Travel Professional – USA 2019

(Joyce) #1
USA SPRING EDITION 13

the Moxy NYC Downtown and the AC Hotel
Downtown.
Looking ahead to 2019 and beyond, New
York City is gearing up for new develop-
ments in all five boroughs, including The
Times Square EDITION, the Renaissance
Chelsea, the return of the landmark Chel-
sea Hotel, and the Eero Saarinen-designed
TWA flight centre returning as the 512-
room TWA Hotel and meeting center.
In Manhattan, the Javits Center and
Hudson Yards, as well as Times Square
and the Theater District are spurring even
more growth, especially in mid-priced ho-
tels, and beyond midtown notable neigh-
bourhoods for new hotels include Harlem,
Roosevelt Island and the Village. Queens
hotel development is moving beyond the
airports to Long Island City, Flushing, Ja-
maica and Fresh Meadows, while less obvi-
ous but still notable new developments are
set for both the Bronx and Staten Island.


KEY STRATEGIES


All this hotel activity represents a massive
influx of rooms, one that can only be sup-
ported by a city like New York.
“Even as we add more hotels to the in-
ventory, we continue to sell more and more
room nights each year,” says Heywood. “As
growth continues, we want to foster this
growth responsibly.”
To do so, a key strategy has been put in
place to encourage more visitation during
the fir t quarter, which Heywood refers to
as a “need period” for hotels. “This is the
time of year when we offer special incen-
tives for visitors and locals to enjoy the city,”
he says, referencing past examples like last
year’s ‘NYC Winter Outing’ program that
combined NYC Restaurant Week, NYC
Broadway Week and NYC Must-See Week.
“We think with the geographic proxim-
ity to New York City, Canadians can easily
take advantage of these offers,” he adds. “We
will present NYC Restaurant Week again
this summer in July and August, followed by
Broadway Week in September.”
Another strategy is to engage small- and
medium-sized businesses in the fiveboroughs
through a program called ‘Tourism Ready’.
Through the program, NYC & Company pro-
vides the tools and resources necessary for
businesses to more effectively engage in the
city’s travel and tourism industry.
“Through the training, it equips the busi-


nesses well while also offering travellers an
opportunity to experience a more authen-
tic, ‘live-like-a-local’ visit,” says Heywood.

MAJOR ATTRACTIONS
The ‘2019: A Monumental Year’ campaign
shines the spotlights on several new attrac-
tions in New York City, including Hudson
Yards on Manhattan’s far west side, the
largest private real estate development in

Credit Forbes Massie-Heatherwick Studio

Credit Related-Oxford

Credit Park Terrace Hotel
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