P L A C E S

Digital passports, activations, a music-themed road trip, landmarks illuminated in blue-and-yellow lights to show support for Ukraine. Tell us about your excellent campaign ideas, brand refresh, podcast, videos, content, websites and how well they achieved return on objectives. The 5th Annual eTSY Awards are open for entries through March 25, 2022. Read more and apply today.

Charlottesville, VA — The idea for Discover Black Cville was born in 2020 and developed through grassroots and collaborative listening. The result is a community-led initiative that helps tell modern, historically accurate, and inclusive Black stories. With a clear goal to highlight stories told by Black people, instead of about Black people, now visitors and locals in Charlottesville and Albemarle County, can learn, explore, and connect online at Discover Black Cville’s website.

“As an organization we recognized the need for a more open dialogue and we have taken great strides to listen and collaborate with our Black residents,” said Courtney Cacatian, Executive Director of the Charlottesville Albemarle Convention & Visitors Bureau. “The tragic events that took place in August 2017 sparked necessary dialogues about systemic racism and propelled our community to take action to support all residents and visitors. The CACVB is working toward more equitable representation in the tourism economy by putting underrepresented voices and businesses first in the narrative. We’re hopeful this work will help visitors of all backgrounds feel more welcome in Charlottesville and Albemarle County. We are extremely proud of what we have been able to achieve in a short time while recognizing that there is certainly more work to be done.”

On March 26, 2022, a new downtown mural is unveiled at IX Art Park, created by the artists that designed this logo. On the launch day, there’s Black Makers Market and Vibe Fest, an annual celebration of Black music and culture by local and regional performers. The new Discover Black Cville Digital Passport encourages visits to Black-owned local businesses leading to the Jefferson School African American Heritage Center where five check-ins earns participants an official Discover Black Cville hat.

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San Antonio, TX — Sometimes you just have to float your boat. Mardi Gras moves onto the water in San Antonio, where the famous River Walk does its best impression of Bourbon Street along a 2.5-mile stretch. There’s live music and entertainment, food vendors, Krewes of costumed revelers and fun-loving people dressed in fancy masks, costumes, and colorful beads. Of course, there are floats that float. “Laissez les Bon Temps Flotter!”

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Hendersonville, TN — On the day Johnny Cash would have marked his 90th birthday on February 26, he was honored with the unveiling of a new “Tennessee Music Pathways” marker on Main Street at the original site of the House of Cash music publishing company.

Launched by the Tennessee Department of Tourist Development in 2018, the online planning guide connects visitors to hundreds of landmarks that relate to the state’s rich musical heritage of seven genres across all 95 counties.

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Ottawa, Ont. — Canadian travel rules were eased as of Monday. While negative pre-arrival COVID-19 tests will still be required for those entering the country, passengers may use rapid antigen tests (which are generally much cheaper and faster) instead of molecular tests such as a PCR. Other changes include:

• Canada has lifted its advisory against non-essential international travel, which was in place for most of the pandemic.
• Unvaccinated children under 12 with fully vaccinated parents will no longer have to quarantine.
• Fully vaccinated travelers randomly selected to be tested won’t have to isolate while awaiting their test results.
• More airports will be able to receive international flights.
• For all things Canada travel-related, inbound and outbound, follow reporter Jim Byers. He was our guest on The Travel Vertical Podcast, episode #16, found here.

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Niagara Falls, NY — It’s all about the SEO: Destination Niagara USA announced a name change for the building at 101 Old Falls Street, previously known as Conference Center Niagara Falls. “Calling it the Niagara Falls Convention Center will make it more attractive to potential event organizers, and the name also scores better than “Conference Center” in online searches, said John H. Percy Jr., president and CEO of Destination Niagara.

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Speaking of Niagara Falls, this past weekend it was illuminated in blue and yellow in solidarity with Ukraine. The spectacular natural attraction straddling the U.S.-Canada border is one of several landmarks around the world lit up in blue and yellow colors of the Ukrainian flag as a show of unity in support of the Ukrainian people.

https://youtu.be/y1RmtMQn_aM

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For NYC peeps: The Palm Beaches will be landing in Grand Central Terminal, Vanderbilt Hall this week with a “Golden Age of Travel Pop-Up” event featuring a life-size vintage jet. There’s a prize draw for cold New Yorkers: a roundtrip airline tickets for a warm weather getaway when they snap a pic, share on Instagram and tag @palmbeachesfl.

Meantime, Visit Florida indicated 29 million Americans visited in Q4 2021 plus 1.5 million overseas visitors, mainly from Latin American countries, with nearly half of these from Colombia.

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Reykjavik calling! What do North Americans actually know about Icelandic cooking, cocktails or culture? If the answer is “not much,” A Taste of Iceland aims to change that with activations in North American cities including Washington, D.C., Boston, Denver, Seattle, and Toronto. At each stop, a series of events bring the best of Icelandic culture through food and beverage, music, literature, films, art and more. The Iceland team spreads out across the nation’s capital with this ambitious schedule:

• Icelandic Culinary Experience: From 5:30 – 9:30 p.m., March 17 – 20 at Equinox Restaurant, 818 Connecticut Avenue, NW
• Reykjavik Calling Concert with Laufey and Anna Gréta: March 17, from 7:30 – 10:00 p.m., at Songbyrd, 540 Penn St NE. Doors open at 7:00pm, with music by DJ Hermigervill
• Icelandic Cocktail Making Presented by Reyka Vodka and Ólafsson Gin: March 18 at 5:30 p.m., at Betsy, 514 8 St, SE
• Elemental Sound Bath: March 19, from 10 – 11 a.m., at Eaton Wellness Center, 1207 K St NW
• Icelandic Provisions Breakfast Bar: At 11 a.m., following the Elemental Sound Bath, located at the Eaton Co-working space
• Icelandic Literature — through the eyes of three female authors — with First Lady, Eliza Reid: March 19, at 2 p.m., at the Eaton DC, 1207 K St NW, in the Eaton Co-working space
• Lamb Screening: March 20, starting at 5 p.m., at the Eaton Cinema and Co-working Space
• Wheel of Prizes Presented by Icelandair: Daily at various events, participants have the opportunity to win prizes, including a trip for two to Iceland!

For more information about Inspired by Iceland, a destination partnership, go to www.inspiredbyiceland.com.  

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Did you know? Slovenia is the first country in the world to have been, in its entirety, declared a Green Destination of the World, according to the World Travel & Tourism Council.