BDOT targets U.S. tourists and travel agents

First stops since the start of March were Boston and Baltimore.

Next stops will be Atlanta and New York, respectively.

This latest Bermuda buzz follows hot on the heels of a two month long focused media blitz in North America, which has exposed millions of Americans and Canadians to Bermuda’s breathtaking natural beauty and hospitable people.

Today the Minister of Business Development and Tourism, Patrice Minors, said: “Boston and Baltimore are both important markets for Bermuda, particularly with JetBlue and Delta offering direct service from Boston and AirTran launching new flights this April for those flying out of BWI.

“Our team has worked very hard to ensure that Bermuda was top of mind for potential visitors with their high energy campaign, and our presence in these cities served as a reminder of Bermuda’s proximity and convenience while building the buzz for the destination.”

In Boston, an aggressive advertising and guerrilla marketing campaign greeted thousands of commuters at South Station – one of the city’s main transportation hubs.

Complete with steel pan music, Bermuda banners and pink-shirt clad tourism representatives, winter-weary commuters were enticed to travel to the island and offered an opportunity to win a trip for two to the Bermuda.

Sales calls and a dinner at Boston’s award-winning Top of The Hub restaurant atop the famed Prudential Tower reached area travel agents and influencers. The outreach drew to a close with an event at the prestigious Neiman Marcus store in Boston, where the Bermuda team captured the interest of more than 400 attendees.

Meanwhile, during the week of March 14, promoting Bermuda moved to Baltimore with the BDOT team spreading the word about the upcoming launch of AirTran’s new nonstop service from Baltimore/Washington International Airport (BWI) to Bermuda.

The inaugural flight is set to take place on April 7.

The BDOT team executed an intense marketing effort at two high-traffic consumer venues in the heart of Baltimore: Penn Station and The Gallery Mall at Harborplace, offering informative materials on the destination along with another three-night trip giveaway.

And efforts didn’t stop there.

The BDOT team then partnered with Baltimore’s top-rated CBS radio affiliates to promote Bermuda and a live performance by our world-famous Gombeys led to coverage on WBAL-TV’s (NBC) evening news.

Roughly 100 Baltimore travel agents and media were able to catch a glimpse of the Bermuda experience during a dinner at the city’s celebrated National Aquarium. BDOT arranged a special Gombey performance as well as entertainment by renowned local musician Gene Steede and his talented band.

The evening and campaign in Baltimore concluded with additional prize trips given to three lucky dinner attendees by Tucker’s Point Hotel & Spa, Grotto Bay and Elbow Beach.

This week (March 22-24) Atlanta will experience the Bermuda blitz followed by a series of major sales and PR events in New York City on March 30-31.