Here you can find the latest stories and announcements from the Florida Attractions Association.
Florida Tourism Day | January 31, 2024
Tallahassee
Hi Florida Attractions,
The Florida Attractions Association is proud to host the 2024 Florida Tourism Day, in partnership with Destinations Florida, Florida Restaurant and Lodging Association, Florida Association of RV Parks and Campgrounds, and the Florida Association of Museums.
Please make plans to join tourism industry professionals, colleagues, and friends in Tallahassee on Wednesday, January 31, 2024 for this important event. Florida's tourism industry drives our state’s economy, and your presence here in Tallahassee demonstrates the power and influence of our industry. You will be hearing from legislative leaders and meeting with policymakers to educate them about the issues that impact your business.
The deadline to book your room under the FAA's special negotiated rate is next Monday, January 8. Registration for Florida Tourism Day may be extended based on availability in the FAA's registration allotment. Space is limited, so please reserve your spot and book your hotel room as soon as possible.
Schedule of Events
January 30, 2024
5:00 PM – 6:30 PM
Florida Attractions Association Networking Dinner (Dutch treat - location TBA)
January 31, 2024
8:30 AM – 9:30 AM
Registration & Networking Breakfast | AC Hotel by Marriott Tallahassee 801 South Gadsden Street Tallahassee, FL 32301
9:30 AM - 11:30 AM
Tourism Day Rally & Partner Briefing | AC Hotel by Marriott Tallahassee
11:30 AM – 1:00 PM
Networking Luncheon | AC Hotel by Marriott Tallahassee
1:00 PM – 5:00 PM
FAA Members & tourism colleagues from your county - Prearranged appointments with Legislators | The Capitol 400 S. Monroe Street Tallahassee, FL 32399
I look forward to seeing you in Tallahassee! Please reach out with questions.
Thank you,
Bill
Bill Lupfer
President/CEO
Florida Attractions Association
As the new year begins, we are finalizing plans for our 2024 scholarship and grant application period happening in February. Our scholarships are available exclusively to FAA member business employees and their dependents. In our first decade as a Foundation, we have awarded $80,000 to our industry’s future superstars.
In 2023, the Foundation introduced a new grant program to aid our FAA member businesses with their internal human resources development programs. At annual conference, we awarded over $17,000 in scholarships and grants– a record for a single year. Last month the Foundation held its first online Holiday Silent Auction and raised over $6,600 in funds for our scholarship and grant programs.
None of this would be possible without the generosity of our FAA members!
Keep an eye on FloridaAttractions.org and your email inbox for details on our 2024 Scholarship and Grant application period which runs the month of February.
Sincerely,
Jennifer Berthiaume Chairman, Florida Attraction Scholarship Foundation Vice President, Lion Country Safari
Happy New Year and welcome to 2024! It seems impossible we’re already almost a quarter of the way through the century! 2024 will be a momentous year. The Summer Olympic Games will be held in Paris, we’ll endure our Presidential election, and perhaps most significant, the 75th Anniversary of the Florida Attractions Association!
This newsletter is the result of last August’s FAA Board Retreat and is one of many initiatives underway by our Board and our members. Your Board is divided into five workgroups, each tasked with refinement of an aspect of the FAA: Membership Development, Engagement & Retention; Government Relations; FAA Brand ID & Value Proposition; FAA Programming (Events); and Board Development, Utilization, and Engagement.
We’re reevaluating every activity we’ve been involved in and making adjustments to best position your FAA for the future. For example, FAA member surveys indicated it was time for an event refresh so we retired fall’s Networking Nights and next month’s Attraction Regional Forums. We’re planning an all-new regional event that will combine the best aspects of Networking Nights and Attraction Regional Forums into one event.
Our new Fall Webinar Series was a big hit and you’ll soon receive details on our Spring Webinar Series. The FAA brand refresh project is underway with Rumblebuzz Marketing leading that initiative. Our 2024 Annual Conference (June 9-12, World Equestrian Center, Ocala) will be a time of honoring our 75 years and launching into the future. I know you won’t want to miss this once-in-a lifetime conference.
Enjoy the news and feel free to reach out to me or our FAA Team if there is anything we can do to serve you.
Cindy
Cindy StavelyChairman, Florida Attractions Association Executive Director, St. Augustine Pirate & Treasure Museum
2024 marks the 75th anniversary of the Florida Attractions Association, which was formally chartered as a corporation on October 14, 1949. This year, we’ll pause to look back on our founding and the people and events which shaped our industry. Folks like our founding members:
Their vision for the FAA:
To foster and cultivate the social, educational and business relations of its members; to broaden their interests in the pursuit of their operations and to improve their standards of efficiency; to promote cooperation in all matters of interest to their business of operating and maintaining tourist attractions in Florida; to create and maintain higher standards in business dealings; to correct trade abuses; to compile and distribute information to its members for their benefit; to aid and protect its members and do all things as are properly within the scope of such an association for the welfare of its members.
