Our recent Fall-O-Ween festivities offered many highlights. From the vintage tastes of Illinois Wine Month to the family fun of our autumn festivals, we can be proud of this annual tradition.

It was also an occasion to debut a number of new posters for our Offbeat Illinois campaign. The second annual Illinois Wine Month was commemorated with a poster celebrating “miles of magnificent vines.” We also released a poster titled “Hi-Ho Prancer!” whose cowboy on a reindeer lets consumers know that at Hardy’s Reindeer Ranch, you can interact with these wonderful animals year-round. Finally, the historic Swedish colony of Bishop Hill has a poster touting the vintage village’s quaint life and simple pleasures. These posters are on display throughout Chicagoland and have recently debuted in St. Louis.

Looking forward, there’s no shortage of exciting attractions and activities on hand for winter. If you’re thinking it’s too cold to promote water parks, you may not have heard that the state’s largest indoor water park is set to open this January—CoCo Key Water Resort at the Sheraton Chicago Northwest in Arlington Heights. It’s one of two CoCo Key parks opening this winter, with a second park located in Rockford at the Clock Tower Resort. Water slides, a lazy river, a wave beach, whirlpools, a poolside movie screen and even aquatic life special effects are among the family-friendly treats CoCo Key has in store.

Chicago kicks off its Winter Delights holiday season on Nov. 18 with ice carving, caroling and fireworks at the Magnificent Mile Lights Festival. Other holiday celebrations at major Chicago institutions include Navy Pier’s Winter Wonderfest and the annual Lincoln Park ZooLights. On the cultural front, the Chicago Historical Society has recently reopened as The Chicago History Museum. Among its many fine exhibits is a tribute to the celebrated Chicago painter Ed Paschke, whose acclaimed works will be on display through Feb. 19, 2007. Continued >

Success Story

Every month, ITN profiles a tourism industry leader whose success can be used as examples of how to develop fresh ideas to promote Illinois. This month, we introduce David Preece, president and CEO of the Rockford Area Convention and Visitors Bureau.

This month’s Success Story profile features the Rockford Area Convention and Visitors Bureau’s new president and CEO, David Preece. Preece’s career has included work in several key sectors of the travel and tourism industry. Most recently he served as vice president of travel trade marketing for Classic Vacations, the luxury travel division of Expedia, Inc. Prior experience includes serving as the president and CEO of the Travel Institute and vice president, North America for the Hawaii Visitors and Convention Bureau.

"Tourism is everybody's business. It's a major economic engine for the Rockford area with lots of growth potential, and I look forward to collaborating with the community as we set goals and plan strategies,” Preece commented after accepting his new position in July. “The Rockford area offers a tremendous range of visitor experiences, and it's encouraging to see the momentum for new investment. I'm eager to get on board and work with the staff to leverage these products in new tourism marketing initiatives that will help build the Rockford destination brand."

Preece cites his experience at the Hawaii CVB and their success at generating tourism growth. “It was largely due to brand-driven marketing and strengthened relationships with the travel trade: wholesalers, tour operators and travel agents. I thoroughly enjoyed my professional experience in Hawaii at the CVB and wanted to return to the world of destination marketing after working in a few other travel industry segments.”

Preece continued: “Rockford had several key factors that appealed to me: 1) it’s a mid-sized market where you can really see the impact of your efforts; 2) it is easier to develop all-important working relationships with government, business and community leaders than in a much larger city; 3) Rockford has a remarkable array of visitor 'products' for a community its size, including parks, golf, the Rock River, botanical gardens, performing and visual arts, and a downtown on the verge of a dynamic revitalization.” Continued >