Tourism Planners See Potential To Draw International Travelers
Mackinaw City Bureau Shares Outlook on Season
By Paul Gingras

At right: The Mackinaw Area Visitors Bureau intends to aggressively promote the area to tourists this year. Pictured Tuesday, April 1, (from left) are William Bertchinger, president of the bureau's board of directors, Diane Klose, administrative assistant, Deb Spence, packaging manager, and Donna Falor, treasurer.

"We are going to promote the heck out of this area and try to pull off another increase," said William Bertchinger, president of the Mackinaw Area Visitors Bureau board of directors, who noted that his member hotels saw a 6% increase in room rentals in 2007, despite the struggling state economy.

Hoping to continue the tourism momentum of last year into the upcoming season, the Visitors Bureau will continue to publish its Vacation Guide, which it finds an effective marketing tool, expand its advertising into Ontario to draw Canadian visitors to take advantage of their favorable exchange rate on the dollar, and host a celebration to highlight the Labor Day Mackinac Bridge walk this fall.

Owing, in part, to celebrations for the 50th Anniversary of the Mackinac Bridge last season, Mackinaw City enjoyed a surge of tourism that lasted well into autumn, Mr. Bertchinger told The St. Ignace News. Many people who had not visited the area for years returned, and some who were in the area earlier that summer came back for the bridge celebration, boosting business.

This year's bridge walk is also an historic occasion, Mr. Bertchinger said, so the bureau is planning a fireworks celebration and will issue a commemorative coin. The first bridge walk was in 1958, making 2008 its 50th year. The first walk took place in late June, and all following bridge walks took place on Labor Day.

Differences between the bureau and the village council over marketing should be resolved easily, Mr. Bertchinger said. The council is concerned that focusing on the 50th anniversary of the bridge opening last year, and the 50th bridge walk this year, could be confusing.

"We feel that the walk on Labor Day has tremendous historic significance for the many families that have shared memories on that weekend over the past 50 years," Mr. Bertchinger said.

Shortly, the bureau will distribute 5,000 commemorative Bridge Walk coins to its 57 hotels and 107 associated businesses. They will be sold for $4 each, and the Visitors Bureau expects strong sales.

Compared to years past, the Mackinaw City area faces a more challenging economic climate, but the economy will not necessarily hurt tourism in the Straits area, he said.

With the resignation of Executive Director Marilyn McFarland this spring, the bureau's full-time staff is reduced from four to three, making this a transition year. The reduction has enabled it to spend the same amount on advertising as last year. Part of its $462,000 promotional budget will pay for ads in Ontario newspapers. This is the first time the bureau has done this, Mr. Bertchinger said.

The weak U.S. dollar makes vacationing here attractive for Canadians, and Florida is already enjoying a surge of Canadian business this winter, Mr. Bertchinger said.

"I think the falling value of the United States dollar will bring a lot of foreign travelers to the U.S. this summer," he said.

Looming gas prices may actually work in the area's favor, also, he speculates, as more travelers are likely to stay closer to home, making the Straits area an attractive regional option.

The bureau advertises in magazines and newspapers throughout the Midwest, with themes changing with the seasons. One running now features Mackinaw Crossings, an image of a British soldier firing a cannon, children at Thunder Falls water park, Mackinaw City's beach front, and images of Mackinac Island's shopping district.

The front cover of its main publication, the Mackinaw City Vacation Guide, will continue to highlight the bridge. Inside, the guide lists area businesses, particularly hotels, and attractions from mid- Michigan through the Upper Peninsula.

The visitors bureau has printed 60,000 brochures highlighting 20 attractions throughout northern Lower Michigan and the Upper Peninsula, which are handed out free at member hotels. The handouts take an all-inclusive approach, featuring attractions like Fort Mackinac, Soo Locks Boat Tours, the Mystery Spot on US-2, Garlyn Zoological Park, Mackinac Island attractions, and casinos, many of them with discount coupons.

Owing to its position at the tip of the Lower Peninsula, the Visitors Bureau has always taken the approach that Mackinaw City can be a hub for everything in the area. The idea is for visitors to stay in local hotels and motels, take day trips to the locations it promotes, and return to the Straits area to sleep.

The bureau will continue a successful 10-year-old packaging campaign. It spends $360,000 a year to create packages for tourists by booking ferry trips, selling tickets to attractions, and booking rooms at its hotels. This is a service to hotel members, Mr. Bertchinger said. He calls it a break-even budget designed to help member businesses, rather than a program to provide revenue for the bureau.

The bureau will continue providing an online reservation system through its Web site, Mr. Bertchinger said, enabling visitors to see rate comparisons and pick hotels.

Bureau members will continue to study the area's branding campaign, "Mackinaw City: Living History. Making History."

All communities "need to pull to together in the Straits area to draw as much business as possible," he added, noting that St. Ignace, Mackinac Island, and Mackinaw City have a lot in common. He advocates joint advertising campaigns, working more closely to coordinate area events, such as the St. Ignace Auto Show, which spills into Mackinaw City, and Mackinac Island's Lilac Festival, which draws visitors to all three communities.

Off and on for 13 of the last 23 years, Mr. Bertchinger has been president of the 11-member board that oversees the Mackinac Area Visitors Bureau.

"People that come up here were very surprised at what a great area this is to visit," he said. Many return, so "we got them hooked."

Mr. Bertchinger said he would like to see more tourist-based economic development in the area.

"Tourism is our lifeblood, and it should be the focus of all of our efforts," he said. He does not think another industry is likely to replace tourism for Mackinaw City, St. Ignace, or Mackinac Island because the surroundings here are such a natural draw for visitors seeking relief from urban development.

"Think of the picturesque places you have stood in your life. It is hard to find anything to compare with the view from the Mackinaw City waterfront, where you can see the Mackinac Bridge, the Straits, the Upper Peninsula, and Mackinac Island."

After 23 years, and the development of many area attractions, Mr. Bertchinger's favorite pastime continues to be gazing at the bridge.

The bridge will always be on the cover of the Vacation Guide.

"It defines this area," he said.