 |
|
2016 Annual Report & Visitor Survey
The Kenosha Area CVB's 2016 Annual Report has been completed and can be viewed here. The report includes 2016 Tourism Highlights and Economic Impact; our efforts last year regarding Marketing & Communications, Specialty Markets, and Tourism Partner Relations; and much more! Visitor spending in Kenosha County continued its strong growth in 2016, by increasing 6.3% to reach $209 million. Visitor spending growth in the county has ranked in the top 10 in growth for the past three years, and has grown an average of 5.3% annually since 2012. Kenosha County is now the 18th largest county, ranked by visitor spending, in Wisconsin. Also in 2016, the KACVB was awarded $73,350 in grants from the Wisconsin Department of Tourism's JEM (Joint Effort Marketing), Ready-Set-Go, and Travel Information Center grant programs.
The 2016 Kenosha Area Visitor Survey results are also available. The survey is conducted each year to gather data about travelers' behaviors, interests and perceptions of our destination. Survey results captured information from respondents who visited the Kenosha Area after receiving their Guide, including when they visited, if they stayed overnight, what they did while here, and other important information. View the results here.
|
|
|
|
Third Grade Winners
The KACVB has concluded its annual spring third grade presentation series about the fun and educational things to do in the Kenosha Area. We reached more than 700 kids at 14 schools this year. There is an essay contest held in conjunction with the presentation. In 100 words, or less, students were asked to write (and draw) about a favorite place they like to spend time at in Kenosha County. Five students overall were selected as winners: Joshua Langhoff of Somers Elementary wrote about Wolfenbuttel Park, Christoper Parker of Roosevelt wrote about Jerry Smith Produce & Pumpkin Farm, Emma Froehlich of Whittier wrote about Kenosha HarborMarket, Molly Kaufmann of Prairie Lane wrote about Alpaca Art, and Kailee Richardson of Brompton wrote about Harborside Common Grounds. Thank you to our generous partners who donated prizes: Alpaca Art Pottery Painting, Bristol Renaissance Faire, Carthage College, Culver's of Pleasant Prairie, Elsie Mae's Bakery & Cannery, Jack Andrea, Jelly Belly Visitor Center, Jerry Smith Produce & Pumpkin Farm, Kenosha County Fair, RecPlex, Robin's Nest Cakery, Sandy's Popper, and Southport Light Station Museum. You can view the winning essays here.
|
|
|
|
A Future 5 Winner at CVB
Congratulations to the KACVB's Laura Tyunaitis! On May 18, the community celebrated Kenosha's rising talent at the Annual Future 5 Young Professional Awards. Recognized were the accomplishments of five individuals who are positively influencing quality of life in the Kenosha area through their community involvement, professional achievements, leadership and inspiring vision for the future of Kenosha. Laura was one of those five winners! Here's the video clip about Laura that was shown at the ceremony.
|
|
|
|
Partners receive our weekly EventSource newsletter in their in-box each Monday morning (unless it's a holiday, then the next day). This list highlights what's happening each weekend. Did you know that if you scroll down to the line that reads "For more events and a printable version, click here", you'll get a nifty PDF file to download that includes even more events? You can print out the PDF file and post it at your business for guests to view, or print multiple copies as take-aways. View the June 8-14 EventSource newsletter here.
|
|
|
|
Kenosha Area to go Hospitality Training Program
The KACVB offers Kenosha Area to go - a free, one-on-one hospitality training program available exclusively to our Tourism Partners. You pick the date and time and we bring the workshop to you. The program is geared toward helping you better serve your customers by empowering you and your employees with knowledge and resources about the Kenosha Area. The workshop is typically about an hour in length, however we're happy to customize it to fit your needs or focus on a specific area of interest. To book your free workshop, contact Laura. A group session for all partners will be held on Tuesday, June 27 at the Kenosha Public Museum from 8:30 - 10 a.m. Watch for additional details.
|
|
|
|
Last month, a WTMJ interview with Tourism Secretary Stephanie Klett featured Kenosha. Attractions and dining options included the Civil War Museum, Dinosaur Discover Museum, Dream Playground, HobNob, Mangia Wine Bar, and Franks Diner. The website post also mentioned two upcoming events in Kenosha: Tribute Island Music Festival and Border War Beer Fest. You can read the full post and listen to the interview here.
