Visit Bucks County (VBC) recognized individuals and organizations at the National Travel & Tourism Week (NTTW) award celebration at the James A. Michener Art Museum with Catering By Design on Tuesday, May 9.
Honorees were nominated by their peers in the local hospitality industry. In celebrating U.S. Travel Association’s 40th anniversary, NTTW’s theme this year is “Travel Forward.”
Bucks County Commissioners Robert J. Harvie and Diane M. Ellis-Marseglia joined VBC for the National Travel & Tourism Week Awards event. “We are pleased to present Visit Bucks County with a proclamation recognizing May 7-13 as National Travel & Tourism Week throughout the County of Bucks,” said Harvie, “We thank the Visit Bucks County staff and Board of Directors for the hard work they do to market and support the industry.”
The 2023 Visit Bucks County Travel & Tourism Week Award honorees were:
*Guest Excellence Award: Jill Dansereau, Pearl S. Buck International. This award goes to a front-line staff member with a positive attitude who is willing to go the extra mile to help visitors and interact with customers on a daily basis.
*Hospitality Leadership Award: Grant Ross, The Black Bass Hotel. This award honors an individual who exemplifies all the qualities of a good manager while directing and motivating his or her staff, ultimately increasing visitation to Bucks County.
*Rising Star Award: Taylor Kruopas, Arete Gallery. This award is presented to a young professional aspiring to a long career in the tourism and hospitality industry.
*Tourism Innovation Award: River House at Odette’s. This award honors a business/organization that implements new and creative ways to continue to serve customers.
*Visit Bucks County Awards: Heather McGurrin, Visit Bucks County blogger, and Brian Cummings, County of Bucks Department of Workforce & Economic Development, These awards honor individuals who are dedicated to promoting tourism and hospitality in Bucks County.
Visit Bucks County President/COO Paul Bencivengo shared key tourism statistics. “In 2022, Bucks County welcomed nearly 8 million visitors. This was a 5% increase over visitation in 2021. Those 8 million visitors generated 1.2 billion in economic impact which represents a 21% increase over 2021. In 2022, the hospitality workforce also grew to 27,800 individuals,” said Bencivengo.
Bencivengo shared that VisitBucksCounty.com saw record traffic last year with more than 5 million pageviews to the site. “We attribute this record growth to our digital marketing strategy which encompasses strong social engagement and paid advertising across Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and TikTok, where we are seeing nearly 1 million video views a month.
“Visit Bucks County also currently has a traditional marketing campaign in market with static and digital billboards in the New York and Northern New Jersey markets in April and May,” said Bencivengo. “Broadcast and streaming commercials will also enter the market in May and will run through July attracting visitors to the area.”
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