Following a successful pilot stopover program for UK travelers in 2018, Destination DC expands the program for UK leisure visitors to the Washington metropolitan area
(Washington, DC) – As the result of a successful pilot stopover program last year, Destination DC expands the stopover program this year in the UK, as well as three additional markets – the Netherlands, Switzerland and China. In 2018, Destination DC launched a pilot stopover program for UK visitors, which included a stop in Washington, DC for two nights on their way to another destination, a major value-added benefit meant to extend length of stay. Consumers in the UK can book the stopover program via Trailfinders now through Friday, May 3, for travel from June through September 2019.
Destination DC received additional funding from the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority (MWAA), who allocated $50,000 towards the stopover marketing program in all four markets to help support United Airlines’ international routes into Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD).
“My favorite time to talk to visitors isn’t when they arrive in Washington, DC, it’s after they’ve experienced the city’s arts, culture and dining scene for a few days themselves,” said Elliott L. Ferguson II, president and CEO, Destination DC. “With the stopover program, we are not just expanding our marketing efforts to drive overseas visitation to DC, but we are providing a convenient two-day stop in the nation’s capital to those who might not have even considered visiting before.”
Visitors find many reasons to come to Washington, DC in 2019 and beyond on washington.org. Passport DC takes place throughout the month of May, the International Spy Museum reopens at L’Enfant Plaza (May 12), DC Bike Ride (May 18), 15th anniversary of the DC Jazz Festival (June 7-16), reopening of the “David H. Koch Hall of Fossils - Deep Time” at the Smithsonian Natural History Museum (June 8), 2019 Citi Open tennis tournament (July 27 – Aug. 4), reopening of the Washington Monument (August), opening of The REACH at The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts (Sept. 7) and opening of the National Children’s Museum at the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center (Nov. 1).
“The stopover program is an opportunity to promote all you can see and do in the District in 48 hours, along with all our new hospitality inventory,” said Theresa Belpulsi, vice president of tourism, sports and visitor services, Destination DC. “We are targeting leisure consumers with new advertising that promotes the convenience and value of the stopover program, while also working with our in-market representatives in the UK to promote the program further.”
Washington Dulles International Airport, located in Chantilly, Virginia is the capital region’s main gateway airport for international tourists. Washington Dulles gives visitors easy access to the region’s cosmopolitan centers as well as Washington DC, Richmond and Baltimore, and is located within easy reach of Shenandoah National Park and the Chesapeake coastline.
Destination DC, the official destination marketing organization for the nation’s capital, is a private, non-profit membership organization of 1,000 businesses committed to marketing the area as a premier global convention, tourism and special events destination with a special emphasis on the arts, cultural and historic communities. washington.org
Contact
Danielle Davis, Director of Communications
202-789-7046; [email protected]
Rebecca Doser, Media Relations Manager, Trade
202-789-7079; [email protected]
Vanessa Casas, International Media Relations Manager
202-789-7053; [email protected]
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May 2, 2019