Happy Tax Day

No, I won't be one of those people standing in line at the Tallahassee Post Office, waiting in line to get my tax return postmarked today. I took care of that weeks ago. While most American think of today as Tax Day, there is an organization, The Tax Foundation, which calculates, by state, when your earnings for the year become yours.

If you live in Florida, your tax freedom day is April 26. On that day, you've paid your obligations to Federal, state and local governments....the rest is yours to keep!

How generous.

Thank You Veterans

Sawgrass Recreation Park

Our final stop of the day was a drive out the Sawgrass Recreation Park. The Soverns family purchased the park shortly after hurricane Wilma (the most intense hurricane ever recorded in the Atlantic basin) devastated south Florida in October 2005. The family and staff have methodically rebuilt the park, with a wonderful wildlife area showcasing native creatures. They will soon open an island with a display of the Florida Panther.

The highlight of our visit was a private airboat ride into the Everglades with Captain Charles. As a Florida "cracker”, I though I knew most everything there was to know about the Sunshine State, but our guide full of information about our state’s natural heritage, the native people of the Everglades, wildlife, and the plant and insects would in the “river of grass”.

Though sometimes hidden from the rush of our day-to-day lives, it's comforting to know the "real" Florida is alive & well.

Hyatt Regency Bonaventure Conference Center & Spa

Our next stop was the Hyatt Regency Bonaventure Conference Center & Spa. My last visit to this property was for our 2000 Annual Conference, when it was flagged a Wyndham. Hyatt has invested $100 million in renovations and upgrades…and it shows. The property is all very “Hyatt” and the public areas, meeting rooms, and guest rooms all revealed that “Hyatt touch”.

We met with Carolyn Steele, the conference services Director and Richard Bardons from Southern Audio & Video. Both of them were enthusiastic about our conference and eager to answer questions and address concerns. We left confident that the Conference will be success.

Wannado City

Our first stop was member Wannado City. Located in the Sawgrass Mills in Ft. Lauderdale, Wannado City is the ultimate children’s civics lesson. Wannado City is the re-creation of a working community, with merchants, government services, and various career and recreational opportunities. Children earn and spend play money.

Wannado (think “What do you Wannado when you grow up?”) City is one of the most creative edutainment attractions I’ve ever seen. The staff was perfectly suited to engage the kids in experiencing their “city”. The place is huge…it is the size of 3 football fields. This place is a MUST SEE for families with kids.

Annual Conference Site Inspections

Today, Mike and I drove dwon to Ft. Lauderdale (Weston) to complete site inspections for the Annual Conference.

Take Flight Into The Future

The theme of the 2008 Florida Attractions Annual Conference is "Take Flight Into The Future" symbolizing the future of the Association through the completed strategic plan process and to honor this year's Chairman of the Board Steve Geis from Kennedy Space Center Visitors Complex.

Half Over

Today, the Florida Legislature completed the first half of its 60-day session. It has been a painful session, with major reductions in many areas of government services for next year. The debate between raising new revenues (taxes and fees) led by the Democrats and cutting services led by the Republicans rages on.

Bottom line – no one is going to be happy with the results of this session.

New FAA Brochure

An Association Task Force composed of Board Members and Liaisons have been working on developing a new membership recruitment brochure. Florida Suncoast Tourism Promotions has donated design services for the piece. It’s nearing completion and will be premiered at the Annual Conference in May. Here's a sneek peek:

April Fool

Emily - You Go Gurl!

Emily, our almost 16 year-old is quite the bowler. She's been hitting the alleys for several years, and beats me every time we play. She has to remind me that its not about speed, but accuracy. Okay, okay.

Anyway, Emily bowled in a tournament in Richmond today, and did pretty good. Earlier this week, during practice, she was knocking down some 170-180 games consistently.
Her league bowls every Tuesday afternoon.

Here's where my ball usually ends up:

Happy Birthday Lauren!

