Tourism, Organisations & Operators,

VISIT FLORIDA and Emergent Media have announced the launch of Florida’s Table, which promotes the state’s dynamic culinary scene by showcasing a diverse handful of restaurants across Southeast Florida. Each episode features a local chef or restaurateur who is a reflection of the place they live and work. These individuals are well-versed in their particular culinary tradition, and their cultural origins are represented in the flavors they serve up. Each profile culminates in the presentation of the establishment’s distinctly Floridian signature dish.
“We are thrilled to let people know about the incredible culinary scene that we have in Florida,” said Staci Mellman, Chief Marketing Officer, VISIT FLORIDA. “And who better to tell that story than the restaurateurs themselves? The team at Emergent Media really understands authentic storytelling for lifestyle travel content. Florida’s Table is our first culinary-focused program with Emergent Media and we love this content. Travelers already love Florida’s beautiful beaches, iconic theme parks, and hidden outdoor gems, with the launch of this effort they will discover yet another wonderful thing about Florida.”
Distribution is driven through Emergent Media’s Paradise audience network, which embodies a curious, go-getter with experiential travel ambitions. The organic and paid social program is currently live and runs through mid-September of this year on Web, Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok. Florida’s Table positions Florida as the perfect destination for modern explorers to satisfy their taste buds, as well as their adventure cravings.
“At Emergent, we pride ourselves on telling authentic and relatable stories and delivering on our clients objectives,” said Jennifer Klawin, chief business officer and head of brand partnerships at Emergent Media. “We are thrilled to be partnering with VISIT FLORIDA to launch Florida’s Table and inspire our travel audience to explore the state’s diverse, locally crafted culinary offerings.”
This premiere series, which represents an expansion of VISIT FLORIDA’s partnership with Emergent Media, features Louis Grayson of Ramen Lab Eatery in Boca Raton; Daniel Salgado of Toro Latin Kitchen + Tequila Library in Dania Beach; Rick Mace of Tropical Smokehouse in West Palm Beach; Robert Moehling of Robert Is Here in Homestead; and Kim Kelly of Hurricane Alley in Boynton Beach.ADVERTISEMENT

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The United International Baseball League (UIBL), the first-ever professional baseball league created to serve India, Pakistan and the Middle East, announced today its partnership with Dubai Sports City and Dubai International Stadium as the official venue for the UIBL’s Inaugural Showcase from February 23 – March 5, 2023.
The venue will play host to nine games and one exhibition featuring four of the league’s initial franchises. Dubai International Stadium is an anchor of the Dubai Sports City complex, the premier multi-purpose sports development in Dubai. The stadium, which opened in 2009, has hosted several high-profile International Cricket Council (ICC) and Indian Premier League (IPL) tournaments, including last year’s IPL Final between the Chennai Super Kings and the Kolkata Knight Riders. The venue will also be home to the inaugural season of the International League T20 (ILT20), the UAE’s professional cricket league that begins play in January 2023.
“It’s an honor for our league to begin play in one of the world’s most storied stadiums,” said Kanwal S. Sra, Founder, Chairman, and CEO, of the UIBL. “Dubai International Stadium is one of the jewels of the region, and it will be an incredible launchpad for the UIBL as we bring professional baseball to fans across the Middle East and South Asia. We greatly appreciate the support and partnership of Dubai Sports Council, Dubai Sports City, and the entire Dubai International Stadium team.”
A key part of the UIBL’s growth strategy and intellectual property is the league’s proprietary process of transforming cricket fields – plentiful across the Indian Subcontinent and the Middle East – into baseball fields. This includes formulation and transportation of the infield dirt, design and implementation of the fencing, and customization and build-out of the dugouts, bullpens and pitching mound. In addition, the UIBL team is creating first-of-its-kind seating options that will get fans closer than ever to the action.
“In the U.S., we have baseball fields in nearly every neighborhood,” said Kash Shaikh, President, and Chief Marketing Officer, UIBL. “In India and the Middle East, you can drive thousands of miles without seeing one. While we work at the grassroots level to help expand that infrastructure, we are simultaneously creating our own proprietary process to transform world-class cricket stadiums into hotbeds of professional baseball. And, since we are starting with a blank canvas, we also get to reimagine how fans can experience the game. I’m really excited about the game innovations, fan experiences, and new seating concepts we have in store.”ADVERTISEMENTThe UIBL plans to share the stadium designs and new fan seating options – including new premium and corporate seating – in the months ahead. In addition to the UIBL’s innovation plans, Dubai International Stadium is world-famous for its “Ring of Fire” – a special system of 350 floodlights fixed around the circumference of its round roof. The lights minimize the shadows and replace the need for traditional light towers.
“We are honored to host the UIBL at Dubai International Stadium,” said Khalid Al Zarooni, President of Dubai Sports City. “This event continues our stadium’s tradition of hosting world-class international sporting events. We support the UIBL’s vision to bring baseball to our region, and we’re excited to offer fans across our city – and the world – the chance to experience America’s pastime.”

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The CTO described Solomon as “a longtime friend of our organization and a champion of tourism across the Caribbean. He enjoyed a long and stellar career in tourism, spanning product development, marketing, hospitality and sales, which made his contribution to the regional sector as far-reaching as it was influential.”
Solomon served as Montserrat’s tourism director from February 2019 to February 2022. Prior to that post, he was director of tourism at the Tobago House of Assembly, vice president and tourism director at the Tourism & Industrial Development Co. of Trinidad and Tobago and marketing manager at the Cayman Islands Department of Tourism.

