‘Full Speed Ahead’ – Greater Fort Lauderdale Shifts Into High Gear Ahead of 2010
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla., Oct. 7 /PRNewswire/ — South Florida’s all important winter season is coming up and Greater Fort Lauderdale is shifting into high gear. Aggressive new marketing initiatives and upcoming events such as Super Bowl and Pro Bowl, new air service, the expansion of the destination’s Port Everglades to receive and home port the largest cruise ship in the world and new hospitality industry developments are destined to bolster year-end results and build a strong foundation for 2010.
The Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention & Visitors Bureau (GFLCVB) is spending more on marketing this fall than ever before, with plans to spend $1 million before the end of the year on accelerated initiatives to boost the 4th quarter and lay the groundwork for a prosperous high season. For the first time in the November-December timeframe, the GFLCVB will run television commercials in the New York market on such outlets as Bravo, CNN, MSNBC, Lifetime, WABC, WNBC and WCBS. The advertising features a strong call to action with messages that focus on “Luxury at a price that feels very comfortable,” and “Big luxury. Teeny Price.”
“The challenges of this economic transition have spurred us on to more ambitious goals and harder work, and we’re already beginning to see results,” said Nicki E. Grossman, president of the Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention & Visitors Bureau. “In the months to come there will be marketing campaigns and new developments that are guaranteed to create tremendous buzz among visitors and, equally important, bottom-line benefits for our businesses and residents.”
Following below is a synopsis of marketing and new developments in Greater Fort Lauderdale that demonstrate the tourism industry’s aggressive strategy in generating high-profile awareness and sales:
New Service to Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood International Airport
Virgin America will join the growing list of scheduled carriers serving Greater Fort Lauderdale on November 18, with twice daily nonstop flights from Los Angeles and San Francisco. One day earlier, on November 17, JetBlue will expand its FLL service with nonstop flights from San Francisco. Also in November, AirTran will add flights from Akron, Flint and Harrisburg.
Additionally, on the heels of a forecasted 15-percent plus increase in enplaned passengers by May 2010, airport officials have announced an FAA-approved major runway extension to be completed by 2014, plus expansion of Terminal Four.
Port Everglades Prepares World’s Largest Terminal for World’s Largest Ships
This November, the world’s largest cruise ship, Royal Caribbean International’s Oasis of the Seas, will welcome 5,400 passengers for the first time from Port Everglades. The two-floor, 240,000 square foot Terminal 18, specially constructed for the vessel and opening November 6, will be the largest single ship terminal in the world and will allow passengers to transition from curbside to ship in as little as 15 minutes. Independent analysis indicates that by the fifth year of RCI’s 10-year agreement with the port, over 8,000 new jobs will be created, generating $356.5 million in personal income and $32.8 million in state and local taxes. With the home porting of Oasis of the Seas, followed by Royal Caribbean’s equally grand Allure of the Seas slated to set sail in 2010, along with nearly a dozen other new ships, Port Everglades is destined to compete for a top spot among North American cruise ports.
Super Bowl and Pro Bowl to Generate Millions for Local Economy
With the Super Bowl being held in South Florida for the 10th time and the Pro Bowl being played outside Hawaii for the first time in 30 years, it will be NFL football festivities virtually 24/7 from January 31 to February 7, 2010. Greater Fort Lauderdale officials estimate that Super Bowl and Pro Bowl events could generate upwards of $350 million, of which Broward County would receive roughly 50 percent.
Among the activities in Greater Fort Lauderdale, the Broward County Convention Center will host the NFL Commissioners Party, the Taste of the NFL and the media center for more than 4,000 North American and international media outlets. The NFL Super Bowl Saturday Night is scheduled to take place on Fort Lauderdale Beach, the Westin Diplomat Resort & Spa will host the NFL Alumni Player of the Year Awards and the NFL Alumni Golf Tournament will be at Grande Oaks in Hollywood. The Westin Beach Resort, Fort Lauderdale will be the official NFL headquarters, with assistance from the nearby Sheraton Fort Lauderdale Beach Hotel, The Ritz-Carlton, the Hilton Fort Lauderdale Beach Resort and the Atlantic Hotel & Spa. The Super Bowl AFC team and all players for the Pro Bowl will stay at the Harbor Beach Marriott.
