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HELLO, VISIT ALBUQUERQUE PARTNERS,

It was great to see Albuquerque back in action during the 49th Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta® earlier this month. As we take a moment to appreciate all those who make it possible to enjoy the remarkable benefits of this world-renowned event in our city, we’re ready to take on the rest of the beautiful fall season and head into the holidays.

We are also preparing for Native American Heritage Month in November. To mark the occasion, we’ve put together a few ideas for how to celebrate the rich ancestry and cultural traditions in Albuquerque this November and year-round.
 
In this edition of Industry Insider, you’ll find a recap of Balloon Fiesta week, news about upcoming holiday promotions and a new ranking for Albuquerque as a top “Foodie” destination. 

Thank you for being a Visit Albuquerque Partner.

Tania Armenta 
President & CEO
Visit Albuquerque

News

City’s Hospitality Industry Welcomed the Return of Balloon Fiesta 

Hundreds of thousands of visitors flocked to Albuquerque earlier this month for the 49th Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta®, New Mexico’s largest event. More than 550 balloons took flight in the Albuquerque skies during the event’s nine days, with near-perfect weather during the first weekend.

Visit Albuquerque was in full swing at Balloon Fiesta Park again this year, inviting visitors to take a free photo at our giant Visit ABQ frame on the field. The frame photo op was popular, with lines of people waiting to pose inside the frame during the weekend sessions. We also shared daily social media content, hosted national members of the media, answered visitors’ questions at our information table and distributed special booklets to visitors that included information about events and activities throughout the city. 

Visit Albuquerque conducted a promotional campaign in the months leading up to Balloon Fiesta including billboards, television commercials, banner ads, a microsite on VisitABQ.org, email marketing, social media and more. We were also recognized as the sponsor of the Balloon Fiesta’s official mobile app.
 
Hearing tales of happy travels to our city is always rewarding, and we are thrilled to meet visitors firsthand. We hope you all enjoyed a successful Fiesta!

 

 

Balloon Fiesta

THANK YOU FOR MAKING THIS YEAR’S BALLOON FIESTA A SUCCESS 

The entire city plays a role in making the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta® a success, from the Fiesta’s professional staff, volunteers and the local ballooning community to police officers, fire fighters, bus drivers, operations crew, photographers, and more. 
 
We especially want to recognize the employees in Albuquerque’s hospitality industry for your amazing work during this year’s event. Thank you for welcoming visitors to our city and ensuring they enjoyed a wonderful stay, delectable meals and exciting activities. It was great to see the city bustling with energy, especially after the challenges of the past year. And even though many businesses in our industry are still short-staffed, you still managed to make our guests’ visits special. 
 
We truly appreciate your extra effort and enthusiasm. For many people, traveling to Albuquerque for the Balloon Fiesta was a goal on their bucket list. Your hard work means they left Albuquerque with happy memories! 
 
Visit Albuquerque is the Fiesta’s official visitor sponsor and helps promote the event. As exciting as it was to have the Fiesta return this year, we are already looking forward to celebrating the event’s 50th anniversary in 2022. We look forward to teaming up with our partners at the Fiesta and in the local hospitality industry to make the 50th anniversary an unforgettable experience. Watch for more news about our plans and ways to contribute in the coming months.

 

 

DTN - PS - Albuquerque Intl Balloon Fiesta

Send Us Your Holiday and Winter Packages and Deals 

We want to include you in our upcoming winter and holiday promotional efforts. If you are offering a holiday/winter package or deal, we want to know about it and share it! Packages and deals created around a holiday or a season are a great way to encourage visitors to your business. Albuquerque’s beautiful winter weather and unique holiday traditions create a great opportunity to do just that. Submit a package or a coupon to have your offer promoted on our webpage, which is highly ranked on search engines and receives an average of 140,000 unique visitors per month.

 

Holiday and Winter Packages

Downtown Storefront Activation Grant

The Downtown Storefront Activation Grant Program is an economic recovery program aimed to increase the vibrancy of Downtown Albuquerque.

