🗣️ Annual Meeting Speaker Announcements:

Creating Impactful and Transformative FAM & Itineraries

Join Claire Dunlap, Director of Marketing & Sales at Cayuga County CVB, and Collen Onuffer, Director of Public Relations at Travel Alliance Partnership, as you gain valuable insights into the successful strategies used by Cayuga County CVB in promoting International Underground Railroad Month. About this session

Accessible Dutchess: ThinkDIFFERENTLY about welcoming travelers of all abilities

Join Melaine Rottkamp, Preseident & CEO of Dutchess Tourism, Inc. and Arturo Gaona, Chief Partnerships Officer at Wheel the World and learn how Dutchess County’s ThinkDIFFERENTLY initiative has created a more supportive and welcoming environment for those of all abilities. About this session

Mastering Fam Tours: Crafting Partnerships through Experiences

Join Danae Jones-Persip, Senior Manager of Travel Trade and Programs for the New York State Division of Tourism at Empire State Development and Jennifer Ackerson, President of Alon Tourism Solutions to learn how you can become a fam tour expert and turn participants into enthusiastic ambassadors for your destination! About this session

Play Strong: A Canadian Marketing Initiative

Hear from Sara Poe, Senior Vice President of Marketing and Guest Experiences at The Strong National Museum of Play, as she shares insights from the key strategies and executable tactics used to draw the Southern Ontario audience across the border for multi-night stays!

About this session

"The Fair is one of my favorite events of the year—13 days of sharing the diverse destinations across New York State and getting people excited to explore. One fairgoer, who thought he’d seen it all, left with a new destination to discover, which made my day! Our booth, located in the Exposition Center, was a hub of activity, with thousands of guides distributed and hundreds of photos taken at our "Picture Yourself in New York State" kiosk. A big shoutout to all the volunteers and my colleague Brooke Wilson for making this group effort such a success!"

- Nate Gresock, NYSTIA Program Coordinator

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Thank you to our 2024 Tourism Champions! Your support from over 40 destinations allowed us to expand our schedule, adding more events and increasing our presence with three active booth setups at multiple locations. We exceeded our goal of 18 travel shows, returning to the New York State Fair and expanding our reach to Canada, including Montreal and Quebec. We also brought the Tourism Champions booth to member events and shared updates in the weekly NYSTIA newsletter. As we gear up for 2025, we're excited to elevate the program further. Please review the 2025 Tourism Champions agreement and consider joining us for an even bigger impact next year.

Be a Tourism Champion Now!

Your Tourism Champion Destinations Were Featured at the 2024 Great New York State Fair!

• The Federal Railroad Administration announced the opening of applications for $153 million in discretionary grant funding focused on restoring former Amtrak services and enhancing existing Amtrak services. ESPA has been advocating for NYS DOT to apply for these funds to assist in the capital and operating cost of the enhancement proposals.💡 Do you have an idea on how NYS could use this grant? Share your idea and the NYSTIA Advocacy Committee will review the ideas and draft a call for action.

NYSTIA is committed to bolstering your advocacy efforts with the new and improved NYSTIA Advocacy Action Center! Do you have an advocacy action that needs to be shared? Please contact us!

Governor Kathy Hochul has announced that New York welcomed a record-setting 306.3 million visitors in 2023, while also setting new historic highs for direct visitor spending and total economic impact associated with the state's tourism industry. Visitors to New York State contributed to a record-high $88 billion in direct spending, and supported a historic $137 billion in total economic impact across the state.



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Leah Garey is the Senior Regional Manager of Expedia Group Media Solutions. At Expedia Group Media Solutions, they connect thousands of advertisers around the globe with the most highly valued travelers. Every day, travelers visit Expedia Group websites to dream about, search for, and book their trips. The advertising solutions and targeting capabilities they offer help you engage with those travelers and deliver the results you want.

Meet Leah

Governor Kathy Hochul appointed NYSTIA-member and NYSTIA DEAI Committee co-Chair Olga Luz Tirado to the New York State Tourism Advisory Council (TAC), effective September 2024. Tirado served as the Executive Director of the Bronx Tourism Council (BTC) from June 2012 to June 2022. In that capacity, she was responsible for producing the

borough’s signature events, such as Tour de Bronx, Bronx Week, and Savor The Bronx Restaurant Week.



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I LOVE NY has partnered with New York State Department of Labor to offer a virtual career fair to help connect tourism and hospitality industry employers with talented job seekers! Sign up for the upcoming opportunities:

Downstate:

Tuesday, September 10 | 11:00 AM - 2:00 PM Register Now

Upstate:

Thursday, September 26 | 11:00 AM - 2:00 PM Register Now

The New York State Tourism Industry Association (NYSTIA) is joining forces with Alon Tourism Solutions to help boost your tourism efforts! Join us this Fall for the New York State Marketplace & Reception and the Virtual Business Development Co-op. Both events are designed to help you forge meaningful connections that can pave the way to long-lasting partnerships and direct B2B sales. Whether you're aiming to expand your market reach, strengthen existing partnerships, or explore new business opportunities, these events offer a valuable platform for your New York State destination or tourism business.



This initiative is supported in part by the New York State Tourism Industry Association and by a Market New York grant from Empire State Development and I LOVE NY/New York State’s Division of Tourism, awarded through the Regional Economic Development Council initiative.

Learn More / Sign Up

The December/January issue of ROVA - The Magazine For Epic Road Trips will include the ‘I LOVE NY’ branded ‘The Best of America's Great Outdoors’ Co-Op Advertising Section. This will recognize 100 years of the NYS Parks System and 200 years since the Erie Canal completion. In addition to this section, this issue hosts ROVA's 4th Annual State/National Parks Round-up and we offer a special content bonus for advertisers to highlight a Park or Historic Site. With Statewide Parks attendance hitting a new record at 84.1 million in 2023, it's a great opportunity to share your destination's offering with ROVA's outdoor loving, adventure seekers.

Let's ROVA!  For more information, contact: Madelyn Roberts @ Madelyn.Roberts1@gmail.com

Sign up by October 11!

No new job postings have been submitted this week, but be sure to view the open positions on our NYS Tourism Careers Page.

New NYSTIA Phone Number

The NYSTIA phone number has changed to 518-218-6030.

However, the best way to contact the staff is via their individual emails.

Take the Tourism Advocacy Survey | Share your DEAI Case Study

Take the New DEAI Survey | Submit a Workshop Proposal

WHAT WE DO TOGETHER:

Advancing responsible, sustainable economic growth, community revitalization, small business success, job creation, quality of life and pride of place by realizing the potential of New York State's tourism industry and facilitating the success of NYSTIA members.