With five months to go until the 9th annual North America Golf Tourism Convention (NAC), organizer IAGTO has announced that 140 golf tour operators from a record 37 countries have already registered to attend this year’s event.
More than half of the attending operators are travelling from Europe, Canada and the USA, with a further 17 operators from Australia and New Zealand, and a similar number from Latin America and the Caribbean. Asia accounts for 19% of registered “buyers” at NAC, which is being held at Trump National Doral® Miami from 24-27 June. That represents a notable increase on previous years, reflecting a growing interest in travel by golfers to North America from Asian markets.
Claudio DeMarchi, North America Representative of global tourism industry organisation IAGTO (International Association of Golf Tour Operators), said: “With new flight connectivity to Miami, this great golf destination is now much more accessible to the Asian market, which explains why we have 12 Chinese and five Singaporean golf tour operators already registered, with no doubt more to come.”
Trump Organization Executive Vice President of Development and Acquisitions, Eric F. Trump, said:
“We are thrilled to be the host property for this year’s IAGTO NAC. It is an exciting time at Trump National Doral as we celebrate the culmination of our multi-million dollar transformation and showcase our premier golf courses and unparalleled luxury service to the world’s best golf travel leaders.”
The Miami convention marks a homecoming for the event. Reflecting on the first NAC that was hosted by Doral in May 2009, DeMarchi said: “NAC was set up specifically to support the American golf destinations at the beginning of the global economic crisis. The iconic Doral resort back then hosted the entire event, which is why we have branded this year’s convention ‘Back to the Blue Monster’ to show our appreciation for what the resort did for the industry in a more difficult time. By comparison, we only had 40 golf tour operators from 10 countries at our first event, so this shows how things have grown!”
Linda Stilmann, Senior Director of Sales for the Greater Miami Convention & Visitors Bureau, said: “Hosting one of the most important golf tourism events in North America is central to our focus on sports tourism promotion throughout the Greater Miami and the Beaches area in 2017, and to have the golf travel decision-makers from so many countries experience our destination and golf product first hand will undoubtedly reap immediate dividends.”
NAC 2017 provides an opportunity for golf destinations throughout North America, but particularly the USA, to engage and do business with the world’s leading golf tour operators and will comprise two days of business sessions, culminating in the annual NAC golf tournament to be held on Doral’s legendary Blue Monster and Red Tiger golf courses. The event will also mark two years of partnership between IAGTO and Brand USA, the destination-marketing organisation for the USA, designed to increase golf tourism to the United States.
“Our ground-breaking USA Golf Tourism Survey published last year showed that golf courses across the country are open to and of interest to international visitors and had capacity for growth of around 20% on average. For years, golf travelers have really only scratched the surface of the many amazing golf experiences that are waiting to be discovered throughout the USA,” added DeMarchi.
Visit www.iagto.com/NAC for more information.
Claudio DeMarchi
IAGTO North America representative
cdemarchi@iagto.com – Toll Free 1-800-250-3080
Guillaume Post
Marketing & Communications Manager
gpost@iagto.com – Tel: +44 20 8096 3377
About IAGTO
Established in 1997, IAGTO is the global trade organisation of the golf tourism industry, and has over 2500 members in 97 countries including over 650 golf tour operator members in 61 countries, which control more than 87% of golf holiday packages sold worldwide and which collectively have annual sales of over US$2.5 billion. IAGTO runs annual Asia and North America Golf Tourism Conventions, along with regular Destination Conventions. IAGTO established the International Golf Travel Market, now owned and operated by Reed Travel Exhibitions, in 1997 and the International Golf Travel Writers Association in 2000. IAGTO also runs the prestigious annual IAGTO Awards.
About Trump Hotels™
Trump Hotels™ is a family enterprise with a history of providing extraordinary customer experiences. The brand’s exceptionally designed hotels in iconic locations put guests at the heart of each destination. Led by seasoned hotel industry veteran Eric Danziger, Trump Hotels is part of The Trump Organization, helmed by Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump. Reservations can be made at www.TrumpHotels.com or by calling (855) TRUMP-00 (855-878-6700).
About Trump National Doral® Miami
In June 2012, Trump Hotels™ acquired Miami’s iconic Doral Golf Resort & Spa with the goal of creating the greatest golf resort in the United States. Today, the 800-acre Trump National Doral® Miami showcases the Trump family’s commitment to this $250 million transformation ushering in a new era of sprawling luxury with a triumphant return to grandeur. The resort boasts 643 all-new deluxe guestrooms and suites located across eight villas; a completely redesigned clubhouse; eclectic cuisine and fine handcrafted cocktails throughout four food and beverage outlets including the award winning BLT Prime; a re-imagined spa treatment menu within The Trump Spa’s redesigned 48,000 sq. ft. tranquil oasis ; all-new Trump Spa Suites; all-new re-imagined recreational amenities; complete transformations by world-renowned golf architect Gil Hanse, to 72 holes of championship golf across four golf courses, including the legendary Blue Monster; a new True Spec Golf Club Fitting Lab; an expansion of the highly regarded McLean Golf School; a private members’ clubhouse, and more than 7,000 sq. ft. of the most coveted, latest, and many times exclusive golf and fashion apparel. The resort’s award-winning Blue Monster has been host to the PGA TOUR for 55 consecutive years. Additionally, the resort boasts more than 100,000 sq. ft. of meeting space, one-of-a-kind outdoor venues and elegantly designed ballrooms. For reservations, call toll-free (800) 71-DORAL (36725) or visit https://www.trumphotels.com/miami.
IAGTO Ltd is registered in England as a Professional Membership Organisation.
Registered No. 3507678 – UK SIC 9112
Concorde House, Grenville Place, London NW7 3SA, United Kingdom.
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