A three-county tourism soiree on air

What do you get when four dynamic, passionate, ebullient tourism professionals mix it up in the Talkin' Tourism on Florida's Treasure Coast studio? One fantastic show!

History Lady's adoring fans kicked off the show by sending her some happy birthday wishes, and then Radio Man and Robin jumped right into this week’s theme - National Travel and Tourism Week and Tourism 101. Gary gave a rundown of the who, when, what and why of this special industry week that promotes the travel and tourism industry. Tune in to find out which United States President issued the Presidential Proclamation that created this annual week of travel appreciation!

Then it was time for our listeners to learn the ropes of Treasure Coast tourism under the tutelage of three very qualified instructors - St. Lucie County Tourism Development Council coordinator Charlotte Lombard, Mary Jayne Kelly from the Cultural Council of Indian River County, and Rozeta Mahboubi, executive director of the Martin County Convention and Visitors Bureau.

Each of our distinguished guests took turns explaining the ins and outs of the tourism industry across the three Treasure Coast counties, including the pros and cons of how Martin, St. Lucie and Indian River Counties go about promoting travel. Some counties operate their tourism promotions through a Convention and Visitors Bureau, others market tourism through a Chamber of Commerce. Listen in to hear what about what makes each county distinct, and what the three Treasure Coast counties have in common to offer to travelers.

On a side note - “Are You a…Culture Vulture” is a great publication produced by the Cultural Council of Indian River County…is it for the birds?

As suspected, each county will be recognizing National Tourism and Travel Week in its own unique way. Radio Man may have offered a suggestion to promote the week, and the girls may have liked what he had to say. Those are all the details you'll get unless you tune in!

And finally, Erica Byfield, president of Comet Creative, helped revisit the Treasure Coast-Bahamas connection in the works in St. Lucie County. Are these folks who are garnering support for the St. Lucie County/Grand Bahama Island Initiative near reaching a plan of action?

As always, a big Talkin' Tourism thanks to our guests for appearing on the show this week to share a wealth of knowledge about our coast's tourism industry.

Tourism 101: CVBs, TDCs and C of Cs

For the first time in the history of Talkin' Tourism on Florida’s Treasure Coast, tourism gurus from Indian River, St. Lucie and Martin Counties will be in the studio at the same time. What a coup! With National Tourism Week coming up quickly (May 8-16), the timing is perfect.

All three ladies have appeared on the show at one time or another in the last year. This week, we reconvene with Martin County Convention and Visitors Bureau executive director Rozeta Mahboubi, St. Lucie County Tourism Development Council coordinator Charlotte Lombard and Mary Jayne Kelly, executive director of the Cultural Council of Indian River County. With these three lively ladies in the house (and History Lady thrown into the mix), we’ll need two hours on the air!

Let's see what nuggets of knowledge these tourism leaders can unearth about their multi-county collaboration plans and goals. Our three Treasure Coast experts will also discuss how their strategies for bringing in tourism have to be tailored specifically for their counties.

Has anything yet come from the St. Lucie County/Grand Bahama Island initiative? Comet Creative advertising and marketing master George Byfield may bring you up to date on that as well.

Another installment of Talkin' Tourism is on the way, this Friday at 10 a.m. Tune into WPSL AM 1590, or http://www.wpsl.com/ for all the witty banter and tourism tidbits you can handle!

Photo from StuartFla.com

July 3 Show Preview: How's Tourism in Martin County and Connecting the Dots to More Bahamian Friends

We all know that tourism is very soft in general. So, what is the Martin County Convention and Visitors Bureau (CVB) doing to make the best out of this downturn? How are our hotels being effected? Since Bed Tax collections are down, how is this effecting the CVB’s ability to promote the destination?

This week Talkin' Tourism host Gary Guertin and co-host Robin Hicks-Connors interview Rozeta Mahboubi, the executive director of the Martin County CVB. Rozeta has been in the post for eight months. How is the bureau coping with bed-tax funding shortfalls, and what is being done to promote tourism to Martin County?

Keeping with our Bahamas and Caribbean summer theme, Talkin' Tourism on Florida’s Treasure Coast has invited Lori Lachnicht into the studio to share her thoughts and expertise on how the Treasure Coast can best tap into this potential market. Lori has a long history in the Bahamas and Caribbean. Her past associations include: Caribbean Territory Manager for Caribbean Travel and Life Magazine (Bonnier Corporation); sales and marketing positions with The Ginn Company (Old Bahama Bay); Generation Corporation (MainStay Suites); Spice Island Tours with properties in Grenada, Dominica, St. Kitts, Barbados and the Bahamas; marketing and advertising account representative for Skin Diver Magazine and Dive Report; as well being theco-owner of USA Travel d.b.a. Bahamas Travel Network.

What is the Treasure Coast connection? Lori served as a territory account manager for Scripps Treasure Coast Newspapers and Media from 2005-2007.

Turn your radio dial to WPSL 1590 A.M this Friday (July 3) at 10 a.m. to learn more, and don’t forget to thank a visitor for vacationing on the Treasure Coast.