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BOCA
RATON, FL (May 10, 2012)--As the host
of the first stop in the Annual
Travel Rally Road Trip Day throughout Palm Beach County that was navigated this
week by Palm Beach County Convention & Visitors Bureau and United
States Travel Association, Downtown Boca joined more than 100 destinations
nationwide in celebration of the 2012 Travel & Tourism Week. The festivities were held in Plaza Real At Mizner Park, the public "park within the park" that has
been designated one of the "Top Ten Great Public Spaces" in
America by the American Planning Association. Literally “rolling out” a
10-foot by 8-foot welcome mat for visitors near and far, Downtown Boca
businesses, city and county officials, and community, business and tourism
leaders gathered to celebrate, showcase South County's tourism assets, and
rally for visitors. Spectators were “seeing red”, as
participants wore red or their company shirts or uniforms to symbolize their
hospitality spirit and tourism pride.
A fun,
interactive and very "visual" showcase of major destination
tourism drivers awaited guests, spotlighting
the area’s world-class museums, dining, shopping, hotels and resorts, cultural
and culinary festivals, sporting events, nightlife, concerts, and entertainment. There was informal modeling of "upcycled" couture fashion by designer Maria Dopozo that was created in the Boca Raton
Museum of Art’s Fashion Illustration Class With
Instructor Amy Berkowitz, a 17-foot x 17-foot inflatable driving range presented
Allianz Championship, Florida Atlantic University mascot Owsley with
football players, Boca Ballet
Theatre black swan ballerina from the classic Swan Lake, costumed actors from FAU Festival Repertory Theatre, exhibit by Gumbo Limbo Nature Center, Boca Raton “pioneer” from the Boca Raton
Children’s Museum,
information on Lynn University's hosting of the final presidential debate of the election year, Fred Astaire Dance Studio of Boca Raton
instructors leading the official "Downtown Boca Bop" line
dance and more. Visitors joined in the first official Travel Rally welcome photo as a large crowd of
South County "cheerleaders" showed destination hospitality.
During her remarks, City of Boca Raton Mayor
Susan Whelchel reported
that 25% of the county’s hotel inventory is in Boca
Raton with 3,891 hotel rooms with Boca Raton as home to the largest hotel
between Miami and Orlando — the Boca Raton Resort & Club — which continues
to lead as the number one bed tax contributor in the county. She then applauded the City’s key tourism drivers
that include a revitalized Downtown Boca with a newly constructed and landscaped pedestrian
promenade that connects the downtown community for easy and enjoyable strolling;
Lynn University as the site for the presidential “Debate in Paradise”, Florida
Atlantic University where President Obama recently made a nationally televised
visit and the home to a new state-of-the-art stadium, and the annual Allianz
Championship PGA Tournament that draws more than $15 million in economic impact
and generates more than $1.2 million in news coverage of Boca Raton with
televised household reach throughout the world. She noted that the annual Festival of the Arts BOCA
has intensified the
international cultural
spotlight on Boca Raton and Downtown Boca bringing star after star, year after
year from music, literature, film, art and dance worlds to the Mizner Park
Amphitheater.
“If
it sounds like I am bragging…I am and do so proudly,” proclaimed Whelchel. “Our business owners, and cultural, shopping,
dining, and lifestyle entities and partners, including the Greater Boca Raton
Chamber of Commerce and the Business Development Board of Palm Beach County
work hard everyday to make it a great day in Boca Raton for visitors, and on
behalf of the city, I thank every one of them for their spirit, dedication and hospitality.
We have a great partner in the Palm Beach County Convention & Visitors Bureau
that promotes and markets our incredible tourism assets to potential visitors from
around the country and globe.”
Boca
Raton City Council Member and Community Redevelopment Chair Constance Scott
focused her bragging specifically on the Downtown Boca destination, exulting
its world-class shopping, dining, culture, entertainment, nightlife, family
activities and special events and programming, such as the Friday Night LIVE!
entertainment series, Saturdays@Sanborn fitness program, Meet Me On The
Promenade community street festival set for October 26th and 27th, and more. As a
cultural hub, Downtown Boca is home to several museums, including the
world-renowned Boca Raton Museum of Art, Boca History Museum, and Boca Raton
Children’s Museum with its new Music Hall, and its Mizner Park Amphitheater draws live concerts,
performing arts performances, and film and culinary festivals.
“We
encourage visitors to ‘come early, stay late’ to explore and experience all
there is to see and do in walkable,
pet-friendly Downtown Boca where ‘it’s happening!’ for all generations,
from young professionals, families, and couples to seniors,” Scott said. “We have a world-class, eclectic collection of
activity, from Mizner Park to Royal Palm Place, and along Palmetto Park Road
and Plaza Real South to draw visitors from near and far, making Downtown Boca a
true ‘visitors paradise’.”
Jorge Pesquera, president and CEO of the Palm Beach County Convention
and Visitors Bureau reported that “Travel and tourism is America’s largest
service industry export, and more than 44,000 jobs are supported by travel
right here in Palm Beach County. At this rally and throughout the week, we celebrate
the significance every individual in our community contributes to the
destination’s tourism identity and thanking each for their hard work and
contribution to our economy. By rallying together, we emphasize the importance
of travel in this county, state and country, and reinforcing our significance
to policymakers during this election season.”
Throughout the day, the CVB highlighted the importance of tourism in
Palm Beach County with the announcement of several new, key figures for 2011
revealed through their recent, comprehensive Tourism Economic Impact Study,
including:
·
Nearly 5 million visitors generated a $5
billion impact on the local economy last year
·
$836 million in total taxes are
generated through tourism
·
44,600 jobs in Palm Beach County are supported
by tourism - jobs that can never be outsourced
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