|
|
|
|
Congrats to Pringle Nature Center Naturalist
Congratulations to Valerie Mann, the naturalist at Pringle Nature Center. She was named the Project Learning Tree Facilitator of the Year at the Wisconsin Association for Environmental Education's Celebration for Excellence in Environmental Education Award Ceremony in April. In this role, she helps teachers bring forestry-based environmental education into their classrooms. WAEE is the statewide non-profit professional organization of environmental educators which supports environmental education through advocacy, networking, and recognition. Valerie also assists the KACVB by handling the Kenosha County Fall Color and Cross Country Skiing Seasonal Reports for the Wisconsin Department of Tourism.
|
|
|
|
A Happy Getaway Contest Winner
We thank our partners who make the Kenosha Area Getaway Contest possible by donating prizes! We often receive feedback (always positive!) from the winners, including this recent message from Karen and Eldon Kilberger of Anamosa, Iowa: "We just wanted to say thank you for the gift package, we had a great time in Kenosha. The people in your town are very friendly and kind. Even if it was cloudy most of the time, the scenery was beautiful. The hotel was great and the staff were outstanding! The Food places were excellent also. I love taking pictures, I wanted to share one with you from our visit. Again, Thank You."
|
|
|
|
|
|
Featured Business: glyndy Jr's
"Decorating has been my passion for a long time," says Pam Harberg, owner of glyndy Jr's in Downtown Kenosha. She thinks this passion goes back to her childhood when she would borrow items from her mom to decorate her Barbie houses. "It's just something I enjoy." When she found herself in a transition phase, job-wise, she turned that passion into a business. She opened the home furnishings shop glyndy Jr's - her first business - in October 2016. Located at 5925 Sixth Ave. A, the shop offers a mix of new merchandise and old/antique/vintage items. Pam considers her own decorating style to be versatile - similar to the shop. She likes to incorporate the new with the old; to take a new piece and pair it with something antique; to combine something new and shiny with something old and loved. When you visit the shop, you'll likely meet the shop dog, Stanley. Her poodle terrier mix is 8 years old. "He goes just about everywhere with me. We've been on many picking trips together," Pam says. More>
|
|
|
|
Dates 2 Know
7/4: Downtown Location Closed; I-94 Location Open 8-4
7/7: First Fridays @ the I-94 Visitor Information Center
8/4: First Fridays @ the I-94 Visitor Information Center
|
|
KACVB Activity Report
|
May 2017 |
YTD |
| Visitors Guide Requests |
|
|
| Phone |
22 |
97 |
E-mail
|
287 |
1,500 |
Reader Reply
|
556 |
2,063 |
|
|
|
| I-94 Walk Ins |
2,869 |
8,373 |
| I-94 Phone Inquiries |
64 |
245 |
|
|
|
| Downtown Walk Ins |
54 |
199 |
| Downtown Phone Inquiries |
48 |
200 |
|
|
|
| Website Activity |
|
|
Visitor Sessions
|
42,838 |
156,516 |
Page Views
|
111,245 |
405,232 |
Online Guide Page Views
|
3,295 |
10,052 |
|
Hotels are working hard to reduce their carbon footprint. Whether it's by installing water-saving figures during renovations or something as simple as asking guests if they really want fresh towels every day to reduce laundry use, these little changes make a big difference. If you want to make a difference, contact
Laura about becoming
Travel Green Wisconsin
certified today!
|
|
Kenosha Area Convention & Visitors Bureau
Visitor Information Centers:
Downtown Kenosha | 262-654-7307 | 800-654-7309
812 - 56th Street, Kenosha, WI 53140 | Mon.-Fri. 8am-4:30pm
I-94 & Hwy. 165 Rest Area | 262-857-7164
10519 - 120th Avenue, Pleasant Prairie, WI 53158
April - October, 7 days a week 8am-4pm | November - March, Tues.-Sat. 8am-4pm
|
|
|
|
|