21 years ago today, my life changed forever, in ways I never could have imagined. Anita and I were blessed with the arrival our first child, our daughter Lauren. She's an amazing young woman, who is committed, focused, and uncompromising. I love her so much.

School Calendar Bill Defeated - Victory for Florida Tourism

During the festivities of yesterday’s Florida Tourism Day, we’ve also been working with our tourism partners and a grass-root parent organization Save our Summers, to defeat an attempt to change the current Florida statute which requires local School Boards to begin school no earlier than 14 days before Labor Day. An email campaign and flyers distributed throughout the Capitol by Florida Tourism Day participants helped set the stage for this afternoon’s vote.

Today, we were successful in keeping the school calendar unchanged, with a 4-1 vote in the Senate Pre K – 12 Education Committee.

Florida Tourism Day - Part 2

It’s been an amazing, and successful Florida Tourism Day. In addition to our Board Members, other attraction members from around the state were in Tallahassee for Tourism Day activities.

We began the day at 8:00 a.m. at Tallahassee City Hall. Our lobbyist, Jim Tillman, presented the FAA’s priority issues for the 2008 session.

At 9:00 a.m., Karen Moore from Moore Consulting Group, VISIT FLORIDA's PR firm, presented an excellent advocacy primer. She offered techniques and strategies on how to effectively present an issue to an elected official.

Next, we moved down the hill to the Leon County Civic Center. At 10:30 a.m. a panel presentation was made on the various issues affecting participating Florida Tourism Day sponsors.

At 11;30, lunch was served. Our guest speaker was Joe Scarborough of MSNBC’s Morning Joe. Scarborough, a former Congressman, shared his views on the current state of politics in America and the campaigns for the White House.

The afternoon was spent making visits to our elected representatives in the Capitol. I was paired with Tom Waits, former CEO of the Florida Hotel Motel Association. We had appointments with several elected officials, making the case for increased funding for VISIT FLORIDA.

The evening reception was at the headquarters of the Florida Restaurant and Lodging Association. The party was catered by culinary students from Tallahassee's Kaiser University. The event was professionally orchestrated by the staff of FRLA and hundreds circulated through the various offices sharing stories of their afternoon visits and enjoying the fine food and drink.

Today is Florida Tourism Day!

Florida Tourism Day is a cooperative effort of the following sponsors: Florida Association of Convention & Visitor Bureaus, Florida Association of RV Parks & Campgrounds, Florida Attractions Association, Florida Restaurant and Lodging Association, and VISIT FLORIDA.

Florida Attractions Association Board in Tallahassee

The FAA Board of Directors met today in our Tallahassee office, a spring tradition held in conjunction with Florida Tourism Day (tomorrow). Steve Geis (Chairman of the Board), Mary Altman, Sandy Craig, Drake Decker, Andrew Hertz, Mark McHugh, Van Rice, and Ralph Rodriguez participated in the meeting.

Following the meeting, we dined at the historic Silver Slipper, a Tallahassee tradition, and were joined by our lobbyist Jim Tillman and his wife Barbara.

Happy Easter

He is not here; he has risen, just as he said.- Matthew 28:6

FAA Annual Conference Registration Opens

Registration for the 2008 Florida Attractions Association Annual Conference is open. Mike and Linda have done a great job pulling together the details for the registration page.

The Hyatt Regency Bonaventure in Weston will host our meeting.

Happy St. Patrick's Day

Florida's State Song - Music to My Ears

As a 4th generation “cracker”, I believe some things shouldn’t be messed with. Orange juice served at our state’s welcome centers, the Silver Spurs Rodeo in Kissimmee, and the St. John’s River flowing north set us apart from “the other 49” states. So talk about changing our state song raised my ire. Swanee River -- Old Folks at Home by Stephen Foster has been one of those sacred Florida traditions. In recent years, concern has been expressed about some of the racial undertones in Foster’s lyrics.

Actually, Old Folks at Home was not Florida’s original state song. Florida, My Florida written by Rev Dr. C. V. Waugh was adopted by the Legislature as our state’s first state song in 1913.

