July 1, 2020
Good Afternoon,
We received good news yesterday regarding the relaxation of the Commonwealth’s quarantine advisory. Starting today, visitors from New England, New York and New Jersey will no longer have to observe the 14-day quarantine. This is great timing as we will be marketing our destination extensively to prospective visitors across our region. That said, we encourage all GBCVB partners to continue with the utmost vigilance as we continue to trend in a positive direction. Ahead of the holiday weekend, please note that the TSA has announced checkpoint modifications to help curtail the spread of COVID-19. And for all information and updates related to travel to and within Massachusetts please visit the DPH website.
We hope you saw the Membership & Marketing e-newsletter we sent out yesterday, which included a link to reopening guidelines we produced as part of our Bring Back Boston: Safe & Strong initiative. This document is a resource for our partners to reopen with the safety of their employees and customers as the paramount concern. Our newsletter also linked to a Membership Benefits piece that illustrates the many areas in which we have supported our members during these unprecedented times. We wanted you all to know that your member benefits have continued uninterrupted, and in many ways have been enhanced.
Plans are underway for our August Dine Out Boston program. This year’s tagline will be “Dining Out, Together Again,” and the dates will be August 16-21 & 23-28. Our restaurant members should have all received an email from us yesterday with links to register for Dine Out Boston. Please sign up to participate and send us your menus!
Our webinar series, “Reopening & Recovery: Navigating the New Normal,” continued last Thursday, June 25 with a very interesting discussion on Boston’s beautiful waterways and how ferry travel and recreational activities along the Charles and in Boston Harbor will be affected throughout the summer and fall of 2020, including visitation to the Boston Harbor Islands. Please find a recording of the session here. We are now going to pause the webinar series for a few weeks and it will return on July 23 with a panel comprised of PR & Communications experts.
I have a bit of sad news to share, which is that Bob Cummings, the first President of the GBCVB, recently passed away. Bob’s professional career also included being President of the Freedom Trail Foundation and President of the first Sail Boston back in 1992. He was a resident of Winchester for over 50 years and his legacy in this city and industry is indelible.
Finally, we want to share a presentation from Destination Analysts on the importance of DMOs during a crisis, and the value of their communications efforts. From the outset of this crisis, it has been described as “unprecedented, fluid, uncharted, devastating, and an existential threat.” All terms aptly describe what this pandemic has meant for our industry; it has leveled an economic crater 13 times that of 9/11 and no one truly knows where the bottom is. Here in Boston and Massachusetts we hope that we have turned a corner. We are encouraged by the Governor’s relaxation of the quarantine, we are optimistic that July 6 will bring good news related to Phase III of the reopening, and we will be steadfast in representing the best interests of our members in navigating the road ahead. We are here for you. Please enjoy a safe and relaxing 4th of July weekend.
Martha
Martha J. Sheridan
President & CEO
Greater Boston Convention & Visitors Bureau
msheridan@bostonusa.com
