CORNING – The American Bus Association (ABA) announced Monday that GlassFest, to be held on May 22-25, and Finger Lakes Wine Festival, to be held in July, have been designated as two of the Top 100 Events in North America for 2014 by an experienced expert tourism industry selection committee. Inclusion in the Top 100 list, published as a supplement to the September/October issue of Destinations magazine, indicates that GlassFest and Finger Lakes Wine Festival offer excellent entertainment values to both tour groups and individual travelers from around the world, according to ABA.
With the release of the American Bus Association's 2014 Top 100 Events in North America, ABA celebrates 32 years of the program. What began as a way for motorcoach operators to incorporate new product into their itineraries has grown to one of the most sought-after lists by travel professionals, motorcoach operators and the general public.
"The attractiveness of both GlassFest and Finger lakes Wine Festival as don't-miss entertainment values is only part of why its selection this year is such a distinction for Corning & the Finger Lakes," said Peter J. Pantuso, CTIS, ABA's president and CEO. "The real news here is that GlassFest and Finger Lakes Wine Festival have been recognized as potential magnets for tourism dollars, at a time when reenergizing domestic tourism is so important to our spirit and our economy. The honor gives Corning & the Finger Lakes an important boost in visibility among professional tour planners."
“We are so honored that both GlassFest and Finger Lakes Wine Festival were selected as ABA Top 100 events this year. This is the first year for GlassFest and the fourth consecutive year for Finger Lakes Wine Festival,” said Peggy Coleman, President of the Steuben County Conference & Visitors Bureau. “To be in the company of great events like Star-Spangled Spectacular in Baltimore, MD, and Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade really shows the quality of area events in attracting visitors to our destination.”
"We are elated to learn that GlassFest has been designated as one of ABA's Top 100 events for 2014,” said Coleen Fabrizi, Executive Director of Corning’s Gaffer District. “The success of GlassFest is a celebration of everything glass and more here in America's Crystal City. We pay homage to our history and our future with four fun-filled days, including a number of free activities for our guests. We are excited to welcome visitors from around the country for GlassFest in 2014!"
“The Finger Lakes Wine Festival presented by Yancey’s Fancy New York’s Artisan Cheese is one of the premiere wine-tasting events in North America,” said Michael Printup, President of Watkins Glen International. “It is our pleasure to showcase all that the Finger Lakes Region has to offer and we’re thrilled to again be recognized as one of the American Bus Association’s Top 100 events in North America. The collaboration with all of Finger Lakes Wine Country, especially the Steuben County Conference and Visitors Bureau, has helped make this a wildly popular event for Watkins Glen International.”
According to studies completed by researchers at The George Washington University and Dunham and Associates, one overnight visit by a motorcoach group can leave from US $5,000 to more than US $11,000 in a local destination's economy. Those dollars are spent on lodging, meals, admissions, fees, shopping, souvenirs, services and local taxes.
"Motorcoach groups spend more and stay longer,” Pantuso said. “That's why GlassFest and Finger Lakes Wine Festival are truly local economic assets. There is no better way to jump-start tourism than to attract motorcoach groups to a great event and convince them to extend their stay."
ABA's 2014 Top 100 Events Selection Committee selected GlassFest and Finger Lakes Wine Festival from hundreds of event nominations submitted by ABA members. Judges considered the event's broad appeal, its accessibility to motorcoaches and skill at handling large groups, and a variety of other relevant criteria.
The Top 100 Events list is available online at http://www.buses.org/News-Publications/Top-100.
The Steuben County Conference & Visitors Bureau was established in 1994. As Steuben County’s official tourism marketing agency, our mission is to aggressively promote the visitor industry year-round and thereby stimulate economic growth. Steuben County is home to the World’s Most Beautiful Wine Region (Budget Travel), America’s Coolest Small Town: Hammondsport (Budget Travel), and one of the Most Fun Small Towns: Corning (Rand McNally). It has also been recognized as a great value destination (ShermansTravel) and a top lakeside vacation (Yahoo! Travel).