In 1935 Swanee River became our 2nd state song.

Now in 2008, the Florida Legislature is again considering a new state song. Jan Hinton of Pompano Beach, a Fort Lauderdale middle-school music teacher, has submitted the winning entry for Florida’s new state song Where the Sawgrass Meets the Sky.

I admit upon hearing the title, I was skeptical. But after hearing the song on Jan’s web site, I’m beginning to think that sometimes change is a good thing. The song starts with a simple melody and builds in richness and pomp. The lyrics are inclusive of virtually every symbol of the sunshine state.

Where the Sawgrass Meets the Sky is growing on me! Maybe its okay for Florida to shed old traditions, and begin new ones.

Click here, take a listen, and let me know what you think.

Theodor (Dr. Seuss) Geisel, Charlottesville VA & Horton Hears a Who!

Horton Hears a Who! opens in movie theaters today, but there may be more to the who Horton hears story, than you ever imagined...

Charlottesville, Virginia is best known for the University of Viriginia that was founded by our third president, Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson's mountain-top home, Monticello, and the Foxfield Races! (Yes, people do know Charlottesville for that crazy horse race!) As far as Monticello, it is also in Albemarle County and it attracts thousands of tourists every year. The famous author, Edgar Allen Poe, also attended the University of Virginia and his room on the Lawn at the University of Virginia is always on display.

Rumor also has it that Theodor Seuss Geisel, known to all as Dr. Seuss, applied three times to the University of Virginia. Three times he was denied entrance. That last day, he vowed to one day look down on the University. He began writing childrens' novels such as The Cat in the Hat, Green Eggs and Ham, How the Grinch Stole Christmas and One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish. As his fame grew, so did his fortune!

It is said, that prior to writing How the Grinch Stole Christmas, Dr. Seuss purchased a large, stately home high up on the mountain looking down on the University of Virginia. Today you can see the home back behind the Rotunda up on the hill. He bought the home so he could always "look down" on the University.

Have we forgotten the part in the Grinch that references all of the little Hoos in Hooville? That "Hooville" is said to be the University of Virginia. UVA's mascot is the Cavalier, but for those that live there, they are also the HOOS (Wahoos).

IAAPA Legislative Summit – Day 2

Our day began with a breakfast briefing in the US Capitol.



Congressman Ric Kellar (FL-8th) and Congressman Sam Farr (CA) were the featured speakers.

Following breakfast, we received a briefing on IAAPA’s legislative agenda. The Travel Promotion Act of 2007 is a major initiative with board support from national and state tourism entities. The TPA would create a public-private partnership (similar to VISITFLORIDA) with public funding coming from a $10 fee which would be collect from US visitors arriving in the US from visa wavier countries. Our industry is working to garner additional sponsors for the bill in the US House of Representatives and the US Senate.

Our groups received appointments to visit elected officials from Florida. With me, our group included Barbara Heffernan (Anheuser-Busch), John McReynolds (Universal), Roger Berry (R.S. Alberts Co). We were escorted by Melinda Maxfield, an Associate with Williams & Jenson, IAPPA’s lobby firm.

Our visits including meeting with Legislative Aides for Sen. Mel Martinez, Rep. Allen Boyd (FL-2nd), Rep. Corrine Brown (FL-3rd), and Rep. Tom Feeney (FL-24th).

Our dinner was back at the Willard Hotel. Our speaker was Rep. Ron Klein (FL-22nd). Klein was running late because the Florida Democrat caucus had been meeting to discuss a resolution to the Florida Democratic primary stalemate between the Democratic National Committee, and the Hillary Clinton and Barak Obama campaigns. When asked, Klein stated that they had agreed that there would not be a revote.

IAAPA Legislative Summit – Day 1

The IAAPA Legislative Summit is headquartered at the historic Willard Hotel. Presidents Taylor, Fillmore, Pierce, Buchanan, Lincoln, Grant, Taft, Wilson, Coolidge and Harding have stayed at the Willard.

