Travel Media Press Tours Generate Great Coverage

June 7

MEDIA RELEASE:

Saint John, May 9, 2012 – Discover Saint John recently hosted 14 travel journalists and photographers on two press tours promoting the urban delights of the city and the Bay of Fundy experience in the region.

The journalists, who are based across the country and are members of the Travel Media Association of Canada, experienced the food and beverage scene in the city, visited local attractions like the City Market, Rockwood Park and the New Brunswick Museum, ventured to the edge of the Reversing Rapids on the Harbour Sightseeing Boat Tour and took a day trip along the coast to the Fundy Trail.

Jillian MacKinnon, Manager of Marketing and Communications for Discover Saint John, was thrilled to have the opportunity to host. “Working with travel media is an important part of our overall marketing strategy.  More and more people are relying on things like editorial coverage or social media to make travel decisions – they are looking for the authentic story not the glossy brochure.” And the return on investment can be high. “A favourable media review in certain media outlets is worth more than our budget could possibly afford to buy in equivalent advertising.”

Discover Saint John hosts various journalists throughout the year working with local industry partners to deliver an exceptional experience in the city.  Links to recent coverage resulting from press tours hosted by Discover Saint John:

TravelIndustryToday.com – Margaret Swaine “The Global Gourmet”, May 8, 2012
“Caviar blueberry beer and boar topped poutine”
http://www.travelindustrytoday.com/web/index.php?option=com_k2&view=item&id=14054

Financial Post Magazine – Adam McDowell “Happy Hour”, April 10, 2012
“Wine in port”
http://business.financialpost.com/2012/04/10/wine-in-port/

Discover Saint John’s mandate is to increase tourism revenues in Saint John by marketing our unique and competitive tourism experiences to high-potential markets.

The tourism industry in Saint John receives approximately 1.5 million visitors annually with visitor spending of an estimated $1/4 billion.