Successful Meetings - August 2009 - (Page 60)

MIDWEST MEETINGS > HEARTY HEARTLAND Hearty Heartland By William Ng & Kinley Levack T THE MIGHTY MIDWEST IS TACKLING THE DOWNTURN WITH CHARACTERISTIC FORTITUDE— AND SURVIVING JUST FINE 60 I SM I August 2009 I SuccessfulMeetings.com he Midwest is on a roll. Ohio’s state tourism director, Amir Eylon, announced in June that the industry increased total sales by 2.3 percent over last year’s figures—bringing the total to roughly $39 billion. The state saw 172 million visits in 2008, a figure that officials surely hope will climb further in the coming years. It shouldn’t be a problem in 2012, as Cincinnati will play host that year to the largest international event in the region’s history: The World Choir Games. Cincinnati will be the first U.S. city to ever host the Games, which are expected to attract 400 choirs from 90 countries, including 20,000 participants and 250,000 spectators. And Michigan is receiving accolades for its “Pure Michigan” ad campaign, which was named in June as one of the Ten Best Travel Campaigns by Forbes magazine. According to Travel Michigan, every dollar spent on out-of-state advertising saw a return of more than $40 through visitor spending at Michigan businesses. New and Noteworthy Construction progresses at the five-hotel Marriott Place Indianapolis complex, as its 297-room Courtyard and 156-room SpringHill Suites properties have been topped off, marking the completion of exterior work. Both hotels, plus a 168-room Fairfield Inn & Suites, are due to open in March 2010, in time for the NCAA’s Final Four basketball tournament. A 622-room Marriott hotel is already operating at the complex, which will have a total of 1,626 guest rooms when a flagship JW Marriott is completed in A lighthouse welcomes visitors on Michigan’s north shore http://www.SuccessfulMeetings.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Successful Meetings - August 2009

Successful Meetings - August 2009
Contents
Editors Letter
Planning for the World, in 5 Days
Education
Personal Success
Incentive Insights
Food & Beverage
Management Matters
Gurus
Visionaries
The Show Must Go On
What Happens in Vegas...
Rolling on the High Seas
Betting on Meetings
Meetings Hype 2.0
Places and Spaces
Midwest Meetings
Cleveland
Palm Springs Desert Resorts
Cancun
Portland
2009 Pinnacle Awards

Successful Meetings - August 2009