Pittsburgh #1 in it's category for tourism...again. (McKees Rocks: construction, bill)

[pman]

Originally Posted by MathmanMathman

If they are fairly sure of that, would make the case for a 1000 room hotel for the convention center.

dead business

[Gee Whiz]

Originally Posted by bradjl2009

Just curious, did they mention any reasons 2015 will be a huge year for tourism in the area? Are there supposed to be a lot of major conventions visiting then?

No. The interview was short and sweet and did not get into specifics. It was basically a quick update with a few tidbits and then on to the next guest.

[DaisyDaisy]

They usually do a press release after their annual meeting, which was last week. Here’s the latest info. They mention "a sampling of major conventions, groups and events booked by VisitPITTSBURGH in 2013:

• Anthrocon's 2016 Annual Convention (6,365 room nights; $6.3 million in estimated direct spending)
• USA Gymnastics 2014 National Congress & Trade Show and P&G Gymnastics Championships (6,457 room nights; $5 million)
• The Steelworkers' 2015 USW Joint Safety and Health Conference (5,385 room nights; $2.5 million)
• Collinson Media & Events' 2015 Connect Marketplace and Connect Sports Marketplace (5,660 room nights; $1.8 million)"

Next week is the National Catholic Education Association which will have 8000 attendees. For future, they also rebooked the National Society of Black Engineers, which was almost 11000 room nights last time they were in town. And they'll host the annual conference of the Barbershop Harmony Society (about 5000 people) in summer 2015.
They promote tourism and that includes tourism for this region and others close by. From their recent report, more Ohioans are visiting : "Volume of visitors tracked from our two targeted markets in Cleveland and Columbus, Ohio, was up 11 percent and 17 percent, respectively."

[gortonator]

Originally Posted by DaisyDaisy

And they'll host the annual conference of the Barbershop Harmony Society (about 5000 people) in summer 2015.

They promote tourism and that includes tourism for this region and others close by. From their recent report, more Ohioans are visiting : "Volume of visitors tracked from our two targeted markets in Cleveland and Columbus, Ohio, was up 11 percent and 17 percent, respectively."

I would never have thought the Barbershop Harmony Society had 5000 members. I live and learn.

And with stats like this about OH cities, we really need zman63 back. Hopefully his next idea for a name will be slightly less obvious that Zman63. Even Xboy62 would be an improvement

[DaisyDaisy]

Originally Posted by gortonator

I would never have thought the Barbershop Harmony Society had 5000 members. I live and learn.

And with stats like this about OH cities, we really need zman63 back. Hopefully his next idea for a name will be slightly less obvious that Zman63. Even Xboy62 would be an improvement

That's 5000 attendees at their convention; I just checked and their membership is 25000 worldwide!

Maybe he'll come back as OhioMan. But the more "trollicious" prefer to use all kinds of less obvious personas.

[grep]

Originally Posted by LIRefugee

He's banned..

Did I miss something? I know he was a pessimist, but he seemed to have a basis for most of his opinions.

[szug-bot]

i am sorry that zman is banned, if he actually is. i dont recall his ever being anything but honest. not everyone likes everything. i mean, if this were a lady gaga forum, im positive it would be trolled by people that hate her. its in HOW you say it - and i dont think he was malicious.

for the topic - this is great news! there are advantages in being mid-sized.

[Aqua Teen Carl]

Originally Posted by grep

Did I miss something? I know he was a pessimist, but he seemed to have a basis for most of his opinions.

Yeah, he actually backed up his opinions with proof when possible (something that not many people do here). But if you dare insult the glorious kingdom you are banished.

Anyway on topic: besides conventions what is the tourist draw here? The incline, Mt. Washington, Strip District, and PNC Park neatly fit into tourist guide books but all the other "cool sh*t" the city has to offer requires a lot of digging. Being a pretty well traveled dude I can safely say that few tourists are willing to go beyond the usual touristy material, so I'm curious.

[Yac]

Zman broke the rules many times, he was warned and warned again, he was issued a very specific final warning etc. He decided not to listen and to keep trolling and he got what he wanted.
Now please get back on topic and remember that discussing moderation in public is against the tos. You can always ask me any questions you have in private.
Yac.

[DaisyDaisy]

Originally Posted by Aqua Teen Carl

Anyway on topic: besides conventions what is the tourist draw here? The incline, Mt. Washington, Strip District, and PNC Park neatly fit into tourist guide books but all the other "cool sh*t" the city has to offer requires a lot of digging. Being a pretty well traveled dude I can safely say that few tourists are willing to go beyond the usual touristy material, so I'm curious.

Visit Pittsburgh publishes quarterly "Play" guides that include upcoming events. I believe they distribute them to area venues as well as some outside this area. Their website gets a lot of traffic, even from people in the region. Here's their things to do section.