This afternoon, IAAPA hosted a meeting of state and regional amusement associations. California, New England, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Florida were represented.



This evening IAAPA hosted a welcome reception. Admiral William G. “Woody” Sutton, Assistant Secretary for Manufacturing and Services, U.S. Department of Commerce was the featured speaker.

Florida House

While in Washington DC, I stopped by Florida House, located right one block east of the Supreme Court. Florida House is a “home away from home” for Floridians visiting our nation’s capital.

Described as a “state embassy”, Florida is the only state to have a facility of its type. Florida House is a nonprofit organization funded solely through the generosity of Florida citizens and businesses. I was greeted by Megan (a Nebraskan, actually, but a wonderful Florida ambassador) who offered me a tall glass of Florida orange juice and provided some background on Florida House.

Florida House was founded by Rhea Childs, wife of then Florida Governor Lawton Childs in 1973. Housed is an 1881 townhouse, Florida house offers a relaxing home away from home.

Washington DC - IAAPA

I’m in Washington DC attending the International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions (IAAPA) Legislative Summit. We’ll meet with colleagues from across the US and trek to Capitol Hill to meet with Senators and Representatives to present positions on issues affecting our industry.

Governor Crist & State of the State

For the first time, our Governor presented his State of the State address during prime time. Governor Crist, before a joint session of Florida’s Senate and House of Representatives, presented his agenda for the legislative session. The speech was interspersed with 4 videos of Floridians expressing their support of the Governor’s programs in energy & economic development, health care, restoration of civil rights, and property taxes.

The address was optimistic, upbeat and forward thinking. It will be interesting to see how the Governor’s, House Speaker’s and Senate President’s agendas are maneuvered over the next 60 days. No one argues that the budget process will be a contentious debate. Revenue shortfalls will require budget reductions. The Governor favors using Trust Fund deposits to balance the budget. The Senate President is generally supportive of the Governor. The Speaker rejects using Trust Fund assets. The Democrats are looking at new revenue sources, primarily through closing existing “loop-holes”. The Republicans are taking a “no-new-taxes” position. The State Constitution requires a balanced budget.

In 60 days, we’ll see how this drama plays out.

Governor Crist’s 2008 State of the State Address

The Boys Are Back in Town

The Boys Are Back In Town

Guess who just got back today

Them wild-eyed boys, that'd been away

Haven't changed, had much to say

But man I still think them cats are crazy

-Thin Lizzy

The 2008 General Session of the Florida Legislature opened today with the ceremony and pomp deserving of our 163 year-old state. At 11:00 House Speaker Marco Rubio and Senate President Ken Pruitt each called their respective chambers into session for the first of 60 days of legislative action. Rubio and Pruitt presented opening remarks challenging colleagues to serve Florida's citizens, making difficult choices, and moving Florida's government through some difficult days. Florida faces many challenges, with housing foreclosures, anticipated revenue shortfalls, high property taxes and sky-rocketing insurance premiums.

Speaker Rubio's Opening Day Remarks (PDF)

President Pruitt's Opening Day Remarks

Tonight, Governor Crist will present his State of the State address to a joint session of the Florida Legislature.

Happy Birthday Florida

The Act establishing statehood for Florida was approved on March 3, 1845 by the second session of the 28th Congress.

Back to the "'Burg"

Anita, Daniel, and Emily left early this morning to return to Williamsburg. They arrived safe and sound this evening after the 13-hour trip. We had several showings of the house while they were in Tallahassee, but, alas, no offers.

Aquatica at SeaWorld Orlando Opens

After years of planning, design, and construction, Busch Entertainment (Worlds of Discovery) opened Aquatica - SeaWorld's Waterpark today. The park is located across International Drive (east) of SeaWorld and gives BEC a 3-park Orlando presence with SeaWorld and Discovery Cove nearby.

Aquatica combines state-of-the-art technology and an exciting display of sealife in a colorful, aquatic playground. The park is having a "soft opening" between March 1 and April 3 to ensure all systems and operating procedures get a good test and adjust period. Official opening is April 4.

