See you next week, Wednesday, February 12 for the 2020 Growth Plan Luncheon at the Broward County Convention Center. Join us as we celebrate the evolution of Greater Fort Lauderdale and look ahead into the new age of tourism. There's still time to sign up. Click here to RSVP.

BROWARD COUNTY CONVENTION CENTER EXPANSION CELEBRATION

Elected officials and community leaders from the hospitality industry throughout Broward County gathered the afternoon of Friday, January 17 at the Greater Fort Lauderdale/Broward County Convention Center for an event celebrating the $1 billion Convention Center expansion and Headquarters Hotel project. At the celebration, we unveiled a brand new Augmented Reality (AR) Portal that transported attendees to the future convention center through their cell phones. Read more here and view photos of the celebration here. 

CELEBRATING VALENTINE'S DAY

Check out the latest articles on sunny.org surrounding the day of love.

We invite you to create special offers including spa treatments for two, wine pairings or other creative ideas for our visitors looking for romance. We'll include on these pages and social media. Submit your offers under your partner login. If you need your login, contact Rita. When creating your coupons, be sure to select the Valentine category. 

LATEST MEDIA HITS SECURED BY THE CVB

Last November the CVB hosted Journal Panrotas’ Editor-in-Chief and the CEO to the destination. The trade publication is the most-widely read trade journal in Brazil. Each issue boasts about 1.5 million online readers. Our coverage was featured on the front page of January’s issue and spanned eleven pages.

The CVB hosted Matador Network writer Eben Diskin in January. Eben stayed at The Diplomat Resort & Spa and experienced Everglades Holiday Park, Art Fort Lauderdale, the Greater Fort Lauderdale Ale Trail, nightlife and more. The piece will run in early March.

In mid-February, the CVB will host a Pride of the Americas FAM to pre-promote the event. This FAM features La Nacion (Argentina), Sentiido (Colombia), Guia Gay (Brazil) and Homosensual (Mexico).

SOCIAL MEDIA

In January, @VisitLauderdale celebrated the U.S. Travel Association’s National Plan For Vacation Day with a mix of organic and paid social media posts promoting “How We Winter” in Greater Fort Lauderdale. This included live posts from each of our eight beach destinations throughout the day on January 28.

We kicked off the “Super” month of February with special social media influencer collaborations and live posts from Super Bowl LIV and Greater Fort Lauderdale-based events celebrating the Big Game. Did you catch the coverage?

DECEMBER STATS

Greater Fort Lauderdale Average Hotel Occupancy
December 2019
% Change
78.53% 
+1.4%
Greater Fort Lauderdale Average Hotel Daily Rate
December 2019
% Change
$156.54
+1.1%

WINTERFEST BOAT PARADE

The Greatest Show on H20, the Seminole Hard Rock Winterfest Boat Parade, was more spectacular than ever! Check out below our GFLCVB boat, which won Overall in the Best of Showboat category. The boat was decked out from bow to stern with the event's Lights, Camera, Action theme. Fun fact: the confetti is environmentally-friendly and doubles as fish food when it hits the water! 

PRIDE OF THE AMERICAS

The Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention & Visitors Bureau is proud to be the presenting sponsor for Pride of the Americas, welcoming visitors from North America, the Caribbean and Latin America to the destination, April 21-26. Click here for a glimpse at what's to come.  

Pride Fort Lauderdale is working with Delmay and Partners in Hollywood to create a housing/hospitality program for the event. If your property would like to participate, contact Jeff Delmay at jeff@delmaycorp.com. To learn more about sponsorship, advertising and other marketing opportunities during Pride of the Americas, contact J.W. Arnold, Executive Director, at jw@pridefortlauderdale.com.

FEBRUARY CONFERENCES

Groups meeting in February will generate more than $15 million to Broward County. Groups include:

Feb 3-10: Pri-Med South (4000 attendees)
Feb 6-7: Broward MPO - Safe Streets Summit (600 attendees)
Feb 8-17: HelmsBricoe Jones Day Partner Meeting (1000 attendees)
Feb 9-18: ITEXPO 2020 (2000 attendees) 
Feb 10-12: Apartment Sales Conference (500 attendees)
Feb 13-17: Florida Sunshine Cup (510 attendees)
Feb 16-23: American College of Psychiatrists (500 attendees)
Feb 23-29: Nat'l Investment Company Service Assn (550 attendees)
Feb 26-Mar 2: American Heritage Assn (2000 attendees)
Feb 27-Mar 7: L'Oreal CPD Sales Meeting (500 attendees)
Feb 28-Mar 1: Groove Nat'l Dance Competition (1000 attendees)

Sports Development welcomes more than 10,000 athletes, coaches, and families to Greater Fort Lauderdale in February, attending events such as: International Water Polo Tournament in Coral Springs, Premier Hockey at the ICEDEN in Coral Springs, Bare Knuckle Boxing at the BCCC, Sunshine Cup Flag Football and Ruggerfest at Central Broward Park and Broward County Stadium and Weston Cup Soccer Tournament.

CVB TRAVEL FOR THE MONTH

Feb 3-6: IITA Summit, St. Pete/Clearwater
Feb 6-10: Chicago Travel & Adventure Show
Feb 9-11: Meeting Professional Int'l - MidAmerica Conference, Cincinnati 
Feb 19-22: Connect Travelmarket, Kissimmee
Feb 25-Mar 6: Vitrina Turistica ANATO, Bogota, Colombia

Click here to check out more of our CVB team in action at various events and functions around the world.

HAPPENINGS AROUND TOWN

SEAGLASS | A Greater Fort Lauderdale Rosé Experience (February 8-9), a first-of-its-kind, this two-day event immerses guests in a rosé experience second to none. Set on the sands of Fort Lauderdale beach – with the Atlantic Ocean as the backdrop, SEAGLASS showcases more than 30 varietals of the world’s finest rose wines and more than 20 winemakers, spirit producers, chefs, along with perfectly paired culinary options throughout the weekend.

Journey back to the 16th century as you step through castle gates and into the days of yore at the Renaissance Festival at Quiet Waters Park in Deerfield Beach. Explore the artisans' village and view live demos of glassblowing, steel-fighting, archery, and more. Feast on hearty food fit for a king while enjoying live performances on stage and in the lanes, including thrice-daily jousting events. February 8-March 22, weekends only.

The 17th Annual Food Network & Cooking Channel South Beach Wine & Food (SOBEWFF®) festival returns, along with the Crave Greater Fort Lauderdale series, February 19-23. Click here for a list of the star-studded line-up of talent coming to Greater Fort Lauderdale.

For a full list, check out February & March Events in Greater Fort Lauderdale. If you would like to submit an event to be listed on our site, go to sunny.org/submit.

WELCOME TO THE CVB TEAM

Mike Sophia joins the GFLCVB as Vice President of Sports Business Development. Mike will be leading the sports business development team’s efforts to attract professional, collegiate, amateur and recreational sporting events to Broward County. For more than 25 years, Mike has been involved in the sports, events and entertainment business at a variety of levels. Most recently, he served as the Director of the Sacramento Sports Commission. Click here to read more. 

 

Best wishes,

Stacy Ritter, President