Group heads to Toronto to pitch Buffalo Niagara to tour operators by Mark Sommer
Read the article in The Buffalo News
A delegation of 23 organizations, visitor attractions, stores and hotels will head up the QEW Wednesday to pitch Buffalo Niagara to tour operators and Canadian media.
The trip, organized by Visit Buffalo Niagara, will host a reception for the 50 to 60 expected guests at the Gardiner Museum. They will talk up the region’s assets and extend an invitation to visit.
“It’s a chance to go to Toronto and build the kinds of relationships with people who are in a position to bring busloads of people to Buffalo,” said Ed Healy, vice president of marketing for Visit Buffalo Niagara. “We’ll be pitching them on different themes and itineraries they can build tours around, whether it’s historic architecture, gardens or shopping.
“When it comes to media, we want them to come down to Buffalo and write positive stories.”
Visit Buffalo Niagara has hosted New York City tour operators for the past 13 years. This is the first time it’s being done in Toronto. Wednesday’s trip will be the group’s largest Canadian marketing initiatives in the past year.
Visit Buffalo Niagara attended the National Women’s Show in Toronto for the fifth consecutive year in November, with representatives from the Elmwood Village and Hertel Avenue shopping districts.
In October, the organization attended Discover America Day in Toronto. In April, Visit Buffalo Niagara and Louis Grachos, Albright-Knox Art Gallery’s executive director, hosted a dinner in Toronto for Canadian travel and arts and culture writers.
In addition, the convention and visitors bureau has advertised through numerous media outlets in Ontario.
The cultural organizations and visitor attractions that will be participating are Shea’s Performing Arts Center, Martin House Complex, the Wright Collective, Albright-Knox Art Gallery, Buffalo Zoo, Burchfield Penney Art Center, Roycroft Campus, Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra, Hard Rock Cafe, Garden Walk Buffalo, National Garden Festival, Buffalo and Erie County Botanical Gardens, Preservation Buffalo Niagara and Campaign for Greater Buffalo.
“It’s a good opportunity for us to reach out to what I could ‘locals,’ ” said Erin Grajek, spokeswoman for the Botanical Gardens. “We see a lot of Canadian visitors at the Botanical Gardens, and with Royal Botanical Gardens in Hamilton and the Toronto Botanical Gardens there is a critical mass of botanical gardens enthusiasts to tap into.”
Shopping and hotel groups planning to participate are Vidler’s 5 & 10, Fashion Outlets of Niagara Falls, The Mansion, Adam’s Mark, Made in America Store, Ellicott Development, Hart Hotels, Seneca Niagara Casino and Duty Free Americas.