Exploring Tallahassee

This post is a guest blog by my 15-year old daughter, Emily:

Today my Mother took my brother and I on a field trip to The Tallahassee Museum. The Tallahassee Museum combines a natural habitat zoo of indigenous wildlife, historical buildings, and an environmental science center. We enjoyed viewing the animals, old farm buildings, getting a snack at the delicious Trail Break Café, browsing the wide assortment of souvenirs at the shop, and admiring the natural beauty that is Florida.

Leap Year Day

Busch Entertainment - Hello, Dubai

As some bloggers previously speculated, Busch Entertainment Corp. (Worlds of Discovery) will recreate its four primary brand parks in Dubai. The Palm Jebel Ali will feature a SeaWorld, Discovery Cove, Aquatica, and Busch Gardens on a man-made island shaped like Shamu.

Congratulations to BEC on this major expansion (and on keeping the announcement under wraps).

Click here to open the BEC news release.

Customer Service & the Hospitality Industry

This week's Businessweek magazine features a great story on consumer's backlash against company's poor customer service. They also have rated the top 50 customer service companies in the US. Interesting, and not surprising, that many of these companies are in the tourism and travel industry sectors.

Busch Entertainment Corporation Announces the Most Significant News in its History

Under a surprisingly guarded cloak of secrecy, Busch has announced it will make "the most significant announcement in it's history" tomorrow at 11:00am EST. The announcement will be webcast at WorldsofDiscovery.com.

Bloggers at OrlandoSentinel.com are speculating, but the fact that such an apparently momentous anouncement hasn't been leaked (yet) is unusual.

Hyatt Regency Bonaventure Resort & Spa A+

Our 2008 Annual Conference will be May 28-30 at the Hyatt Regency Bonaventure Resort and Spa in Weston (Ft. Lauderdale). Their team has been very responsive and accomodating to us as plans for the conference are finalized.

Say Yes to Orlando

The Orlando Orange County Convention and Visitors Bureau has lauched its new "Say Yes to Orlando" campaign. The idea is that in Orlando, visitors have an amazing variety of vacation options, so while Orlando says "Yes" (you can) to potential visitors, those folks should, say "Yes" to Orlando as a vacation destination.

28 hits to this Blog

I received 28 hits to this Blog on February 19. The previous daily high was 26.

OK, I know thats not a huge number, but hey, it's not bad for 3 1/2 month old blog.

In the last 30 days, visitors have come from United States, Canada, Australia, Brazil, Mexico, India, Hong Kong, United Kingdom, and Greece.

Love Your Island

Chris Belland of Historic Tours of America and TrustedTours.com operates his enterprises from Key West. I met Chris in the mid-1990s, when we served on the Florida Attractions Association Board together.

I’ve always considered Chris to be a visionary, years ahead of many of his contemporaries in thoughts and ideas.

One of Chris’ personal and professional causes is “going green”, doing what he can do to protect our natural resources. As Chris pointed out to me on a recent visit to the Keys, going green isn’t just the right thing to do, but can also be a positive decision for a businesses’ bottom line.

Chris has agreed to present “Love Your Island” at our annual conference in May. “Island” refers to Key West but is also a metaphor for the planet Earth. Of course, we are also looking at ways to make our Annual Conference more “Earth-friendly”.

I recently found that the “Love your Island” team in Key West has a web site established and I wanted to share it with you.

Miami Seaquarium Dolphin Harbor TV Spot

Our friends at Miami Seaquarium have opened a swim-with-the-dolphin experience – Dolphin Harbor. We were able to tour the spectacular new attraction last month, but I wanted to share their television commercial with you.

VISIT FLORIDA Announces New CMO

VISIT FLORIDA has selected its new CMO. Here's the text of the press release:

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (Feb. 13, 2008) – VISIT FLORIDA® announced today the hire of J. William (Will) Seccombe as the organization’s new chief marketing officer. Seccombe will lead VISIT FLORIDA’s marketing efforts, including overseeing direct marketing, advertising, Internet marketing, public relations, promotions and corporate communications.

