Washington DC took the opportunity last Thursday evening to showcase its unique neighbourhoods to Sydney’s travel industry, replicating each neighbourhood’s distinctive vibe at Ovolo in Woolloomooloo.
Earlier in the day, the Destination DC team took to Martin Place in Sydney, evoking the historic city with a giant 32-foot-wide by 2-metre high stage, featuring a replica of the Lincoln Memorial chair. Sydneysiders got to experience DC firsthand through a virtual reality 3D system that journeys through the unique neighbourhoods of DC, and to have their photo taken on the replica Lincoln Memorial chair while enjoying street food carts representing the flavours of Washington, DC.
At Ovolo, Destination DC and its partners, Kimpton Hotel and Restaurant Group and United Airlines, treated up to 100 members of the travel industry and media to a taste of DC, with neighbourhood stations on display throughout the venue featuring a live DC inspired DJ, a basketball mini shooting hoop, cherry blossom displays in a photo booth, as well as a variety of cuisine and beverages.
Vinay Gaggar from Flight Centre won a trip to Washington, DC including return economy airfares on United Airlines to Washington, DC. Plus four nights at the Kimpton Carlyle Hotel in Washington, DC and customisation of a day to day itinerary by the Destination DC media team.
Chairing the evening of events, President and CEO of Destination DC Elliott L. Ferguson affirmed the company’s investment in the Australian market and thanked Aussie travel agents for the continued business they generate, that contributes to DC’s success.
“Destination DC recognises the importance of the travel agent in Australia, and thank all of our retail partners for expanding on the Washington, DC story launched last year to discover the real DC, by branching out itineraries into our varied neighbourhoods,” said Ferguson. “We have seen so many new itineraries extending stays into Georgetown, Adams Morgan, Dupont Circle and many other neighbourhoods that allows DC to truly show Australian visitors how the locals live.
Earlier in the week Destination DC announced 1.9 million overseas visitors last year – 90,000 of whom were from Australia and spent $97,300,000. Additional figures released Travel Market Insights, National Travel & Tourism Office, U.S. Department of Commerce and MMGY Travel Intelligence report Washington, DC welcomed a record 23.8 million total visitors, up 4.4% over 2017 and recording a ninth consecutive record year for visitation to the District.
Additionally, global visitor spending in 2018 was a record $7.8 billion, up 4.3% over 2017, resulting in $851 million in local taxes realized by the District. Without tourism, nearly 300,000 DC households would have to contribute an additional $2,844 per household in taxes in order to maintain the current level of tax receipts. Leisure travelers accounted for 61% of visitors and 43% of spending. Leisure spending is up 13%. Business travelers accounted for 39% of visitors and 57% of spending.
DC’s top 10 markets, in order of visitation, are China, the UK, India, Germany, Brazil, Australia, France, South Korea, Italy and Spain. Though overseas visitors only represent 8% of the total number of visitors to DC, international visitors represent 27% of the visitor spending.
