A warm welcome to our two newest board members: John H. Estey of Ballard Spahr Andrews & Ingersoll, LLP and Rhonda R. Cohen, Esquire. John and Rhonda both have a great passion for our city and region. We look forward to working with them to promote Philadelphia's image as a premier place to live, work and visit.

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Rising gas prices, an uncertain economy and an increase in close-to-home vacations have prompted GPTMC to take a different approach with the Philly's More Fun™ advertising campaign this summer. Partnering with American Express, GPTMC has developed the Philly's More Summer Fun Hotel Package, giving consumers an American Express-branded reward card worth $50 when they book a two-night hotel stay. Advertising, running in targeted national markets and throughout the northeast corridor on TV, radio, online, print and outdoor, promotes the package while showing off the many reasons why Philly's More Fun™.

Those who like options will find many additional hotel packages, such as the popular Philly Overnight® Hotel Package, including free hotel parking, and the Animal Discoveries Hotel Package, which comes with four tickets to several family-friendly attractions on gophila.com.

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Following the success of its previous Web video programs, uwishunu.com is now showing Philly 55, a 10-episode series featuring tips for locals and tourists looking to fill their 55-hour weekend from Friday at 5:00 p.m. through Sunday at 12:00 midnight. The series, hosted by Philly local Jessica Conda, is produced by streettalkin.com. It will run every Friday through July 25 on uwishunu.com and streettalkin.com. Also available on uwishunu.com: IllaDates (affordable dates), IllaNights (nightlife), Studioscopic (artists) and Philly Chefs: All Up in Their Grills (chefs).

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Philadelphia Quest for Freedom, now in year two, features new programs, tours and exhibitions that explore the story of the region's Underground Railroad and early African-American history. Exhibitions such as Black Hands, Blue Seas at the Independence Seaport Museum and Black Founders: The Free Black Community in the Early Republic at the Library Company of Philadelphia, along with living history programs at Belmont Mansion, the Johnson House Historic Site and Mother Bethel A.M.E. Church allow visitors to hear a more exciting and multi-layered rendition of the United States' early years than ever before. Self-guided tours round out the offerings. gophila.com/questforfreedom

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In June, GPTMC lent tourism marketing expertise and resources to broaden the Philadelphia experience for those attending conferences and meetings in town. Here's a look:

• 31^st Annual Association of Alternative Newsweeklies Conference: GPTMC sponsored the opening night gala and provided attendees with a private tour of Independence Hall and the Liberty Bell Center.


• Online News Association: GPTMC did a presentation for 75 members of the regional media explaining how the company uses social media tools for promotion.


• Travel and Tourism Research Association: GPTMC answered the call from the Philadelphia Convention & Visitors Bureau by bringing home 400 attendees from the U.S. and abroad for the Travel and Tourism Research Association meeting. Meryl Levitz welcomed more than 300 conference attendees and introduced Mayor Michael A. Nutter, who spoke about the impact of tourism to the City of Philadelphia.


• Americans for the Arts: Levitz was recognized as an Economic Development Innovator at this 1,400-person conference and led a presentation on uwishunu® and social media. GPTMC also provided support on 14 tours, planned and executed two tours and handed out brochures and ran videos in the welcome area.

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GPTMC recently received three awards recognizing the company's efforts to promote Greater Philadelphia as a destination to leisure tourists. For her leadership in the tourism industry, Meryl Levitz was inducted into the Keystone Society for Tourism on May 6 at Destination Pennsylvania: The Governor's Conference on Tourism. In the same month, Levitz accepted the Philadelphia Select award from the Philadelphia chapter of the American Marketing Association on behalf of the GPTMC staff. And most recently, the Philadelphia Direct Marketing Association (PDMA) presented Levitz and GPTMC with the Direct Marketer of the Year award.

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• "When it comes to celebrating patriotism, it's pretty hard to beat Philadelphia." – USA Today (circulation: 2,278,000), June 27, 2008
• "As the birthplace of the nation, Philadelphia can seem far less entertaining than educational. But look past all that and you will find a younger, more vibrant city emerging." – nytimes.com, June 1, 2008
• "There are enough history excursions in the City of Brotherly Love to fill an entire summer … But there's also plenty to do off the history track … "
  – The New York Times (circulation: 1,500,394), June 1, 2008
• "Art is everywhere in Philadelphia, shown in a variety of venues and events. … Score another one for artistic freedom. In Philadelphia, expect nothing less." – The Record (North Jersey, circulation: 191,401), April 27, 2008
• "Already steeped in American history and renowned for its cheese steak sandwiches and brutish sports fans, Philly is brewing a reputation for itself as a destination for beer geeks who are serious about the craft." [about Philly Beer Week] – Toronto Sun (circulation: 249,000), June 15, 2008
• "It's always a treat to visit the birthplace of our nation, but I've discovered a surprisingly different reason to head to Philadelphia — the beer." [about Philly Beer Week] – MetroSource, June/July 2008
• "The Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation (www.gophila.com/gay) deserves special credit here, setting the standard for courting gay visitors as a welcome and important market." – gay.com, April 4, 2008
• " … America's Cradle of Liberty also lures adults who appreciate fine food and wine, world-class art, and scenic attractions." – about.com, May 2008
• "If we visited gophila.com to plan an upcoming trip to Philly, you'd have to tear us away from our computers when it was time to leave for the real Philadelphia. Full of multimedia options including hearPHILLY podcasts, the site is undeniably fresh; summer offerings include a list of the top 10 June events as well as a July 4th section. But besides being up-to-date, informative, and easy to use (thanks in part to My Trip, a personal itinerary planner), it's just plain fun: unique features include a map of the city's BYOB restaurants by neighborhood and cuisine (with the nearest liquor stores) and an insider guide and sister site called uwishunu." – IgoUgo travel blog (Technorati ranking: 121,389 out of a possible 70 million blogs), June 16, 2008

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