Funded through the American Rescue Plan Act, $500,000 is being made available to businesses that occupy street-level retail space in Downtown Albuquerque. Grants of up to $30,000 are available to small businesses (less than 250 employees) that activate and occupy storefront space in the Downtown District. Grant funds are intended to support the success of businesses activating downtown and may be used for the following expenses:

• Tenant Improvements (i.e., construction within the leased space)
• Rent & utilities
• Inventory/cost of goods sold
• Furniture, fixtures, and equipment
• Employee recruitment, training, and/or compensation
• Other business expenses

Learn more about eligibility and how to apply here

Downtown Skyline

 
Visit Albuquerque Senior National Sales Manager Attends Destination Celebration

From Sept. 14-16, Senior National Sales Manager Tabitha Stallworth traveled to Manhattan, Kan., and Kansas City, Mo. She hosted a client lunch-and-learn and exhibited at Destination Celebration, where she also had the opportunity to network with over 80 planners. From Oct. 13-15, Tabitha traveled to Indianapolis, Ind., where she attended the Destination Celebration Indy event and continues to meet with planners from the Midwest.

 

Meeting Stock

 
Albuquerque Ranks as a Top Foodie Destination 

Albuquerque ranked 30th overall and 8th for “Affordability” in WalletHub’s report on 2021’s Best Foodie Cities in America. To determine the best local foodie scenes, WalletHub compared more than 180 of the largest U.S. cities across 29 key metrics. The data set ranges from affordability and accessibility of high-quality restaurants to food festivals per capita to craft breweries and wineries per capita.

 

Tacos and beer on table

 
Spark Acts of Kindness Around Albuquerque

Visit Albuquerque is participating, along with other community organizations, in the Jennifer Riordan Foundation’s Spark Kindness Campaign in an effort to help make Albuquerque the kindness capital of the world. The goal is to log 1 million acts of kindness by December 2021. To participate in spreading acts of kindness, download the Spark Kindness App.

 

 

Acts of Kindness

 

Marketing Tips & Tricks 

 

What Is User-Generated Content and Why It’s Important

User-generated content (UGC) can be a valuable asset to incorporate into your social media strategy. UGC is any type of content that’s created by your followers, product users or consumers. It is an affordable way to share high-quality content that generates sales for your business or brand — it’s the social media equivalent of a word-of-mouth recommendation. To learn more about how you can leverage this powerful social media marketing tool, visit this introductory guide from Later.

 

Partner Opportunities 

 

Submit Your Events to the ABQ365 Events Calendar 

Visit Albuquerque’s ABQ365 Events Calendar offers a great opportunity to promote your events! The one-stop, all-ABQ encompassing calendar features primarily arts, entertainment and culture-focused events, appealing to both locals and visitors. 

Event listings offer a great opportunity for additional exposure and promotion, and can help keep your business top-of-mind – for free! 

Click here to get started.
 

Submit Your Current Coupons 

Coupons can be a great way to drive traffic to your business. If you have a current coupon or special running, please submit it to us so we can list it on our Specials & Coupons page. 

Click here to submit your current coupons and specials.
 

Tell Us What’s New

We want to help you share your new initiatives. If you are offering a new type of service or concept, a new product, or have anything else exciting or new going on, we want to hear about it! Send anything and everything to Media@VisitABQ.org

 

Promote & Share 

 

Partner Kudos

 

Rio Bravo Brewing Celebrates 6th Anniversary

Rio Bravo Brewing Co. celebrated its 6th anniversary in September and announced the return of weekend brunches, karaoke nights and more in honor of the milestone. Congratulations!

 

Featured Partners

Discovery Map of Albuquerque

Partnering with Visit Albuquerque to provide the Official Map of Albuquerque since 2016
 
Put your business on the map!

  • Visit Albuquerque Partners get 10% off!
  • Monthly payment option available.
  • 300,000 printed maps distributed at over 350 locations year-round, including Visit Albuquerque offices, welcome centers, Albuquerque Airport, car rental offices, hotels, motels, and RV parks.
  • 25,000+ digital viewers driving traffic to your website.
  • Full-color ad design free of charge. 

Reserve your space now!  Call 505-750-0076 or email jeffstevens@discoverymap.com

 

Discovery Map

Unbelievable Pass

Calling local breweries, entertainment and restaurant businesses to participate in a digital passport program developed to help local businesses with no cost to participate. The Unbelievable Pass will be the premier deals pass for Albuquerque and the perfect cure for cabin fever.

Email support@unbelievablepass.com for more information.
 

Unbelievable Pass Logo

New & Renewing Partners 

 
Thanks To Our New And Renewing Partners  

Visit Albuquerque’s Partners help support our mission to market the city as a top-choice destination for leisure travel, meetings and sporting events. Our thanks to the following Partners that recently joined or renewed their partnership with Visit Albuquerque. We appreciate your commitment to making Albuquerque a great place to live and to visit!

New Partners

Renewing Partners