“Will brings to VISIT FLORIDA great tourism marketing expertise. He will be a vital team member in advancing VISIT FLORIDA’s goals to promote and grow Florida’s tourism,” said Bud Nocera, president and CEO, VISIT FLORIDA.

A Colorado native, Seccombe brings more than 15 years of senior-level communications experience, with an emphasis in tourism marketing and online marketing initiatives. Seccombe comes to VISIT FLORIDA from Revolution Communications, an integrated marketing company which he founded with a focus on the travel and hospitality industry. Major clients have included the Colorado Tourism Office; Seccombe was also the previous vice president of marketing for the Denver Metro Convention and Visitors Bureau.

Seccombe is a member of the Association of Travel Marketing Executives and the National Western Association. His duties at VISIT FLORIDA officially begin on March 3.

###

eBay Seller's Stike

As a former eBay Powerseller, I’ve been watching the news on the reaction to recent changes on the eBay site. eBay has (once again) raised fees for sellers, withholding sellers ability to pop buyers with negative feedback (though I was never a fan of feedback extortion used by some sellers), and PayPal delaying transfers of funds between buyer and seller.

I know eBay is tired of its reputation being dinged by bad sellers, but it seems like ALL sellers are being penalized because of a few bad apples. eBay has said that it is going after bad sellers for years. Apparently, they either don't have the technology or the resources (or the will) to fix the problem in a systematic manner.

So rather than using a scalpel to strategically remove the bad sellers, they're using a sledge-hammer and damaging the entire eBay seller's experience.

Welcome Home STS-122 Atlantis

13 days ago, we were at the Cape to watch the launch of Atlantis. Today, after 5.3 million miles of travel, Atlantis returned safely to KSC. Congratulations NASA and the space-flight team.

VISIT FLORIDA Print Ad

VISIT FLORIDA

Discovering Tallahassee

With the family in town, we're getting out and discovering some of Tallahassee's dining gems.

For Valentine's Day, I took Anita to Torreya Grille on Apalachee Parkway. It's a family owned and operated eatery. The ambiance was perfect and restaurant offered a great diverse menu. Unfortunately, the service was underwelming. Anita had the blackened shrimp and salmon combo. I enjoyed the Greek platter. Both were excellent. In spite of the medicore service, we'd try it again. ***

Tonight, we took the kids to Ricardo's Italian Restaurant on Capital Circle NE, another family-owned and operated restaurant. The Italian diner featued all you would expect, moderate prices, and friendly service. We enjoyed calzones and penne pasta. The restaurant has Lucille Ball (Ricardo) photos on the wall. We'll be back. ***

Mike, Linda, & I have been to Food Glorious Food on Monroe St. a couple of times. This is one of my Tallahassee favorites. Great service & decor, an amazing menu, and the food is, well, glorious! ****

Harry's Seafood Bar & Grille on Kleman Plaza downtown is a "Tallahassee-chic" New Orleans-style restaurant. The atmosphere is excellent and the food good...and substantial. I've enjoyed the best jumbalia ever, with enough to take home for a 2nd meal. ****

Thanks, Linda & Mike

Today, Linda, Mike & I spent over 2 1/2 hours participating in 3 different online demonstrations of association and web content management programs.

We lost our Comcast Cable Internet service for about an hour (half-way through one of the presentations).

Thanks for hanging in there, team!

Weeki Wachee Springs Florida's Newest State Park

After several years of challenges from the water management district, one of oldest tourist attractions, world-famous Weeki Wachee Springs officially became a part of Florida's award-winning state park system today. It is a great day for the citizens of the town of Weeki Wachee, Hernando County, and the citizens of Florida.

Not a bad day for mermaids, either!

Congratulations to our friends at Weeki Wachee Springs!

Emily...

my 15-year old daughter is special.

New Web Site

I spent the day today researching new association management software and web site content applications. There are dozens of companies offering these technologies, and I'm working on identify the right mix of features, price, and functionality. Tomorrow we have two lined up for an online demonstration.

