida fam participants. The groups consisted of a mixture of people that have been in Naples before (but all of them just briefly) and people that have not been there before. We March 23, 2015 Tourism Staff Reports 10 a-g 27 of 36
have received outstanding feedback on the itinerary and the visited hotels. The all stated to have gotten a great impression of the destination, a feel for the size and attractions as well. All of them have been positively surprised by the variety of tours and places to visit. While it will help all of them to better sell the destination in future, some have even stated plans for extending the program. Details tbd.
OTHER
Attendance Visit USA Member Meeting on February 10, 2015. The meeting minutes will follow with next month’s report. Attendance at Visit Florida Member Meeting on February 10, 2015. Please find the meeting minutes attached.
HIGHLIGHTS IN MARCH
Attendance ITB, March 4-8, 2015 Attendance Visit Florida Event (incl media portion), March 5, 2015 Attendance Brand USA Media Breakfast, March 6, 2015 America Unlimited Online Marketing Campaign, March 16, 2015 TUI North America Training Day, March 2, 2015 Training Swiss Tour Operators, March 25-26, 2015 DiaMonde Dinner Event in Zuerich, March 18, 2015 TA Sales Calls in Zuerich, March 16-19, 2015 TA Sales Calls in Frankfurt, March 23-26, 2015
MARKET NEWS
Economic Overview Germany
The Economic Situation in Germany in February 2014
Germany has overcome its period of cyclical weakness. After the economy more or less stagnated last summer, the indicators currently suggest that it is now picking up speed again. In the fourth quarter, industrial output expanded comparatively strongly, and both the surprisingly positive development in new orders and the much improved business sentiment are indicative of a further acceleration. March 23, 2015 Tourism Staff Reports 10 a-g 28 of 36
The weaker euro exchange rate and the extremely low oil price are likely to have contributed towards this. Also, the labour market is continuing to develop positively. A high level of employment, rising real incomes and low interest rates are fostering a high level of consumer demand.
Overall, the German government expects this year to see a decent growth rate of 1.5%, mainly driven by domestic demand. At the same time, there are risks to the economic development, in terms of Ukraine, the political development in Greece, and also the international financial and commodities markets.
Germany's industrial sector has emerged from its period of weakness. Its output rose sharply, by 0.5%, in December - the fourth monthly rise in succession. There was also a 0.5% expansion in the fourth quarter as a whole. Growth was particularly registered in the field of intermediate and consumer goods, but the output of capital goods also expanded slightly in the fourth quarter. There was a positive development in industrial turnover, which expanded by 0.7% in the final quarter.
Consumer spending remains an important pillar of the economy. Last year, consumer spending rose by 1.1% in real terms, thus making a vigorous contribution towards overall growth. The positive development in employment is continuing to result in a tangible rise in disposable income, and thanks to a very moderate development in prices, this is translating into an appreciable gain in purchasing power. This caused retail turnover (excluding vehicles) to rise strongly, by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. In January, the mood in the retail sector improved considerably, and the consumer climate remains at a record level. In view of the favourable environment, the German government expects consumer spending to accelerate further in 2015, rising by 1.6%.
(Source: www.bmwi.de)
Dollar gains before Yellen's testimony, euro falls
The euro retreated on lingering doubts over whether Greece's four-month bailout extension struck. A somewhat disappointing private report on German business confidence spurred further selling in the single currency.
The index of the dollar against a group of six currencies .DXY was up 0.3 percent at 94.565 after touching 94.915, its highest level in more than a week.
Recent domestic data, including home resales fall to a nine-month low in January, suggested some deceleration in the U.S. economic expansion, making it tougher for the Fed normalize interest rates as early as this summer.
Among other major currencies, the Swiss franc lost nearly 1 percent against the dollar to near five-week lows as some of the safety flows waned on the conditional loan extension to Greece. March 23, 2015 Tourism Staff Reports 10 a-g 29 of 36
Also weighing on the euro was the Ifo report that showed that while German business optimism edged up to a seven-month high in February, the reading fell short of economists' forecasts.
(Source: Times FEB 24, 2015)
Tourism Market Overview Germany
News
DER Touristik: Promotions for Herzog and Rotter
German tourism group DER Touristik has promoted René Herzog and Matthias Rotter to senior management positions to take over from long-serving Michael Frese who will retire this summer.
Rotter will take over as Managing Director Tourism of DER Touristik Frankfurt on June 1 when Frese retires after 12 years as head of the group‘s individual and long-haul holidays business and 45 years in the tourism industry. In his new position, the 47-year-old will be responsible for Dertour, Meier‘s Weltreisen and ADAC Reisen. Rotter, who joined the company as a trainee in 1986, has been head of Meier‘s Weltreisen since 2003. Between 1999 and 2003 he was responsible for cruises, long-haul holidays and city trips at Thomas Cook.
