Walk Score released its 2013 ranking of Most Bikeable Large US cities, Tucson is ranked #8 with a score of 64.1! Portland, Oregon nabbed the #1 spot, beating out San Francisco. The ranking focused on cities with 500,000 or more residents. 

Top 10 Most Bikeable Large U.S. Cities

1. Portland (Bike Score: 70.3)

2. San Francisco (Bike Score: 70.0)

3. Denver (Bike Score: 69.5)

4. Philadelphia (Bike Score: 68.4)

5. Boston (Bike Score: 67.8)

6. Washington D.C. (Bike Score: 65.3)

7. Seattle (Bike Score: 64.1)

8. Tucson (Bike Score: 64.1)

9. New York (Bike Score: 62.3)

10. Chicago (Bike Score: 61.5)

Note: to keep rankings apples-to-apples the list above only includes cities with 500,000 or more residents.

Across the U.S. bicycle commuting grew 47% between 2000 and 2011. However, in cities that are making investments in bicycle infrastructure and education (which includes all of the Top 10 Bike Score cities listed above), bicycle commuting has grown 80% over the same period. This trend is leading a growing number of multi-family developers to build bike-friendly housing with secure storage spaces for bicycles and even putting repair shops in the buildings.

Bike Score is compiled from a data set that includes bike infrastructure, hilly terrain, number of bikers on streets and more. Bike Score is now available for over 100 U.S. cities.

Seven reality television productions have filmed in the Tucson region since February, whose estimated economic impact totals more than $1.3 million, according to the Tucson Film Office. Despite SB 1242, the Multimedia Production Tax Incentives Bill, stalling in the state legislature last month, the business of television production remains consistent.

“Because Arizona lacks a statewide film and television production incentive, we are losing millions of dollars to the 35+ states who do offer incentives. It has become nearly impossible to attract studio feature films to our state,” said Shelli Hall, director of the Tucson Film Office. “Right now we are capitalizing on the reality television shows and commercial productions that aren’t dependent on incentives.”

Bravo’s Real Housewives of New Jersey‘s five day shoot at Miraval Resort generated $670,000 EEI. SyFy Channel’s Ghost Hunters filmed in the Tucson area for two weeks and generated $668,000 EEI. The five other shows on location were Baggage Battles (Travel Channel),  Deadly Women (Investigation Discovery), Fringe Benefits and The Aviators (both PBS) and a BBC documentary about jet engines in the Cold War.

From July 2011 to June 2012, the Tucson Film Office facilitated more than 60 projects that added up to thousands of hotel room nights and almost $6 million in direct expenditures in the Tucson region, which resulted in $8.9 million in EEI. Of that, 40 percent came from TV commercials, including two that ran during Super Bowl XLVI. Another 40 percent came from reality television shows, including multiple episodes on the Food Network’s Chopped, TNT’s The Great Escape and single episodes of programs for Discovery, National Geographic, A&E and BBC. The remaining 20 percent was an eclectic mix of documentaries, music videos, short films and print catalog shoots. 

The Tucson Film Office, a division of the Metropolitan Tucson Convention & Visitors Bureau, is responsible for marketing Tucson and Southern Arizona as an ideal location for film, television, and commercial advertising production. filmtucson.com. The mission of Visit Tucson is to drive economic development by connecting visitors with their ideal travel and meetings experiences in Tucson and Southern Arizona. visittucson.org.

Promoting Tucson’s urban core through collaboration and partnership, Uniquely Tucson – Destination Downtown is a 16-page publication that features locally-owned businesses, heritage destinations, attractions, and historical buildings located along the Sun Link Modern Streetcar route.

This powerful marketing piece for downtown, 4th Avenue, and Main Gate represents real collaboration between Visit Tucson and Santa Cruz Valley Heritage Alliance, with supporting sponsors that include Downtown Tucson Partnership, the Tucson Historic Preservation Office, Pima County Historical Commission, and Parkwise.

Not only is the publication distributed at the Tucson Visitor Center, 100,000 copies have been inserted into Tucson Guide, 2013 Visit Tucson Official Travel Guide, and in Caliente to encourage increased patronage downtown.

Smartphone users can now explore businesses and special events throughout the downtown area using the new mobile-optimized site. UniquelyTucson.com features an interactive map and search capability to explore 176 historic buildings and nearly 200 locally-owned businesses and heritage destinations.

Tucson Visitors Bureau, the leader in destination marketing in Tucson and southern Arizona, teams with MMGY Global to re-brand region 

At the end of last year, the Metropolitan Tucson Convention & Visitors Bureau issued a request for proposals to re-brand Tucson and southern Arizona as a prime visitor destination and enhance the region’s presence within the global tourism market.