Advertising Initiatives for Q4 Generate Awareness in Broadcast, Print and Online
In addition to the fall season TV campaign, upcoming advertising initiatives include November email blast campaigns with TravelZoo, the New York Times‘ Great Getaways, Visit Florida and BostonGlobe.com, along with website programs with Travelocity, American Express and Orbitz. The GFLCVB is also planning an online banner campaign with LOGO Online to target the GLBT market, and is advertising with ebookers.com and lastminute.com in the UK and Scandinavian markets. Additional online advertising will take place with PlanetOut.com, USAToday, The Weather Channel and AOL Travel, and the GFLCVB is working with TripAdvisor.com to promote its Superior Small Lodgings product.
Print advertising will appear in publications such as the New York Times T Magazine, Condé Nast Traveler and Travel + Leisure among others, along with in-state newspapers in conjunction with Visit Florida’s co-op advertising. The GFLCVB will also offer a co-op program promoting “SUNsational Savings” offers to the meetings and conventions market, including email blasts, telemarketing and print advertising in Successful Meetings magazine.
Marketing and Public Relations Initiatives Build Buzz and Generate Excitement
This October, the GFLCVB launched the “We Love Cruisers” travel agent incentive campaign, designed to reward agents for booking two-night pre- and post-cruise stays in Greater Fort Lauderdale. In October and November, the Lauderdale Spa Chic and Dine Out Lauderdale destination programs will create excitement for the destination’s ever-growing collection of upscale restaurants and spas. Additional initiatives are designed to take advantage of the popularity of Facebook, Twitter and other social networks, and the GFLCVB is working with Apple to release a new iPhone application, iVisitLauderdale, to help visitors put Greater Fort Lauderdale in the palm of their hand. In November, a new major exhibition at the Museum of Art | Fort Lauderdale “American Chronicles: Norman Rockwell”, is sure to generate further excitement among potential winter visitors to the destination.
New Hotel, Restaurant and Retail Developments Abound
The luxury vacation experience continues to grow in Greater Fort Lauderdale with new upscale hotels, restaurants and shopping entering the marketplace. This spring, the luxurious $205 million, 482-room W Fort Lauderdale opened as the company’s first property in Florida. The Westin Beach Resort, Fort Lauderdale, formerly the Sheraton Yankee Trader, has reopened following a two-phase, multi-million makeover, and The Ritz-Carlton Company has assumed management of the $240-million, 166-room St. Regis, Fort Lauderdale, featuring the stylish Cero gourmet restaurant. The 589-room Hilton Fort Lauderdale Marina recently completed a comprehensive $70 million transformation including the opening of Jeffrey Chodorow’s China Grill, followed by the completion of a $100 million renovation of the 501-room Hyatt Regency Bonaventure Conference Center & Spa.
The destination also continues to add a variety of dining experiences to the menu: Recent arrivals include celebrity chef Todd English’s da Campo Osteria in il Lugano Hotel, Stephen Starr’s Steak 954 at the W Fort Lauderdale, Bova Prime on East Las Olas Boulevard and Truluck’s Steak and Crab House at the upscale Galleria shopping complex.
In retail news, Sawgrass Mills, Florida’s largest outlet, value retail and entertainment destination, has announced a 22,000-square foot addition at The Colonnade Outlets, including new luxury outlet retailers Canali, Tag Heuer, Tommy Bahama’s, Tumi, True Religion Brand Jeans, and Villagio, a free-standing restaurant. Construction of Phase I of the new Village at Gulfstream Park, an unsurpassed shopping, dining and entertainment complex including dozens of upscale fashion and home accessory shops, signature restaurants, outdoor cafés and future residential spaces, is now underway and is slated to be completed in February 2010. Phase I will include 70 specialty shops, restaurants and outdoor cafes, and office space will also be available above a portion of the retail buildings.
For more information about Greater Fort Lauderdale and the developments that are making headlines, visit www.sunny.org.
SOURCE Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention & Visitors Bureau (GFLCVB)