In parallel, Germany’s second-largest tourism group has reorganised its Executive Board. From June, René Herzog will become Chief Operating Officer (COO) and take responsibility for all tour operator activities at the two divisions in Cologne and Frankfurt, which he currently shares with Frese. Herzog will be responsible for the package holiday brands ITS, Jahn Reisen and Travelix in Cologne together with Rolf-Dieter Maltzahn, DER Touristik Cologne tourism director, and for the Frankfurt-based brands together with Matthias Rotter.
(Source: FVW FEB 5, 2015)
DERTOUR: Excellent luxury holiday sales
Dertour is seeing continued strong growth for its luxury product line. Dertour Deluxe is profiting from demographic and economic trends with the number of wealthy German consumers rising. Bookings for Dertour’s premium offering are rising as a result. Sales for 2014/15 are 12% ahead of last year’s level. The top destinations are the UAE, the Maldives, Italy, Spain and the USA.
Dertour Deluxe has exceeded expectations since its launch in 2006. Launched as a single brochure with just 56 hotels, mostly in the Indian Ocean and Dubai, the product March 23, 2015 Tourism Staff Reports 10 a-g 30 of 36
line now covers six brochures featuring 795 hotels, 39 tours and 22 ships. Product manager Erica Arend and her team of 30 staff have personal direct contacts with the product partners.
(Source: FVW FEB 3, 2015
Thomas Cook: Better results but Germany weaker
Thomas Cook Group reduced seasonal losses in the first quarter despite lower revenues but has mixed sales trends for summer 2015, including weaker business in Germany.
In the main source markets, Continental Europe, based on the large Germany business, the seasonal loss was reduced by £2 million to £14 million against tough comparatives last year. Airlines Germany (Condor) recorded like-for-like EBIT growth of £4m for Q1, driven by a strong conclusion to the summer season in October and selected long haul capacity being added to the Winter 14/15 schedule, benefitting the months of November and December. This was partly offset by continued pressure in the short haul market.
In Continental Europe, with 29% of the programme sold, early Summer bookings are 6% lower than last year compared to a strong comparative, particularly in the German business, which has experienced a later booking profile. Average selling prices have been maintained at last year’s level, the company said. Winter bookings in Continental Europe are 4% lower than last year, reflecting the discontinuation of unprofitable routes in France and Russia and a later booking profile in Germany, and average selling prices are 3% lower than last year reflecting competitive market conditions. However, Airlines Germany (Condor) continues to perform well in competitive market conditions with Summer bookings 10% higher than last year, improved load factors and average prices maintained at last year’s level.
(Source: FVW FEB 12, 2015)
Lufthansa has increased rates to North America flights
Ticket issuing will be more expensiveas of February 10, 2015. Passagengers in Economy and Premium Economy Class as well as Business Class and First Cass have to pay 30 EUR more per ticket. This ist the second increase in price recently. The incease will be also valid for their subsidiary company Austrian Airlines, Brussels Airlines and Swiss as well as Star-Alliance-Partner Air Canada and United Airlines.
(Source: Travel One FEB 9, 2015) March 23, 2015 Tourism Staff Reports 10 a-g 31 of 36
Globus Awards: Schauinsland-Reisen is the winner
Fast-growing German tour operator Schauinsland Reisen has won the globus awards for the best travel agency service. 1100 travel agents took part in the vote last autumn.
Globus Awards: BEST Travel agency service. Ranking list of popularity in German travel angecies.
1 Schauinsland Reisen 2 DERTOUR 3 FTI 4 TUI
(Source touristik aktuell FEB 6, 2015)
Dominican Republic: 8 % more guest from Germany Dominican Republic has counted 8 per cent more guests from Germany in 2014. Petra Cruz , Director Europe, stated that the investments in infrastructure and hotels were successful. 2014 – 5,14 MIO tourist worldwide (230 000 from Germany).
Significant investments have been devoted to tourism infrastructure in the country, as well as cleaning up works at the colonial city of Santo Domingo, which are important actions to keep on increasing the number of tourists coming to the country. The figures of German tourists visiting the Dominican Republic are very positive. In the first half of 2014 the number of tourists went up 9 percent. The tourism board is looking forward to reaching a 15 percent increase of German tourists and 8 percent of Europeans in general. Once again, the tourism board hope to be the number one Caribbean destination for German tourists in 2014. The 2014/2015 winter program includes seven nonstop weekly flights from Germany, one from Switzerland and one from Austria. The Dominican Republic is also a famous golf destination which presently features over 30 golf courses created by such acclaimed designers as Pete Dye, Jack Nicklaus or Robert Trent Jones Sr.