A committee comprised of local tourism, sports, economic development and marketing industry professionals reviewed 16 proposals submitted by agencies from across the country, including several from Tucson and southern Arizona.

“Essentially, the selection committee worked with us to find a company that can help us define Tucson and Southern Arizona’s top tourism-related attributes and package and deliver those elements in a compelling manner to our targeted customers,” said Brent DeRaad, MTCVB president and CEO.

MMGY Global, an internationally recognized leader in destination marketing, was unanimously selected to be the MTCVB’s agency of choice to lead the creation of a comprehensive brand positioning strategy for the destination. MMGY Global will employ a branding process grounded in proprietary consumer research. Insights into the habits and preferences of potential visitors will then help shape a brand for the destination that not only distinguishes Tucson from its competitors, but also connects with and inspires its target audience.

“The findings from both the in-market and out-of-market research that MMGY has presented to our partners and community leaders are critical to us in creating a brand foundation and position statement for the region that is believable among our stakeholders,” said Allison Cooper, MTCVB vice president of marketing.  “That is, the brand’s promise, essence, values and voice – can be clearly articulated and delivered in the visitor experience – and owned by all of us as a destination.”

The MTCVB is spending the first half of 2013 working with MMGY Global to incorporate consumer research and stakeholder input into a brand architecture for Tucson and Southern Arizona from which new advertising, positioning and messaging will be developed and incorporated into all aspects of the bureau’s marketing, promotion and sales programs. The extensive re-branding process will be completed in June, at which time the MTCVB will officially announce its name change to Visit Tucson and debut new marketing materials, including a new logo.

Regionalism and a unified voice for the destination have been recurring themes throughout the branding process.

“It is nice to see the collaboration,” said Rick Neter, director of marketing at Biosphere 2 and University of Arizona’s College of Science. “A lot of people are coming together with the goal of moving the community forward.”

Tourism in Tucson and southern Arizona is a $2.4 billion dollar industry. The habits of the American leisure traveler greatly contribute to tourism’s overall economic impact. In a subset of the 2013 Portrait of American Travelers, a national survey of more than 2,500 adults who have traveled within the last year, that tracks the emerging travel habits, preferences and intentions of American leisure travelers, MMGY Global revealed an in-depth look at the travel tendencies and influences of the American traveler as they pertain to the Tucson region.

“Tucson is the first destination to receive a subset analysis from this year’s study,” said Steve Cohen, MMGY Global vice president of insights. “MMGY is utilizing data from our 2013 Portrait of American Travelers to assist in crafting a new destination brand for the Tucson region, we are excited to provide this information for such a valued partner.”

Inspiring people to go places, MMGY Global helps travel companies grow revenue by motivating their customers, creating progressive marketing strategies based on research and applying the insights to measureable brand and channel marketing plans. Their portfolio includes The Beaches of Ft. Myers and Sanibel, Walt Disney Parks & Resorts, Mexico Tourist Board and the Colorado Tourism Office. The mission of the MTCVB is to drive and enhance the economic prosperity of Tucson and southern Arizona through tourism by promoting, selling and marketing the region for leisure, meetings, conventions, amateur sports and film production.

Tucson branding process to date:

September 2012

• MTCVB issues nationwide request for proposals to re-brand the region as a prime visitor destination.

October 2012

• Selection committee reviews 16 proposals from top marketing agencies across the country, including Tucson and southern Arizona

November 2012

• Proposals narrowed to five, agencies invited to Tucson to make final presentation to selection committee

December 2012

• Committee unanimously selects MMGY Global to lead the creation of a comprehensive brand strategy for the destination

January 2013

• MMGY Global is officially awarded the MTCVB contract
• MMGY Global returns to Tucson to conduct key stakeholder interviews and gather community input through town hall forums
• MMGY Global presents the process by which the research and brand will be developed to partners and stakeholders at the MTCVB Open House event

February 2013

• MMGY Global gathers research through focus groups comprised of potential visitors in Tucson’s key markets of Chicago and Denver

March 2013

April 2013

• MMGY Global presents to a group of MTCVB partners and stakeholders, a subset of the 2013 Portrait of American Travelers that specifically relates to Tucson and southern Arizona
• MMGY Global presents key findings from the interviews conducted in Chicago and Denver
• MMGY Global presents Brand Architecture, an overview of the process the agency has followed to develop a strong brand for Tucson

May 2013

June 2013

• MMGY Global and MTCVB will present the new brand, logo, marketing materials at the JW Marriott Starr Pass Resort on June 13
• MTCVB will officially become Visit Tucson

The Tucson Small Wonders Map features a collection of more than 60 local, independent businesses and attractions, including fine restaurants, cafés, boutiques, housewares stores, and art galleries.