In the meantime, Tera at Kenney Communications is working on updating our existing web site to incorporate a new Government Relations (advocacy) resource section.

Hail to the Chiefs - Happy President's Day

"Welcome: Portraits of America" Campaign

Welcome: Portraits of America is a multi-media initiative to welcome international visitors to the United States. Given as a gift to the State Department from Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, Welcome: Portraits of America includes a seven-minute film and hundreds of still images,
featuring American people from all regions and walks of life. Disney commissioned the project in support of the Rice-Chertoff Initiative, which seeks to secure America’s borders while welcoming legitimate visitors to the United States.

The film will play in arrival areas of foreign flights and consular offices worldwide, allowing international visitors to the U.S. an exciting preview to all America has to offer. Welcome: Portraits of America depicts America as a welcoming nation, encouraging travel and enhancing the view of America aboard.

http://travel.state.gov/

Joe Scarborough to Speak at Tourism Day 2008

The tourism industry welcomes former Florida Congressman Joe Scarborough, host of "Morning Joe" on MSNBC to Tourism Day 2008. Scarborough will serve as the first Tourism Day luncheon keynote speaker – "rallying the troops" during lunch before we head to the Capitol to talk one on one with members of the Senate and House.Tourism Day educates legislators, media and our communities about the importance of Florida’s tourism industry and tourism marketing.

Learn more about the 2008 issues, network with the industry's finest and meet your legislators. Join with your industry colleagues from all over Florida and let lawmakers know just how vital tourism is to our state and your area.

We invite you to take advantage of this opportunity to communicate the importance of tourism marketing and the Partnership’s request for $43.35 million in public funding for VISIT FLORIDA to your legislators.

Register For Florida Tourism Day Here

Online Registration Introduced for Florida Tourism Day

Working toward introducing technology to the Florida Attractions Association, this week, we rolled out an online registration site for Florida Tourism Day, March 25, in Tallahassee. You can view the site (and register!) here.

Virginia is for Lovers (of crack-cocaine & gangs?)

ABC News: Va. Tourism Pitch Mimics Gang's Sign

Family is back in town!

Anita, Daniel, and Emily arrived in Tallahassee for a visit.

Can't wait to sell that Williamsburg, Virginia home!

Hotwire.com Lays An Egg

Hotwire.com is a site that allows you to book a hotel of a given star rating, price, and location. The exact hotel is not disclosed until after payment is made. I've had many great experiences with Hotwire.com until recently.

I reserved a 3-star hotel in St. Petersburg. According to Hotwire.com, 3-star hotels are comparable to a Holiday Inn, Radisson, or Doubletree. The hotel I was booked into was a former (but de-flagged) Holida Inn. The place was a dive...more like a 1-star property. No restaurant (as represented by Hotwire.com), old, musty rooms, threadworn carpeting, etc.

I wrote to Hotwire.com, but they were quick to defend their 3-star rating. I've written to Hotwire.com again. We'll see if they have the decency to respond.

Remember when...

...we used to celebrate this man's birthday?

Space Shuttle Atlantis Launch at Kennedy Space Center

Following the completion of our retreat yesteday, Chairman Geis (Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex) invited Linda, Mike & I to view the launch of STS-122 Atlantis from the Saturn V Center across the Banana River from launch complex 39-B.

In spite of a dismal weather forecast, the Shuttle launched into a nearly cloudless Florida sky.

Thanks, Dawn!

Chairman Geis presents Dawn Dalziel with a token of our appreciation for her extraordinary facilitation of our planning retreat.

Downtime at the Retreat

It wasn't all work at the retreat. We had a great bar-be-que on the deck of the lodge watching the sun set over the lake, followed by a marshmallow roast over a bonfire.

Board Strategic Planning Retreat

16 Board Members, Board Liasions, and FAA Staff Members participated in a Strategic Planning Retreat at the FFA Leadership Training Center in Haines City.