(Source: FVW Feb 09, 2015) March 23, 2015 Tourism Staff Reports 10 a-g 32 of 36
Tourism Marketing: E-travel giants get more individual
Leading travel e-retailers are using technology to speed up and individualise their offers, according to top executives at an fvw event. TripAdvisor is rapidly embarking on a new customer journey and adapting itself to changing user habits, and the rapid advance of mobile devices, above all. TripAdvisor no longer just wants to display hotel rankings ahead of a trip but also offer additional services at the destination, such as restaurant visits or excursions.
Facebook is also a good source of information for online tourism marketing, especially because companies can form clusters of users to target.
(Source: FVW FEB 12, 2015)
Tourism Analysis 2015: Active senior citizens drive German market
The number of Germans going on holiday stagnated last year but the rising number of senior citizens travelling abroad was a key growth factor, according to an in-depth consumer survey.
The number of people over 65 who went on at least one five-day holiday increased to nearly 50% last year compared to 44% ten years ago, the annual Tourism Analysis by the Hamburg-based Institute for Future Issues found. This trend is likely to intensify in the coming years due to demographic factors. Overall, about 57% of Germans took a one- week holiday (or more) last year. This year, 44% of Germans are definitely planning a foreign holiday while 37% are still undecided, according to the representative survey of 4,400 consumers.
(Source: FVW FEB 11, 2015)
German market trends: Sales pick up in January
Prospects for the German outbound market are now looking better for this year after travel agency bookings picked up by 3.5% last month following weak sales at the start of January.
The mood among German tour operators and travel agents has definitely improved following the latest monthly survey results from market researchers GfK and IT services firm TATS. Some managers had been worried by very slow sales in the first fortnight of January, which is traditionally a strong booking period. But better sales in the second half of the month have improved the picture.
Overall travel agency sales grew by 3.5% last month, including a 4.1% rise in bookings for the summer, according to GfK’s monthly survey of some 1,200 holiday-focused travel March 23, 2015 Tourism Staff Reports 10 a-g 33 of 36
agencies. These are solid growth figures given that January 2014 was a strong sales month. This follows a 3.7% rise in December sales, including a strong 5.8% rise in bookings for May to October 2015.
The cumulated growth rate for summer 2015, covering bookings since last autumn, now lies at 5.4%, according to GfK. In terms of summer booking trends, there was strong demand last month for departures in June, which helped to reduce the cumulative fall to 7.7% from 11% at the end of December. May is now 21.1% ahead of last year, mostly due to the Whitsun holiday being in May rather than June this year. There was also good demand for August holidays.
Bookings for the winter 2014/15 season, which runs until the end of April, are 3.1% ahead of last year. January closed with a strong 12% rise. However, winter bookings only made up 25% of travel agency sales last month, with 75% for the summer season. These sales trends were also reflected in the results of the monthly TATS survey of 2,400 agencies, which are more focused on airline and business travel sales. Their overall sales increased by only 1% on an overall basis last month but booked revenues for leisure travel sales increased by 5.1%.
(Source: FVW FEB 18, 2015)
March 23, 2015 Tourism Staff Reports 10 a-g 34 of 36
VISITOR CENTER REPORTS- Lori Lou Waddell
February 16, 2015 through March 20, 2015
Order 4,000 Visitor Maps for Jennings I-75 Visitor Information Center. Attend BID Marketing Meeting February 18, 2015. FAM Trip to Artis-Naples FAM Trip with Everglades Day Safari to Lake Trafford February 25, 2015. (Outstanding showcase of the area!) Attend Business After 5 at Naples Botanical Gardens Visit Immokalee Visitor Information Center-Deliver Paradise Coast Guides and Maps Attend TDC Meeting February 23, 2015 Gather 250 copies of Downtown Naples for General Electric convention. Order 3 cases Paradise Coast Visitor Guides and 3 cases Paradise Coast
