NOVEMBER 2021

Greater Fort Lauderdale/Broward County Convention Center Reopens

The Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show debuted the highly-anticipated, expanded 350,000 sq. ft. exhibit hall on October 27^th.  This is the first event since the center shut down in February 2020.  Work continues with the he next phase of the project which includes an eastside expansion with waterfront ballrooms, meetings rooms and kitchen facilities, an expansive outdoor waterfront plaza and an 800 room Omni Hotel which will interconnect with the Convention Center. Full completion is expected in late 2025. 

SEPTEMBER STATS

AWARDS

Richard Gray and Stacy Ritter accepted the The Pride Center at Equality Park Allen Schubert Award at the Diversity Honors Gala at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino, on behalf of Visit Lauderdale for their commitment in promoting Greater Fort Lauderdale as an Inclusive and diverse and welcoming destination for all travelers.

Visit Lauderdale’s Global Trade Development Team is a 2021 Travel Weekly Magellan Award winner, winning a Gold award for their Play, Stay, Dine Webinar Series under the new category “Destination Marketing – Webinar”.  Check them out here: Virtual Webinar Series (sunny.org)

MEDIA HITS

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DIVERSITY & INCLUSION

The National LGBT Chamber of Commerce is holding their annual conference at the Diplomat Hotel, November 16-20. 

CONVENTION SALES

Trips/Trade Shows:

Local/Business Partner Activities:

Sites/Customer Visits:

CELIA IS GATHERING

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SPORTS DEVELOPMENT

Travel/Conferences:
Mike Sophia attended the ACES Conference in Colorado Springs.
Gonzalo Rubio and Dawson Pritchett attended  SPORTS ETA in Birmingham, AL

Sites/Meetings:
Champions League Ice Hockey sit with Panthers ICEDEN
BCCC site visit with Ballin' on the Beach for the 2022 Season
Meeting with Plantation Parks to discuss new Pickleball program and sanctioned APP event for March 2022.

The Marriott Harbor Beach Resort & Spa hosted the International Swimming Hall of Fame Induction at Fort Lauderdale on October 9th. Mike Sophia and Saskia Fisher attended.

Earlier in October, Mike Sophia and Saskia Fisher attended the Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) National Convention  in Orlando.

GLOBAL TRADE DEVELOPMENT

September Activities:

The Global Trade Development team hosted their quarterly meeting via Zoom to share plans for 2022. If you missed it, you can watch the recording by clicking HERE.

Sep 13 -17, Caitlan Etchevers attended the taConnect Virtual Family Roadshow hosting over 550 new domestic clients in our virtual booth.

Sep 19-23, Tracy Vaughan and Paul Mason attended US Travel’s IPW in Las Vegas,. Over three days the team had over 80 scheduled business appointments with buyers from Brazil, Colombia, UK, Germany, Sweden, Canada, USA and  other key markets. The White House announced on the opening day, Sep 20, that restrictions were being lifted for international travelers from 33 countries. This was perfect timing and set the mood for an upbeat and productive event. Opening day has since been announced as Nov 8!

Sep 23-25, Caitlan Etchevers participated in the virtual AAA Marketplace and Travel & Adventure show.

Sep 28, Tracy Vaughan and Caitlan Etchevers attended one day of SeaTrade at the Miami Convention Center on in cooperation with Port Everglades to hear and learn more about cruising in 2022. 

October Activities

Oct 5, Caitlan Etchevers participated in the The Luxe Xpo with Trav Pro on.

Oct 11, Caitlan Etchevers participated in taConnect Virtual Cruise Vacation roadshow with a Visit Lauderdale pavilion including 5 hotel partners.

Oct 18, The team was back on the road with a mission to New England with stops in Massachusetts, Connecticut and Maine. Seven partners joined Caitlan Etchevers at these events, all associated with the American Society of Travel Advisors.

Oct 25-28, Tracy Vaughan and Paul Mason are in London for Brand USA’s Travel Week. Over 40 appointments are scheduled with key buyers from the UK, Ireland and Continental Europe.

TravPro has been selected to produce and publish Visit Lauderdale’s new Travel Advisor Training program. This educational program is scheduled to launch in mid-January.

FILM PERMITS

88 film permits were processed in September.  A large amount of the permits were for photography for fall and the holidays.

Future projects coming up include Rocket Mortgage and JP Rooster television commercials.

Remember to follow @LeisureLauderdale to view recent pictures and stories from our FAMs and more!

UPCOMING EVENTS

Nov 3-14 Come From Away, Broward Center
Nov 4-21 Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival
Nov 7 Sunday Jazz Brunch, Riverfront
Nov 10 James Taylor, FLA Live Arena
Nov 12-14 Rock the Ocean’s Tortuga Music Festival
Nov 20-21 Pride Fort Lauderdale 2021
Nov 27 FAT Village ArtWalk
Nov 29 Will Downing at The Parker
Nov 30 Downtown Hollywood Artwalk, Market & Mural Tour

OTHER STUFF

Thanksgiving is coming and we want to include your special meal offerings on visitlauderdale.com.  You can enter your meal packages as a coupon through the Partner Portal and choose Thanksgiving Meals in the dropdown category list.  If you do not have access to the Partner Portal yet, please let Rita Wells know. 

Speaking of the Partner Portal...Simpleview, our web company, is offering a free webinar, Partners that Prosper: Partner Portal Overview & Training on November 16th at 1pm EST.  The webinar is open to all partners who wish to learn how to better utilize the tools it offers.  If you're interested, please REGISTER HERE.  Even if you cannot watch the webinar at its designated time, registration will ensure you'll receive a recording of the webinar to watch at your leisure.

101 NE Third Avenue, Suite 100, Fort Lauderdale, Florida 33301 | 954-765-4466