WELCOMING VISITORS BACK

Leisure travelers are itching to hit the road
We've all experienced cabin fever these past three months during the statewide stay-at-home order. Good news is...the next stage is here! California Gov. Gavin Newsom's administration allowed leisure travel to open statewide as of Friday, June 12 . This is uplifting for the Redding community because as businesses start to open up, visitor spending will contribute to the recovery of our local economy. While preparing for the recovery phase, the Redding CVB has been working with industry experts and researchers to conclude:

  • An increasing number of Americans report they are already traveling or ready to travel
  • Over 70% will take at least one leisure trip in the remainder of 2020
  • The majority of Americans expect to take more road trips and more regional trips while avoiding long-haul or airline travel

This is what the Redding CVB has been preparing for and now is the time for our team to shift from our pause phase when our messaging was "Plan Now, Travel Later" into the recovery phase so our beautiful city can shine!
THE REDDING PLEDGE

Vowing for responsible recreation and opt-outside messaging
One attribute of Redding that we, as citizens, can promise locals and visitors alike is places to #RecreateResponsibly . Another is that our businesses have protocols in place to keep everyone as safe as possible. The world-class natural attractions in our own backyard make Redding a premier vacation destination now more than ever. Thus, Redding can pledge we have fresh air, clean water, we are an outdoor oasis and our businesses are geared up to invite people back through our doors!

Redding's open spaces, national forests, waterfalls, trails, lakes and rivers are the exact attributes travelers are looking to experience as they plan their trips following the pandemic. Industry experts say a majority of Americans want to travel to a destination that resembles Redding -- a rural place that features nearby state and national parks. Here's our chance to show why Redding has to be on their travel list!
HOW WE'RE BRINGING MORE VISITORS

Advertising placement is a key factor 
Redding's Pledge and our recovery plan are integrated into our annual marketing plan to show how the Redding CVB will get in front of leisure travelers. Marketing and promoting our area is what we do best and our CEO Laurie Baker's vision is crafted into an extensive plan designed so the community can benefit from the work of our team.
Most notably, the Redding CVB is choosing to advertise with the popular streaming platform Hulu and the world's largest travel site TripAdvisor . Hulu has seen 18% more viewers turning on the platform every day across March and April and viewers are 40 percent more likely to have made a travel reservation online in the past year. TripAdvisor receives more than 375 million unique visitors per month and is the go-to-guide for modern travel planning outside of Destination Marketing Organization (DMO) websites like VisitRedding.com. Targeted campaigns like these make Redding's presence during the recovery time more important than ever.
OUR WEBSITE PLAYS AN IMPORTANT ROLE

VisitRedding.com is highly valued for both visitors and locals
The Visit Redding website is full of information, photos, videos and articles on attractions, restaurants, icons, landmarks and lodging properties. Industry experts state (as most of us already knew) that travel-related websites and social media will likely be the focus of travel-decision-making in the coming months and that is for each of the Millennial, Gen Z and Baby Boomer demographics. In particular survey results by Destination Analysts, conducted in partnership with Shasta-Cascade Wonderland Association and the Redding CVB, prove that a majority of people searching VisitRedding.com are looking for outdoor recreation opportunities.

During May as part of our "Plan Now, Travel Later" messaging phase, we sent our website visitors to other local organization websites more than 3,000 times . To inspire future travel, the Visit Redding site is filled with colorful and inspirational photo galleries built from user generated social media posts to help potential travelers dream and plan. Those galleries received more than 12,000 views and had a 32.3% engagement rate in May, the best of the three months during the coronavirus pandemic. This might be an indication that people are ready to travel just as the travel industry expert data conveys.

The Redding CVB partnered with industry leaders to collect the data that tells us over 80% of all audiences -- visitors and locals -- say it's "important" or "extremely important" that DMOs like us offer the type of information that is currently available on their sites. Our team was busy with daily updates to make sure VisitRedding.com viewers were getting the most accurate and up-to-date information possible on attractions, businesses and restaurants openings and offerings. We're here to promote Redding to everyone and help this community thrive!
FAMOUSLY REDDING -- LAKE SHASTA CAVERNS

Watch the video from one of our marketing campaigns
Redding INSIDER BLOG

Read our recent tourism articles from the Visit Redding blog
10 Lakes, Rivers, Pools, and Swimming Holes Where You...

Come summer, most locals and visitors in Redding have one goal on their minds: hitting the water. Fortunately, dozens of lakes, rivers, and pools in the Redding area make it

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