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NYC & Company, New York City’s official destination marketing organization and convention and visitors bureau, in partnership with Mastercard®, today announced that the fall iteration of NYC Broadway Week will return for the first time since 2019, offering 2-for-1 tickets to 21 Broadway shows, available for purchase now at nycgo.com/broadwayweek. The popular biannual program, now in its 11th year, will run September 6–25, 2022.
“Since its launch in 2011, NYC Broadway Week has offered visitors and locals alike the world’s best theatrical experiences at a remarkable value,” said NYC Company President and CEO Fred Dixon. “After a three-year hiatus, we are proud to bring the fall edition of our signature NYC Broadway Week program back to audiences September 6–25. With choices ranging from Tony Award winners and kid-friendly favorites to new productions and beloved classics, there is something for everyone.”
Participating shows in NYC Broadway Week fall 2022 include:
1776** Aladdin A Strange Loop** Beetlejuice The Book of Mormon Chicago Come From Away Cost of Living** Death of a Salesman** Funny Girl* ** Hadestown Harry Potter and the Cursed Child Into The Woods** The Kite Runner** The Lion King MJ: The Musical Moulin Rouge! The Musical The Phantom of the Opera The Piano Lesson** Six** Wicked

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The Hong Kong Exhibition & Convention Industry Association (HKECIA) welcomes the decision of the HKSAR Government to reduce hotel quarantine for inbound travellers from seven to three days, followed by four days under medical surveillance at home.  Reducing the number of days for hotel quarantine will help ease the burden on Hong Kong residents returning to the city and incoming international travellers.
However, inbound visitors are not allowed to attend any exhibitions held in event premises, e.g. trade fairs, exhibitions, conferences, etc, during the four days of medical surveillance.  The new arrangement and the reduction of number of days for hotel quarantine thus will make no difference for the exhibition industry.
Mr Stuart Bailey, Hong Kong Exhibition & Convention Industry Association (HKECIA) Chairman, commented that while the HKECIA appreciates Government’s direction of relaxing restrictions, our members and the exhibition and convention industry urge the Government to implement quarantine-free travel as soon as possible. During this interim period, they hope the Government to relax restrictions for business travellers and allow overseas exhibition organisers, exhibitors and buyers with the Amber Code to run and attend exhibitions at event premises with their face masks on and appropriate social distancing and preventive measures.
With decades of effort by the Hong Kong Exhibition & Convention Industry Association (HKECIA) members, Hong Kong has attained its hard-earned reputation as the Trade Fair Capital of Asia.  Some 140 exhibitions were held in a ‘normal’ year at the AsiaWorld-Expo and the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, drawing millions of trade buyers and exhibitors from all over the world.  These high-spending business travellers generated tremendous tourism receipts for hotels, restaurants and shops, and hence created tens of thousands of jobs.  The exhibition industry has been an important pillar to Hong Kong’s economy and will be a core engine for the economy rebound.

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Mark Warner has added a resort in Lesbos, Greece to its portfolio for summer 2023.
The Aeolian Village Beach Resort will undergo a €2 million refurbishment this winter, with bars and restaurants upgraded and childcare facilities added to the hotel infrastructure already in place.
Watersports and cycling centres will join the existing facilities, along with Mark Warner’s first padel tennis courts – where players use paddles instead of rackets.
Holidays to the resort, near Skala Eressos village, will go on sale “in a few weeks’ time”, the specialist ski and sun operator said.
Managing director David Hopkins said: “After a successful summer this year, we’re delighted to be growing the programme next year with the addition of the Aeolian Village Beach Resort, which we know will quickly establish itself as a Mark Warner customer favourite.ADVERTISEMENT“We’re particularly excited by the new partnership we have formed with the resort owners who run a portfolio of quality properties in Cyprus, with Aeolian Village being no exception, as can be seen in the excellent customer satisfaction ratings they are achieving this summer.
“We are looking forward to a long and fruitful partnership with owners who really understand the business.”

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WTTC welcomes the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 and its numerous business-smart clean energy tax incentives expansions and extensions.
“The Travel & Tourism sector is a catalyst for meaningful climate action and emissions reduction, as evidenced by our groundbreaking Net Zero Roadmap supporting our sector’s drive toward net zero. This bill will help accelerate our Members’ climate commitments with provisions like the sustainable aviation fuel credit, energy efficient buildings deduction, and zero-emission port equipment and technology investments.
“While these are important building blocks for meaningful change, we call on the U.S. to continue putting climate change front and centre of everything they do to help protect life on our planet. We also urge world leaders to give more support to the global Travel & Tourism sector as it continues its journey towards net zero.

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July marked the fifth straight month in which Ontario International Airport (ONT) recorded passenger volumes higher than the same month in 2019, as the Southern California gateway continues to post one of the most impressive post-pandemic recoveries among airports across the United States.
More than 520,000 airline passengers traveled through ONT last month, an increase of 8.8% over July 2021 and 5% higher than July 2019. The number of domestic and international travelers totaled more than 502,000 and 17,000, respectively, in July. Domestic passenger volume increased by 7.4% compared with July 2019 and 8.7% over July a year ago.
From January through July, ONT welcomed 3.1 million passengers, 3% more than the same period in 2019 and 48.8% higher than last year.
The July totals also represented the third straight month in which ONT has exceeded a half-million travelers, and were the most in a single month since at least 2008 – years before the airport’s return to local control.
“Ontario International continues to deliver strong results as demand for air travel in Southern California rebounds. We expect the trend will continue through the summer travel season and into the fall,” said Alan D. Wapner, president of the Ontario International Airport Authority (OIAA) Board of Commissioners and Mayor pro Tem of the City of Ontario. “The statistics underscore the high level of confidence our guests have in our facilities and services.”ADVERTISEMENT

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