Sunshine Matters

Pow Wow Golf Tournament, photo by Ralf Finn Hestoft

Busy and wowed may be an understatement! VISIT FLORIDA exhibited at U.S. Travel’s International Pow Wow last week in San Francisco, as did numerous industry partners.  This is only the second time in its 43-year history that Pow Wow has been held in San Francisco, the last time being in 1992.  The city proved to be a huge draw, attracting over 1,100 tour operators, 450 travel writers and 3,500 suppliers.  By all accounts, it was a huge success for all involved.  The mood and energy on the floor and throughout the event was optimistic and upbeat.  I’m pleased to report that VISIT FLORIDA’s international team had a full slate of appointments and met with over 150 key tour operators from throughout the world during the three days of scheduled appointments, as well as 100 media during the media marketplace.  The three spectacular hosted evening events offered additional opportunities for us to connect with key acquaintances.

VISIT FLORIDA completed its sponsorship of the VISIT FLORIDA Cup, the official Pow Wow golf tournament, on Sunday, May 22 at the beautiful Presidio Golf Course.  We hosted 46 golfers and I’m delighted to share that our Cup winners were Floridians, Richard Jackson of Coco Key Hotel Water Park Resort in Orlando and John Marks of bookit.com based in Panama City Beach. Congratulations, gentlemen!  We appreciate all who sponsored teams, as the proceeds from the tournament will benefit the Destination and Travel Foundation, a complementary organization to both DMAI and U.S. Travel.  I’d also like to recognize TWIGS (Travel Women International Golf Society) for sharing their expertise and monetary support for the tournament – thanks, ladies!

To ensure we raised the pledged funds for the Foundation, VISIT FLORIDA also launched, for the first time, an online auction at www.biddingforgood.com/visitfloridacup.  My sincerest gratitude goes out to everyone that contributed to the auction.  Whether you contributed or not, I encourage you to check it out today as the auction is still open for bidding! You’ll find splendid travel packages, gift cards and items, and marketing opportunities for your organization.  Online bidding closes at 8:00 pm on Friday, June 3, so don’t delay in making your bid.

As I mentioned earlier, we were BUSY at Pow Wow, as we have been throughout this fiscal year promoting Florida globally.  Our overseas markets continue to be an integral and crucial element of VISIT FLORIDA’s sales and marketing efforts.  The numbers support this effort, as Florida had a 14% increase in overseas visitors in the first quarter of 2011.  Brazil and Argentina continue to lead the way with 43% and 35% increases, respectively, over Q1 2010.  Sweden, Switzerland, China and Australia are other markets to watch closely, with double digit increases, as well.

For more information or if you have any questions about our international programming, please contact me at tvaughan@VISITFLORIDA.org.