The CD-sized, full-color map is designed to help visitors and locals find one-of-a-kind places to eat and shop and do fun things. The map’s boundaries cover a walk-able area from Mercado San Agustin on the west side of downtown, through the downtown arts districts, and along 4th Avenue to Main Gate Square near the University of Arizona.

More than 50,000 complimentary copies of the Tucson Small Wonders Map have been printed and are being distributed across Arizona. For a uniquely Tucson experience, visit localfirstaz.com/small-wonders/tucson.

An exciting generation of young filmmakers is drastically changing how Mexicans see and represent themselves on the big screen, and challenging traditional notions of Mexican culture and identity.

A festival of works by Mexican producers and directors, especially newcomers to the international film scene, will be featured exclusively at the eighth annual Tucson Cine Mexico, March 20-24.

All screenings will be Arizona premieres, and the closing night film, documentary Teatro Penitenciario-Libertad Desde la Sombra, about penitentiary theater in Mexico, will be a United States premiere.

The festival is free and open to the public, and all films are in Spanish with English subtitles. A complete guide can be found at TucsonCineMexico.org.

The 2013 Tucson Festival of Books, March 9-10, promises to be another best seller with 400+ authors, 275 exhibitors, and hundreds of presentations, panel discussions, and book signings.

Participants include such best-selling authors as Diana Gabaldon, Jodi Picoult, and John Sayles as well as children/youth authors Susan Lowell, Conrad Storad, R.L. Stine. To mark this free event’s fifth year, two programs have been launched that recognize and develop great writing: the Tucson Festival of Books Literary Awards writing competition and Masters Workshop. Details, including a full list of attending authors, are available on TucsonFestivalofBooks.org.

Get social! Follow Festival of Books on Facebook & Twitter.

Tucson has been named one of the Top 10 Spring Break Destinations for Families 2013 by Livability.com, a national website that highlights more than 500 of America’s best places to live and visit. 

The list is the second installment of an annual listing of America’s top spring break destinations and features communities that offer families a budget-conscious, amenities-rich vacation that can be enjoyed over the course of a few days. To narrow down the list, Livability.com editors looked at cities with plenty of parks, green spaces and outdoor recreation opportunities as well as family-friendly attractions, such as zoos, aquariums, amusement parks and museums.

Tucson was chosen because it offers families a host of activities for all age groups – both indoors and out – as well as a number of other travel amenities for families, such as hotels with pools, vacation deals and kid-friendly restaurants.  Read more here.

Top 10 Spring Break Destinations for Families 2013
1. Santa Cruz, CA
2. Tucson, AZ
3. Portland, OR
4. Omaha, NE
5. Indianapolis, IN
6. Birmingham, AL
7. Charlotte, NC
8. Tulsa, OK
9. Boise, ID
10. Cincinnati, OH

Tim Vimmerstedt has joined the Metropolitan Tucson Convention & Visitors Bureau (MTCVB) as Director of Marketing. His responsibilities include managing day-to-day operations of the marketing department and in-house advertising efforts, overseeing seasonal promotional campaigns for various audiences in Tucson’s target markets and assisting in the development and execution of the MTCVB’s marketing and media plans.

“Tim’s knowledge of the Tucson Region, his connections and relationships with key stakeholders and his experience in overseeing operations that include sales, marketing and PR as well as community affairs for several area attractions will be valuable assets to our organization,” said Allison Cooper, Vice President of Marketing for the MTCVB.

Vimmerstedt most recently served as the Director of Operations and Community Affairs for Pima Air & Space Museum. His extensive experience in tourism spans more than 20 years and includes roles within the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum, Old Tucson, Biosphere 2, Rawhide and the Agro Land and Cattle Company. He can be reached via email at tvimmerstedt@visittucson.org

The MTCVB, an accredited Destination Marketing Organization (DMO), is a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting the Tucson area as a convention, visitor and film production destination. Learn more at visittucson.org.

Share your insights on Tucson’s top tourism attributes, please take a moment to complete a short survey at visitTucson.org/BrandSurvey

The findings from this public online survey will be incorporated into MMGY Global‘s research and will help shape the strongest identity and position statement for Tucson as a premiere destination for vacation and meetings.