Tourism Talk blog

Pandemics are rotten and disrupt almost every one of our normal routines. However, we are grateful for the many technology resources available to help us continue to work and to stay in touch. The GRCVB GoToMeeting account is smoking because we use it so much, but it has allowed us to keep up our

Long before N.C. began to see an easing of COVID-19 restrictions, hospitality partners throughout Raleigh and Wake County responded to preserve their business/customer relationships in numerous ways and have remained vigilant, ensuring the future of area tourism in 2020 and beyond. Before the

We don't know if you have noticed, but there's not a lot of employee turnover at GRCVB. It has been awhile since we added it up, but we must have hundreds of years of collective experience at the Bureau. There are about 20 members of our staff who have been here at least 10 years and some...

Just in case you missed it (ICYMI), we're passing along this information that GRCVB shared with the media in recent weeks. The City of Raleigh has released a Request For Interest (RFI) about a new convention hotel on two pieces of real estate primed for development in downtown Raleigh. City of

If you live or work in downtown Raleigh, you are familiar with and may be reliant on the R-LINE, the free, hybrid-electric, circulator bus service. When we're promoting downtown as a destination for leisure and meeting/convention visitors, we often include mention of the R-LINE, which makes...

It is easy to find things to look forward to when you live and work in a booming area like Wake County. We have a lot to anticipate in 2020, but let's start with these eight visitor-related developments. First up—a treasure trove of new culinary offerings... High-profile restaurants and...

Everybody loves a “Year in Review” list. Here are our picks for the top 10 highlights in Wake County tourism for 2019 (YMMV). 10] The opening of new, high-profile restaurants helmed by celebrity chefs Jolie Scott Crawford—a five-time James Beard Foundation semifinalist for Best...

Last year I wrote about the philosophy behind developing festival/event tourism in our area and plugging data into a cycle of improvement that leads to more positive impacts from these events. This week I want to be more specific about how GRCVB can help area festival/event organizers who are

Quarterly report released GRCVB released its 2019 third-quarter industry report, and all indicators confirm that tourism is doing extremely well in Wake County. Hotel occupancy in the county is up 6.3%, running at 74.6% through Sept. year-to-date (YTD). Lodging tax collections are up 11.3% and

I am pleased to inform you that the Wake County Board of Commissioners and the Raleigh City Council approved the following last week related to Interlocal Fund distributions: 1. A stadium feasibility study JLL (the same organization which conducted GRCVB's Destination Strategic Plan project...