TOURISM Talk
Opening Its Doors
Experience Scottsdale continues to strive for recovery
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By Rachel Sacco Experience Scottsdale or Scottsdale’s tourism industry, March 12, 2020, was a day clouded by confusion and uncertainty. Major League Baseball canceled the remaining games of the Spring Training season, cutting short our largest event of the year. Shortly thereafter, businesses shut their doors and people stayed home. Vacations were postponed. Meetings and conferences were canceled. The COVID-19 pandemic continued to rage across the country, throwing Scottsdale’s founding industry — its most valuable industry — into a tailspin. The situation, however, calmed exactly one year later. In March 2021, vaccinations rose, COVID-19 cases declined and spring events returned, along with a full Cactus League season. People longed to travel after being confined to their homes. More specifically, they longed to travel to Scottsdale. Suddenly, visitors once again filled our hotels and resorts, restaurants and attractions. Though fewer in number than years past,
these visitors provided much-needed relief to our businesses and much-needed tax revenue to our community. What inspired these travelers to vacation in Scottsdale, making them eager to enjoy the warm sunshine and wide-open spaces of the Sonoran Desert? Perhaps it was a heartwarming commercial they saw. Perhaps a social media post from a trusted influencer. Perhaps a detailed magazine article. Perhaps a travel adviser’s enthusiastic recommendation. Whatever captured their attention, none of it happened by chance. Because Experience Scottsdale never stopped working on behalf of our industry and community over these past 18 months. We developed strategies that allowed us to be efficient and flexible so that our efforts evolved as the pandemic evolved. We connected — albeit virtually — with travel professionals and media so they would share Scottsdale’s opportunities with their clients and readers. Experience Scottsdale’s marketing campaigns also kept leisure visitors engaged. In the fall, our email campaigns encouraged locals to support Scottsdale’s hospitality businesses. In the winter, our social media promotions enticed people to road trip to Scottsdale. In the spring, our TV commercial
showcased the memories awaiting travelers in Scottsdale. Despite this optimism amongst travelers and hospitality businesses alike, the virus is still very much among us — as are its scars. International and business travel, both pillars of the tourism industry, have yet to return to full volume. Experience Scottsdale continues to strive for recovery for these segments, championing the destination in international markets and educating meeting professionals about Scottsdale’s venues. Once wider travel resumes, we are confident international travelers and meetings groups will choose Scottsdale. According to Longwoods International, 9 in 10 U.S. travelers have travel plans over the coming months. The steps Experience Scottsdale has taken since March 2020 have ensured Scottsdale remains top of mind for all travelers. Recovery is on the horizon, and though much work remains for Experience Scottsdale, we are hopeful that our industry will emerge from this crisis stronger than ever. Rachel Sacco is the president and CEO of Experience Scottsdale, which establishes Scottsdale as a year-round, luxury travel destination.
SEPTEMBER 2020 / SCOTTSDALE AIRPARK NEWS /
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