Looking back can be instructional, but moving forward is the only path to achieving future success. This year, we’ll do both.
Thank You Donors & Bidders!
Our first-ever Florida Attractions Scholarship Foundation Silent Auction recently concluded and was a great success. The auction netted $6,610 for your Foundation and will fund three scholarships. Thank you to our 61 active bidders, and a special thank you to our generous silent auction donors:
A3 Visual
Boggy Creek Airboat Adventures
Broadway Palm Dinner Theatre
Colonial Quarter
Dolphin Research Center
Double T Multimedia
Guest Services
IMAG History & Science Center
Kenney Communications
LEGOLAND Florida
Lion Country Safari
Marineland Dolphin Adventure
Mississippi Aquarium
Sawgrass Recreation Park
SeaWorld Parks & Resorts Orlando
St. Augustine Lighthouse
Universal Orlando Resort
Walt Disney World
ZooTampa at Lowry Park
Stay tuned for details on our 2024 Scholarship and Grant application month – February 2024. Scholarships and Grants are an exclusive benefit of FAA memberships and are available to FAA member business’s employees and their dependents.
Florida Tourism Day 2024
Registration for Florida Tourism Day is now open! Join tourism industry professionals, colleagues, and friends in Tallahassee on Wednesday, January 31, 2024 for this fantastic event. Florida's tourism industry drives our state’s economy, and your presence here in Tallahassee demonstrates the power and influence of our industry. You will be hearing from legislative leaders and meeting with policymakers to educate them about the issues that impact your business.
The FAA has secured a special hotel room rate for all members who are making plans to join us in Tallahassee.
Let the Bidding Begin!
Help support your Florida Attractions Scholarship Foundation in raising money this holiday season to help provide financial support to post-secondary students studying hospitality-related fields!
Don't Miss these Great Items Including:
Group Tickets to Walt Disney World • Dining Experiences •
Hotel Stays • Florida Panthers Hockey Tickets • Airboat Rides • Attraction Tickets • and much more!
Bidding will close next FRIDAY, DEC. 8 @ 5pm ET.
If you still need to set up your account to participate and join in on the fun to support your Foundation, please follow these easy steps below.
Directions on Setting Up Your Account to Bid:
*If you have participated in our silent auction at the Annual Conference, you already have an account. All you have to do is log in and update the credit card on file.
In addition to scholarships, FASF provides professional development programs for Florida attractions industry leaders and offers grants to attraction businesses to develop and present internal professional development programming. Our goal is to nurture, prepare and equip the current and future leaders of Florida’s attractions industry.
Thanks to the generosity of Florida Attractions Association members, as of 2023, the Foundation has awarded a total of $79,950 in scholarships and grants to 83 recipients.
Scholarships are awarded exclusively to employees of FAA members businesses and their dependents.
Bidding Begins Dec. 1 @ 10:00am ET
Your Florida Attractions Scholarship Foundation is raising money this holiday season to help provide financial support to post-secondary students studying in broadly defined hospitality-related fields, and we'll be having our first annual Holiday Silent Auction!
Auction Items Include:
Bidding will begin: FRIDAY, DEC. 1 @ 10am ET
Bidding will close: FRIDAY, DEC. 8 @ 5pm ET
To get started, you can go ahead and create an account in Silent Auction Pro and then join our group*. Here are the steps:
In addition to scholarship, FASF provides professional development programs for Florida attractions industry leaders and offers grants to attraction businesses to develop and present internal professional development programming. Our goal is to nurture, prepare and equip the current and future leaders of Florida’s attractions industry.
Attending the 2023 IAAPA Expo? -- Be sure to visit our outstanding Associate Members who are exhibiting:
accesso..............................................................5131Amusement Advantage, Inc....................4219Avius...................................................................3400Dippin' Dots, LLC..........................................3800Froggy's Fog...................................................2690Give Kids The World Village....................6036Hownd...............................................................5426McGowan Allied Specialty Insurance...3021New Vue Solutions.......................................4445RocketRez.........................................................4247ROLLER..............................................................3052Satisfi Labs.......................................................5635Zigong Lantern Group................................684
Official Guide to Florida Attractions
FloridaAttractions.com
Only Six Featured Attractions - Reserve Your Ad
We're excited about our first year of the new Official Guide to Florida Attractions at FloridaAttractions.com!
So far in our first 10 months:
Moving into 2024, we'll invest even more in search engine marketing.
Only six Featured Attractions with links to your website are featured on the homepage of FloridaAttractions.com and very limited display ad spots are now available for 2024. Ad space is contracted and invoiced quarterly for only $250/month and available on a first come-first served basis.
Click below for complete details and to secure your attraction's 2024 ad space now.
If you have any questions, please contact the Florida Attractions Association office – (850) 222-2885 or info@FloridaAttractions.org.
© 2024 All Rights Reserved | Florida Attractions Association
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