The PBF Theater’s formal grand opening celebration is scheduled for Oct. 20 and will feature appearances by Pat Boone and his family. The Boones will perform daily from Oct. 20 through Oct. 23. Pat Boone is scheduled to return Dec. 2 through Dec. 4 for special performances featuring songs from his more than five decades of hits.

The PBF Theater will offer a range of entertainment, headlined by the illusionist Morgan. Shows will feature a variety of well-known performers who appeal to all age groups, from children to senior citizens. The PBF Theater will have 600 seats, all within 50 feet of the stage, with HD screen monitors on each side.

Tickets will range from $24.95 to $34.95 for adults and $6.95 to $8.95 for children. (843-213-6880, www.pbftheater.com)

Since 1967, WorldStrides has provided four million students the opportunity to learn beyond classroom walls. Now, it is introducing new brand names that will help unite its broad-ranging offerings of educational programs.

“We are excited about what these new brands mean for our organization,” said Jim Hall, CEO of WorldStrides. “They will enable us to better represent our commitment to education across all learning paths for students from grade school to the graduate level, and more effectively communicate our mission of enriching students’ lives through experiential travel.”

The rebranding initiative is the culmination of months of research and testing among educators, parents, and administrators. The research combined in-depth interviews and feedback surveys from more than 2,000 individuals, uncovering their perspectives on the new naming proposed for WorldStrides’ programs. Following the results of the research, WorldStrides has grouped its programs under three brand names: WorldStrides DiscoverNow!, WorldStrides Heritage Performance, and WorldStrides Capstone programs. Above all other options, individuals felt the aforementioned names best represented the personality of each division.

WorldStrides DiscoverNow! programs include exciting history, science, and career-focused programs designed specifically for students from elementary through high school. WorldStrides DiscoverNow! programs range from history- and science-themed explorations of places like Washington, D.C., Florida, and Costa Rica, to Christian-focused tours of our nation’s capital, and career-focused itineraries through Field Studies Center of New York programs. Specific WorldStrides DiscoverNow! programs offer opportunities for high school students to earn college credit through travel.

WorldStrides Heritage Performance programs offer middle- and high-school-aged choirs, orchestras, concert bands, marching bands, dance teams, and cheer squads the highest quality performance opportunities at renowned domestic and international venues. These opportunities include regional music festivals, college bowl game halftime performances, and personalized New York City dance clinics. The offerings of Heritage Festivals, Bowl Games of America, BGA Performance, Festival of Gold, Festival at Carnegie Hall, and Sky’s the Limit combine to form WorldStrides Heritage Performance programs, a name that better conveys the wide variety of performance opportunities available.

WorldStrides Capstone programs, formerly known as Accent and TravelMBA, support global immersion experiences for the nation’s top universities, including over half of the top 30 MBA programs in the US. In 2011, graduate- and undergraduate-level students will travel to more than 60 countries across six continents on WorldStrides Capstone programs, each customized to fit the university’s educational needs and budget.

Wayne Williams, Vice President of Marketing, concluded, “While the name may have changed, the passionate and professional team members supporting all of our customers are still the same. We’re now better positioned to let everyone know that we offer a breadth of educational programs focusing on history, science, music, dance, cheer, and even global curriculum at the university level. We’ve got a great story to tell about the positive transformations that take place in students’ lives, no matter the age, when they travel on a WorldStrides program.”

The Lab includes presentations and learning sessions, panel discussions by DMOs & travel suppliers, seven mobile workshop experiences and much more.

The Lab is limited to 50 participants. For more information, visit www.ptmgroups.com.

“The people in these areas have been through so much — Hurricanes Katrina, Ike, Rita and Gustav —and now the aftermath of the oil spill,” says NTA president Lisa Simon. “Our purpose is to help change the perception that the Gulf Coast is closed. Not to minimize the seriousness of the oil spill, but its impact on the beaches is not as widespread as it appears.

We want to make sure visitors and members of the travel trade receive complete and accurate information about all there is to do in the region. The Gulf Coast is open for business.”

The team from Edelman presented interactive workshops on crisis management, traditional media relations and digital media, helping attendees leave with ideas to sell their destinations.

“All along the Mississippi and Louisiana Gulf Coast, tourism professionals have stories to share about their culture and heritage, gaming and nature-based tourism, as well as some incredible culinary experiences,” says Cathleen Johnson, Edelman tourism executive vice president. “We were here to draw out these ideas and help attendees move through this crisis using media and social media to reach travelers everywhere.”

The seminar in Biloxi, MS was the first in the series with others planned for Houma, LA and Gulf Shores and Pensacola, FL.

Simon cited public perspective as the biggest  problem for the tourism and hospitality industries, and is asking tour operators from her association to bring groups down to the Coast to see the reality of the situation, and to generate business in the area.

