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Student Youth & Travel Association’s Annual Conference Held in Baltimore
More than 900 tour operators, group travel planners and business partners attended this year’s Student Youth & Travel Association’s (SYTA) annual conference held at the Baltimore Convention Center from August 23-28. Attendees heard about the latest in student market research and trends, got updates on effective business practices, and met with clients and peers during learning seminars, business appointments and networking sessions. Events included FAM tours to local attractions, a golf tournament, and events at the UMBC Columbus Center, the National Aquarium and Six Flags America.
Pictured: Attendees included Audrey Vargason, Visit Hagerstown & Washington County (left); Carylann Assante, Executive Director, SYTA and SYTA Youth Foundation (third from left); Peggy Daidakis, Baltimore Convention Center, (fourth from left); Dan Spedden President, Visit Hagerstown & Washington County (fifth from right); and Liz Fitzsimmons, Managing Director, Maryland Office of Tourism, Film & the Arts (fourth from right).
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Don’t Miss Maryland Traditions at the National Folk Festival in Salisbury
The 78th National Folk Festival will be held in downtown Salisbury, September 7-9, beginning a three-year partnership with the city, and Maryland Traditions has announced the program for its stage at the event. The Maryland Traditions Folklife Area & Stage is devoted to celebrating the rich, living traditions of Maryland—from its Appalachian Mountains to its Atlantic beaches, with a different theme each year. Performances, demonstrations, displays, exhibits, and narrative presentations by Maryland masters and artisans will express both the state’s deep history and its evolving character.
Chesapeake Traditions is the theme of the 2018 Maryland Traditions Folklife Area program. Curated by Maryland Traditions, the folklife program of the Maryland State Arts Council, and the Ward Museum of Wildfowl Art, Chesapeake Traditions will explore the region’s rich material, occupational, sacred and musical traditions, which have flourished in Maryland for generations, and will feature approximately 20 artists, 16 performers and craftspeople from the Maryland Traditions Apprenticeship Awards program. “The National Folk Festival is the best possible showcase for artists who are inspired by, and respond to, creative energies that operate on a cellular level,” said Director Ken Skrzesz, Director, MSAC. For more information on the program, follow this link to the MSAC website.
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OTD Attends U.S. Travel Association’s ESTO Seminar
Liz Fitzsimmons, Managing Director, TFA; Lucy Chittenden, Assistant Director for Interactive Services, OTD; Marci Ross, Assistant Director for Tourism Development, OTD; Brian Lawrence, Assistant Director for Communications and Marketing, OTD; and Leslie Troy, Communications Manager, OTD lead a delegation to the U.S. Travel Association’s annual Educational Seminar for Tourism Organizations (ESTO). ESTO is the premier annual learning and knowledge-sharing forum for destination marketing professionals and was established to help destination professionals develop new tools and techniques and to debate pressing issues affecting destinations. This year’s event was held in Phoenix, AZ, and drew nearly 1,000 leaders in the travel and tourism industry from across the nation.
(Pictured, left to right) Lucy Chittenden, OTD; Marci Ross, OTD; Brian Lawrence, OTD; Jen Durben, Garrett County Chamber of Commerce; Donna Abbott, Town of Ocean City; Leslie Troy, OTD; Becky Bickerton, Visit Frederick; Liz Fitzsimmons, OTD; Kelly Groff, Visit Montgomery County; Cory Van Horn, Visit Montgomery County.
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Save the Date for the 39th Annual MTTS Summit
The 2018 Maryland Travel & Tourism Summit (MTTS) will be held November 14-16 at the Chesapeake Bay Hyatt Regency Golf Resort, Spa and Marina in Cambridge. MTTS is Maryland’s annual tourism industry conference, which brings together all sectors of the hospitality industry. MTTS offers one-of-a-kind networking and is the ideal opportunity to learn and develop new strategies to advance your business and Maryland Tourism as a whole.
The summit attracts more than 250 attendees, acclaimed speakers presenting on industry trends, and interactive learning sessions including an off-site learning lab. For more information and to register, follow this link.
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MSAC Seeking Grant Review Panelists
The Maryland State Arts Council is seeking panelists to review grant applications for the 2020 fiscal year. Each year, the Maryland State Arts Council (MSAC) relies on a diverse array of arts experts from the field to do the important work of evaluating grant applications submitted by Maryland arts organizations and arts programs. Panelists review grant applications, conduct on-site interviews and artistic evaluations, and submit written reports on assigned applicant organizations prior to a mandatory spring grants review panel meeting. Serving as a panelist is a great opportunity to learn about Maryland arts organizations and the grants processes of MSAC. For more information and to apply, follow this link.
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Promote Your Event with "Maryland Mondays" Ticket Giveaway
How can OTD help spread the word about your attraction or event? "Maryland Mondays" is the perfect way to help us help you. Each Monday, OTD launches a new “Maryland Mondays” ticket giveaway program across all of our social media channels, consumer newsletters, and weekly “Maryland Minute” radio spots. Combined, these channels reach thousands of potential customers each week. To find out how to get involved by providing tickets to your attraction for an upcoming "Maryland Mondays," email OTD’s Leslie Troy.
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FY 2018 Maryland Tourism Monitor is Here
In FY 2018, VisitMaryland.org welcomed more than 2.8 million unique visitors and generated more than 360,000 outbound links to our industry partners, a rise of 16.7 percent over FY 2017, while Maryland Welcome Centers opened their doors to nearly 425,000 travelers. Over that same period, Tourism tax categories generated $479.8 million in revenue for the state, a rise of 2.3 percent over FY 2017, and ahead of the growth of all other tax categories. To read the full monitor, follow this link.
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