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Old 12-24-2013, 12:48 PM
 
37 posts, read 60,186 times
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BTW, if a casino gets built within easy distance of Boston's convention center, Boston's tourism stats will definitely go up. Part of the reason Orlando and Vegas are so strong is they already do massive convention business, but then so many people choose to extended their trips beyond whatever business they're there for and join it up with a leisure trip. What Vegas and Orlando offer is extremely easy to understand and digest (NYC too, though to a slightly lesser extent). I would argue Boston's offerings are more refined and nuanced and aren't as easy to just outright "sell", like in an elevator pitch, as a "vacation" where you can "get away from it all" -- to a large degree Boston falls under the historic tourism category in terms of leisure visitors.

Casinos, for better or worse, are an extremely easy feature-benefit sell, so the location of it could potentially have an impact on Boston's tourism because it will make selling having conventions in Boston that much easier, and it may be the straw that breaks the camel's back in terms of pushing people to extend their trip to the area beyond just business. It's hard to understand this if you're from Boston and know all of its one-of-a-kind nooks and crannies, that a casino could ironically be the thing that gets people to stay longer, but it very well could (for better or worse -- I get that it's a fraught debate). I personally wish they didn't have to resort to a casino and could do something a little more in keeping with Boston's true spirit, but it definitely will lift the tourism.
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Old 12-24-2013, 04:47 PM
 
Location: RI, MA, VT, WI, IL, CA, IN (that one sucked), KY
41,936 posts, read 36,989,150 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by table12 View Post
I personally wish they didn't have to resort to a casino and could do something a little more in keeping with Boston's true spirit, but it definitely will lift the tourism.

It may, but lets hope that crud doesn't occur.
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Old 12-24-2013, 06:39 PM
 
Location: Medfid
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Are casinos really against "Boston's true spirit"? Not saying that I support a casino, but I've heard that sentiment before and I don't know if its totally valid.

Hasn't Boston had casinos in the past?


Hanover Street facing Haymarket Square, 11:15 A.M. by MIT-Libraries, on Flickr
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Old 12-25-2013, 03:59 PM
 
37 posts, read 60,186 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by iAMtheVVALRUS View Post
Are casinos really against "Boston's true spirit"? Not saying that I support a casino, but I've heard that sentiment before and I don't know if its totally valid.

Hasn't Boston had casinos in the past?


Hanover Street facing Haymarket Square, 11:15 A.M. by MIT-Libraries, on Flickr
Sure they've had casinos in the past. But they were basically quaint little adorable things as far as casinos go. It's a little like comparing a Six Flags to Disney -- it's a non-comparison. The casino being pitched for Boston will be Vegas-style, which I do think will butt heads to some degree with Boston's ethos. I'm more perturbed by the fact that going the casino route at all has an element of just throwing the towel in -- they've run out of ideas to attract and grow their tourism/convention business, and a big casino is a turn-key way to just kind of "make it happen".

To put it in perspective, Disney is adamantly against casinos in Orlando, which in effect means Orlando as a city is largely against it. Not because they're against it ethically, but because they actually can monetize their land more effectively and compellingly than with a casino -- they're not desperate enough to need one. It does bother me a little that Boston has to resort to it, despite the fact that I think it would be a success. Boston leads in so many areas, and I just kind of wish they had a more unique way to attract tourism than a casino.
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Old 12-31-2013, 08:15 AM
 
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How about a mini amusement park? one roller coaster, a giant ferris wheel, bumper cars and a bowling alley with a bar and billiards at the Everett location where Wynn wants to put the casino or the Suffolk downs location. Good ol' fashion family fun!

And great veiws of the city from the ferris wheel
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Old 12-31-2013, 10:28 AM
 
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I love the mini amusement park idea, although it probably would have to be indoors. DreamWorks is planning on building large indoor amusement parks in Russia, so it certainly can be done. I'm not sure about a giant ferris wheel because Bloomberg is trying to push a 600 ft. one through for NYC and Orlando's already building a 425 ft. one set to open next year, so it would have to be somewhere in that range to really compete:

What's up with I-Drive Live, 'Orlando Eye' Ferris wheel?

But you're right, it would have GREAT views of the city! The combination of a large wheel + amusement park + casino would definitely bring more tourism into the city, and then -- once they're there -- people might discover Boston's truly unique offerings that are a little harder to sell in a catchy, elevator pitch-ey way, the way a purely entertainment-based area is.
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Old 12-31-2013, 11:29 AM
 
Location: Cleveland and Columbus OH
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Casinos, ferris wheels, indoor amusement parks are all gimmicks. Nobody is going to come from out of state to see a Ferris wheel. Everyone and their brother is opening a casino in this country now- not exactly a novelty anymore. Plus, anyone who really wants to go and spend money at casinos is still going to go to Vegas.
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Old 12-31-2013, 11:51 AM
 
37 posts, read 60,186 times
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Originally Posted by bjimmy24 View Post
Nobody is going to come from out of state to see a Ferris wheel.
That's what a bunch of British people said about the London Eye before it got built, now they can't imagine their city without it, it absolutely brought in people from outside the UK. It isn't that there's any *one* thing that does it, it's the combination of elements and the idea that everyone in the family can have fun. Sure, plenty of people in Boston are going to scoff at the idea of casinos, ferris wheels, amusement parks, etc., but the bottom line is they drive traffic in a way that museums and schools simply don't, and definitely would make the city more accessible for people who might currently view it as a little "above" them.

Orlando is essentially one gigantic gimmick ("a people trap run by a mouse") and it gets almost 60 million *overnight* visitors a year, whereas Boston claims approx. 20 million visitors a year but also happily counts daytrippers in that number. I agree that casinos, amusement parks and wheels are a bit of a gimmick, but right now Boston's batting 0-3 with them and I do think they can only help the city (if done well and in a world-class manner being the big caveat).
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Old 12-31-2013, 11:53 AM
 
37 posts, read 60,186 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by bjimmy24 View Post
Plus, anyone who really wants to go and spend money at casinos is still going to go to Vegas.
Not true -- Foxwoods has been a monster success, mainly because -- especially as people age -- they like the idea of casinos but hate the idea of flying. Or people who just don't have enough cash to get to Vegas. There's probably enough people in those boats to make a casino in Boston a success (though at what cost -- I get that it could certainly drag down the city's image).
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Old 12-31-2013, 11:57 AM
 
37 posts, read 60,186 times
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BTW, you mentioned you've spent time in Columbus -- Cedar Point is a huge driver of tourism for the city, despite being 2 hours away. There are many people from outside of Ohio who make a trip with the primary objective being Cedar Point and then layer a trip to Columbus on top of it (or Cleveland). My experience has been that things that seem like gimmicks often resonate with tourists the most (though *definitely* not with locals).
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