Even the most dedicated fam tripper couldn’t hope to cover all of the US. Spread over five separate time zones, there’s too much ground to cover. WTM, then, is the perfect opportunity to see it all in a day and make contact with the people who matter. Time your visits right and you’ll even score a bit of food or enter a competition.
Here are a few of the highlights in the US pavilion.
Fancy going to the City of Angels? See the LOS ANGELESguys on the California Tourismstand at NA4250, sign up for training and you could win a place on a trip as part of LA Inc’s Los Angeles Travel Academy Live. An online version of the academy will also be launching in the spring. In December, SeeMyLA.com will make its debut. It’s an all-new website for the destination and next year is a great time to visit, as LA celebrates its 225-year anniversary.
If Southern Comfort is your tipple and you’re interested in finding out more about what’s happening in the DeepSouthand TheCarolinas, head to booths 13 and 14 and 16 and 19 in the Discover America Pavilion at NA2200 for the Southern Comfort Cocktail Reception on November 6 (Monday) from 4pm-6pm.
Stop by the NYC and Companystand at NA4000 to find out more about the new viewing deck at the Empire State Building, the Top of the Rock observation deck at the Rockefeller Center, as well as guides for on the ground, including a new Cityshow GPS Tour Guide and a Staten Island mobile phone walking tour narrated by Brooklyn-born actor and Sopranos star Paul Sorvino. A two-day Brooklyn Pass is also now available, including admission to the Brooklyn Museum and New York Aquarium.
WTM newcomersArkansas are shouting about what the state has to offer the UK, so head over to NA2200 to find out. It’s the home former US President Bill Clinton and now home to the world’s longest purpose-built pedestrian and cycling bridge – Big Dam Bridge in Little Rock.
Walt Disney World Resort Floridawill be at NA5020 with all the low-down on its new 15-month celebration – Disney’s Year of a Million Dreams – featuring a line-up of new attractions and entertainment plus new technologies that mean your clients will be able to customise their experience in the parks.
Film fans should take a look at thePhiladelphia booth in the Discover America Pavilion atNA2200 . The next instalment of the Rocky series hits our screens next year and Philadelphia will be promoting a new city movie tour, visiting locations used in Rocky and more. Philadelphia will be one of many exhibitors sharing the Pennsylvania area at WTM so get your ‘passport’ stamped there as part of the Travel Weekly Passport competition.
If you feel like finding out more about Native American heritage, you need to make a visit to theArizonastand atNA3300 . The Arizona Office of Tourism will have details on a new Native American Tourism Marketing Campaign highlighting the lives of the 21 tribes in the state, all detailed in a new directory.
Want to know where the best beach is in the US? It’s Fleming Beach Park on the Hawaiian island of Maui, according to the annual report by Dr Stephen Leatherman – otherwise known as ‘Dr Beach’. The lucky guy painstakingly decides on the nation’s best shores, so to find out about Fleming and the other fab beaches of the islands, head to see Hawaii Tourism Europeon NA3020 . Get an update on new hotel developments and find out about the new Superferries set to launch in 2007 between Maui, Oahu, Kauai and Big Island.
Dirty Dancing is every girl’s favourite cheesy film – whether they admit it or not – but did you know it was filmed in North Carolina ? With the arrival of Dirty Dancing on the London stage, the North Carolina Division of Tourism and Film has joined forces with Virgin Holidays to launch a £125,000 trade and consumer campaign based on the film and stage show and put the state further into the spotlight. Get your dancing shoes on and shimmy over toNA2200 , booth 14 of the Discover America Pavilion, to find out more.
Fancy something sweeter? Move on to Chicago at NA4200 between 12.30pm and 3.30pm on November 7 (Tuesday), where they’ll be switching on the chocolate fountain.
