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October 13, 2023
Dear Valued Tourism Partners,
Registration is now open for the 2023 VB Summit set for Wednesday, November 15 at the Convention Center. Use the link here to sign up for free admission to this business event which includes a trade show and breakfast. As previously shared, the program will feature Economics President Adam Sacks who will review the Virginia Beach 2022 tourism economic impact data.
The trade show component of the Summit program offers all partners an opportunity to have a presence at the event at no cost. CVB will be providing tables and we invite everyone to sign up to join us. Email Teresa Diaz at tdiaz@visitvirginiabeach.com for more information and to secure your space today. The deadline for vendor table sign-up is November 1.
Kudos to all the winners of the 2023 VRLTA Ordinary Awards which were presented during a dinner and awards ceremony this past week. Virginia Beach was again well-represented this year. Congratulations to Bruce Thompson of Gold Key PHR for his win as Hotelier of the Year and Andrew Vacarella of Catch 31 for his win as Restaurant Manager of the Year. For more information about the awards, visit the VRLTA website here.
Data is currently being collected to renew the Convention Center’s LEED® certification. Please help by taking a quick 2 question survey to help us better understand the building’s performance. Click the link below to begin. https://app.arconline.io/app/project/10167588/survey/v2/?key=53e7082b2a828e5df26642e7&language=en
Beginning Monday, October 16, the intersection of Mediterranean Avenue and 18th Street will be closed to safely facilitate street infrastructure improvements and associated utility improvements. During this time, Mediterranean Avenue will be closed to through traffic between 19th Street and Virginia Beach Boulevard. Detours will be set to reroute traffic to adjacent streets until work is complete and will reopen immediately upon completion. Advanced warning signs are posted advising motorists of the detours and closures. Weather permitting, the intersection is scheduled to reopen on Friday, November 3. For additional information and questions, contact Denis Ozowara with Virginia Beach Public Works at 757-385-8473 or 18stProject@vbgov.com . Access a map of the construction zone here.
CVB Sales Activity and News: This past weekend, Scott Warren hosted the International Right of Way’s regional event and conducted a site visit with IRW’s national leadership to solidify plans for their 2025 national event in Virginia Beach. Dee Mittman, Sally Noona and Jamie Rawls also led site visits this week and Amy Overstreet is in Connecticut attending Destination East’s appointment show. Meanwhile, our Services team is welcoming and overseeing the transportation efforts for the National Safety Association meeting at our Convention Center with over 1500 attendees from across the globe.
Last week we also welcomed eight motorcoach groups for “Rockin the Boardwalk,” a Virginia Beach event created by US Tours for the Group Tour market.
This week the Virginia Beach Sports Center is the place to be for the 2023 CLPSS Volleyball Tournament. At the Princess Anne Athletic Complex, the softball fields come alive with the 2023 Fall Frenzy Softball Tournament, where over 600 determined athletes will swing, pitch, and slide in pursuit of glory.
Virginia Beach Parks & Recreation Wins 2023 National Gold Medal Award in Parks and Recreation Management - Congratulations to Director Michael Kirschman and team at Virginia Beach Parks & Recreation (VBPR) for being named a 2023 National Gold Medal Award winner for excellence in Parks and Recreation Management. The American Academy for Park and Recreation Administration, in partnership with National Recreation and Park Association (NRPA), awarded the ranking to VBPR in the Class I category, the largest category, for cities with populations over 400,000. Read the full news release here.
Virginia Beach Recycling Survey Now Open - Virginia Beach residents can assist City leadership in determining the future of the City’s curbside recycling program by completing a survey. The 17-question recycling survey is available now through Friday, November 17 at SpeakUpVB.com/Recycling. Residents can review the information tabs on the project page before completing the survey, including a brief overview of the current state of recycling, the current recycling contract, educational information about what can be recycled in Virginia Beach and the options available for a recycling program moving forward. For more information and to read the City’s full news release about the survey, click here.
Calling All Animators - The Friday, October 20 deadline is fast approaching! The ViBe Creative District is partnering with Beach Events on the 2023 Holiday Lights animation projection within the Holiday Lights footprint at the Oceanfront. The ViBe Creative District has invested in the exterior equipment and construction mount to house the projection station for the animation. The artist will only need to supply the animation video which can be between 15 to 20 seconds long and must include the ViBe logo, the words “Happy Holidays from Virginia Beach” and content inspired by the holidays. Interested in submitting your work? Find out more here including the artist stipend details
EVENTS & HAPPENINGS
The CVB Events Calendar for July 1 - December 31, 2023 may be found here. To view the Resort area entertainment schedule, click here. For easy access to all of Town Center’s events and activities, including free movie nights, click here.
My team and I are committed to you and our industry and are here to help any way that we can. Please let me know how we can assist you.
Sincerely,
Nancy Helman
CVB Director
CVB Strategic Pillars:
Engagement|Growth|Brand Development|Culture|Accountability
Hotel Occupancy Data for the Week of October 1 - 7 : Virginia Beach’s hotel occupancy rate for the week of October 1 – October 7 was up 4.8% at 59.5% occupancy and up 0.4% for the running 28-day trend. ADR was up 4.6% at $136.77 for the week and up 3.6% for the running 28-day trend. RevPAR was also up 9.5% at $81.42 and up 4.0% for the running 28-day trend. In comparison to October 2019, we have a decrease in occupancy of -6.73% but counter this with an increase in ADR and RevPAR of 26.06% and 17.60% respectively.
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