Visitor Maps for Tropical Everglades Visitor Association in Florida City, FL Feb 26, 2015. Order 3 Cases Paradise Coast Official Golf Guide & 3 cases Visitor Maps for Marco Island Visitor Information Center. Attend 26th Annual Old Florida Festival March 8, 2015. Information gathering from Sports Council with Mary Shea March 11, 2015. Order 4,000 Paradise Coast Visitor Maps for Jennings, FL Visitor Information Center.=2nd Request. Attend Wake Up Naples, March 11, 2015 Historic Indian Canal Maps available at Visitor Information Center from Backyard History Museum/Society. RSVP for FAM on Marco Island Princess Attend Tourism Rally informational meeting March 13, 2015 Email PR & Communication Ofc map of Historic Indian Canal from Naples Backyard History for CVB social media update/release. Order 8 cases Paradise Coast Visitor Guide for Miccosukee Information Center, Mile Marker 70, Miami. Coordinate referral cards with Miromar Outlets Pick up additional 5th Avenue South marketing brochures for VIC distribution Attend Business After 5 at Bellasera Hotel, March 19, 2015 Manage daily operation of Naples VIC and staffing. Update Calendar of Events, brochures, VIC Vol Schedules and Distribute
Big Cypress Oasis Everglades Immokalee Marco Naples YR Total March 23, 2015 Tourism Staff Reports 10 a-g 35 of 36
Jan-11 5034 12055 2220 125 1007 2736 23177 Jan-12 6401 13,601 11,000 198 1033 5285 37,518 Jan-13 5736 13,941 9225 N/A 1163 4777 34,842 Jan-14 7,014 13,499 11,185 91 1663 4,018 37,470 Jan-15 7,049 12,996 15,840 92 1126 4,073 41,176
Feb-11 6986 15,564 2881 194 1546 4363 31534 Feb-12 7943 17,595 12,840 227 1465 5099 45,169 Feb-13 7950 13,542 8424 1105 1404 4488 36,913 Feb-14 7990 13,906 13,012 198 1950 5046 42,102 Feb-15 7,909 14,872 12,483 134 1346 4394 41,138
Mar-11 5984 15,101 3100 195 1376 2872 28,628 Mar-12 7226 16638 18,300 361 1011 3774 47,310 Mar-13 8693 13632 12,991 402 1559 3774 41,051 Mar-14 8,307 15,559 17,180 517 1,952 4377 47,892 Mar-15
Apr-11 3297 8810 2575 189 520 2018 17409 Apr-12 4308 9603 10,810 367 482 3112 28,682 Apr-13 5250 8389 8675 1200 750 2473 26,737 Apr-14 5,146 9,596 11,021 81 1,033 2409 29,286 Apr-15
May-11 1778 5492 1600 186 448 1656 11160 May-12 2360 5660 5435 315 529 1595 15894 May-13 3009 5730 5275 350 473 1436 16,273 May-14 2,709 5,657 5,813 88 668 1,587 16,522 May-15
Jun-11 1881 4796 2235 155 445 1286 10798 Jun-12 1972 4185 4250 210 303 1299 12,219 Jun-13 2254 4153 4166 189 354 1376 12,492 Jun-14 2405 4525 4,588 41 475 1123 13,157 Jun-15
Jul-11 2182 6024 5189 185 573 1629 15782 Jul-12 2417 5609 5893 250 340 2015 16,524 Jul-13 2431 4253 6835 62 413 1703 15,697 Jul-14 2,960 5,367 3,552 40 497 1,762 14,178 Jul-15 March 23, 2015 Tourism Staff Reports 10 a-g 36 of 36
Aug-11 1895 3999 4577 207 463 1867 13008 Aug-12 1658 3991 6549 345 390 1128 14,061 Aug-13 1757 3800 5169 119 385 1316 12,546 Aug-14 3,049 5,576 5,866 74 314 1,137 16,016 Aug-15
Sep-11 1268 3881 3196 220 279 1104 9948 Sep-12 1191 3029 3893 200 268 1279 9860 Sep-13 2534 1198 3441 392 1206 8771 Sep-14 1746 3074 2402 327 1322 8871 Sep-15
Oct-11 1704 5459 5035 237 481 2481 15397 Oct-12 1804 4296 5683 150 306 2095 14334 Oct-13 917 2315 5206 476 501 1610 11025 Oct-14 2942 5791 2636 118 439 1809 13735 Oct-15
Nov-11 2743 7734 6200 357 647 2517 20198 Nov-12 3024 7669 6816 170 530 2263 20472 Nov-13 10,510 7,407 7,022 598 513 2105 28,155 Nov-14 4,026 8,298 3,739 373 484 2168 19,088 Nov-15
Dec-11 5739 13,851 7962 327 682 2399 30960 Dec-12 3925 11,193 7984 180 540 2547 26369 Dec-13 5363 10,079 7391 461 543 2730 26567 Dec-14 6364 9,360 8,341 350 486 2,663 27564 Dec-15
FY 2011 40,491 102,766 46,770 2,577 8,467 26,928 227,999 FY 2012 44,229 103,069 99,453 2,973 7,197 31,491 288,412 FY 2013 56,404 88,439 83,820 4,962 7,937 28,994 270,556 FY 2014 54,658 100,208 76,336 1,971 9,256 28,421 270,850 FY 2015