Tourism Roundup

The boring Jefferson Memorial, Flickr image by brownpau.

1. More competition from the suburbs for DC tourists.

Last week's Fairfax Extra section of the Post reports in "Storybook Campaign Aims to Lure Tourists," that the Northern Virginia Visitors Consortium is marketing "against" DC with a storybook about Molly the Motorcoach.

From the article:

Molly is sad. All day long, Molly takes tourists to the U.S. Capitol, the Jefferson Memorial, the White House and other Washington attractions...

And, according to a 30-page children's book that the Northern Virginia Visitors Consortium has been giving to tour bus operators, Molly is bored with sites in the nation's capital. She really wants to visit uncharted territory, such as Potomac Mills , Old Town Alexandria and Tysons Galleria . "Is this magical place of never-ending fun and excitement right under my front grill?" asks Molly in "The Sad Little Motorcoach."

Molly the tour bus wants to Shop! Tysons Galleria photo from Virginia Places.

2. In "‘Ambassadors’ boost KC’s tourism sites," the Kansas City Star reports that:

"A voluntary program that will launch this spring aims to turn local cabdrivers, bartenders, waiters and others into certified Kansas City tourism experts. The travel industry-sponsored Kansas City Hospitality Ambassador Program will include field trips, classroom study and even a bit of homework reading about area attractions, history, information resources and the economics of tourism. Annual recertification will be required.

Those who complete the program will wear a “KC Ambassador” lapel pin identifying them as visitor assistance experts. Their job will be to impress visitors with the area’s reputation for friendliness and helpfulness, whet visitors’ appetites to experience local attractions and encourage them to come back soon."

We need to do this. Occasional efforts aren't enough. How frustrating is it to ask people in restaurants, Union Station, and other places questions about the city only to be met with a blank, "deer-in-the-headlights" kind of look.

3. According to the article, the KC Visitors Association also is pushing area residents to become tourism activists to help promote the regional industry. From the article:

What can an ordinary resident do?
■ Encourage your employer — and decision makers in associations and organizations you belong to — to hold meetings, conventions and special events in the Kansas City area.
■ Become a “hometown tourist” by visiting restaurants, attractions and events you’ve never before experienced.
■ Invite friends and relatives to visit, and be sure to mention attractions and coming events that might appeal to them.

For more information, call (816) 221-5242, go to www.visitkc.com , or pick up a visitors guide and other tourism information at the association’s visitor centers on the Country Club Plaza and at Union Station.

How many of us can talk reasonably intelligently and accurately about our neighborhood(s) and local (as opposed to national) attractions?

For example, a friend tells me that a prominent ANC Commissioner in Ward 5 tells people that her neighborhood, Trinidad, is named after Trinidadian founders of the neighborhood (uh, no, that's not correct).

Photo of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Brookland by Dan Malouff.

4. Note that the KC Star article mentions that the KC Visitors Association has information centers at Country Club Plaza and at KC's Union Station.

I keep stating that DC's Union Station is an incredibly missed opportunity in terms of providing visitor information services and wayfinding signage that explains various tour and transportation options (i.e., at Union Station, information needs to explain the difference between Tourmobile, the various "Trolley Services," the Downtown Circulator, Metrorail, and Metrobus).

I hate to admit that I've never visited the Shrine. It's supposed to be quite an experience. As my restaurant colleague said, what's to prevent Union Station from being used as the primary staging point for tours across the city? A great Brookland tour could include the Franciscan Monastery, the Shrine, the John Paul II Cultural Center, Fort Bunker Hill, and other attractions.

Historic postcard image of the Union Station Waiting Room, Washingotn, DC.

5. And in this same vein, many states across the country have focused tourism development efforts including an annual conference to promote tourism in the state. Even though DC is "merely" a city, there is nothing to prevent us from learning from others and mounting a similar conference, one that would distinguish between tourism focusing on the national experience as well as the local experience, and figuring out how to develop and promote both, as well as allied arts and culturally-related activities.

See for example "City hosting tourism conference" from the Natchez Democrat, reporting on the upcoming (Mississippi) Governor's Conference on Tourism.

There's plenty for us to learn and implement in terms of maximizing the quality of the visitor experience and economic return the city gains from such, not to mention ensuring that developing the visitor experience helps create a better and more livable city for residents.

Index Keywords: tourism