Perception versus reality has become the biggest challenge, according to Johnson.

The NTA says making connections with travel agencies and trade associations, and varying marketing avenues through marketing, trade publications and social media are good ways to drum up business for the Coast.

Simon also encouraged people to contact their local elected officials and ask them to support the Travel Regional Investment Partnership Act, proposed legislation supporting domestic tourism. Edelman spoke about how people think in a crisis, how to use crisis-management best practices, how to interact with traditional media outlets and how to use new media.

According to attendees, a great number of businesses are folding and for business people to receive this type of guidance is time well spent, learning more creative ways to market the area not just to tourists but to residents as well.

Tours.com is one of the oldest and most respected travel and tourism websites, garnering hundreds of thousands of unique visitors each month. The website continues to expand its reach to include tens of thousands of travel providers and travel resources in its impressive searchable directory listing.

A special webpage recently created on Tours.com helps consumers find reliable motorcoach operators in the US and Canada, with ABA the featured provider of that content. Tours.com also expects to introduce a consumer tour booking tool later in the year to allow consumers to create their dream trips online.

“With more and more consumers and travel professionals looking to generate leads and book travel online, partnering with a well-recognized consumer-facing web resource such as Tours.com — and by extension its impressive TV and viral media partners — makes perfect sense for marketing ABA and its members,” says ABA President & CEO Peter Pantuso.

“ABA is pleased to offer this new benefit to members, and will explore opportunities to further enhance this exposure for operators by featuring the operations of ABA member and travel offerings.”

“We are excited to be forging this partnership with ABA to help operators reach more consumers online,” said Tours.com’s Maria Polk. “This will benefit both consumers and the operators who provide group travel and tourism services to them.”

For more information visit www.Tours.com or the motorcoach-specific page www.Tours.com/buses.htm.

Word from Tom McNally is the April Scenicruiser 2010 Hounds of the Mother Road reunion in Amarillo and Adrian, TX, was a total success with 85 people showing up in 10 Scenicruisers and three GMC model buses.

Here is McNally’s somewhat abbreviated but official travelogue:

Rolling west on Route 66 for shop talk and photo ops in Adrian, and onto Armarillo, fans of the hounds met for dinner at the Big Texan Steak Ranch where Andy Henderson gave a presentation on his father and his bus collection. The group also learned about the Action Travelers, a philanthropic effort that involved a Scenicruiser to transport kids on camping trips to Mexico.

The Scenicruisers by number and owners:
• 054; Bill Holt, Shingletown, CA.
• 104; Greg Bush, Tulsa, OK. Cat engine.
• 112; Dave Catron, Marshfield, MO .
• 304; Dave Hartshorne, Hamilton, OH.
• 516; Pat McNeal, Baltimore, MD, Highly modified.
• 731; Red Bull (no address given).
• 733; Gary Pirtle, Montpelier, OH.
• 771; Tom McNally, Peoria, IL. Beautifully restored.
• 822; John Hotvet, Minneapolis, MN.
• 932; ABC Companies, Winter Garden, FL.

Guest GMC coaches:
• Eagle Model 05; Larry Yohe, Denver, CO.
• PD4104; Bob Moser, Oswego, IL.
• P8M4108A; Dave Housh, Glendora, CA.

By David Hubbard

Virginia Beach is a motorcoach kind of town that goes to great lengths to appeal to group tours. In fact, the Virginia Beach CVB lays claim to attracting the first group tour ever to travel to America, noting that the first permanent English settlers landed at Cape Henry, before moving on to settle Jamestown.

The Virginia Beach community continues to pride itself in its ability to attract groups through its diverse menu of activities that capitalize on the geography and culture in the area of the state. The aim is to deliver innovative travel experiences throughout the year which satisfy a variety of interests.

The choices include strolls on the beach and boardwalk along the Atlantic Coast, swimming, sunning and myriad dining and shopping options.

The Visitor Information Center says it is ready and willing to help charter coach tours get all they can out of an excursion to Virginia Beach, inviting tour operators to check in upon arrival to the resort area. During regular business hours, a staff member is available to board the coach and welcome the group with a complementary souvenir of Virginia Beach. The center suggests operators call beforehand to schedule a special welcome.

There are some ground rules

Virginia Beach has a strict bus ordinance that prohibits parking or stopping buses on public streets in resort area to pick up or drop off passengers.

Buses and motorcoaches may safely load and unload passengers in the designated 15-minute parking zone at 19th Street and Arctic Avenue. Charter buses may now load and unload passengers and park at 4th Street and Atlantic Avenue.

The Bus Ordinance permits parking on private properties such as hotels and restaurants, as well as additional designated motorcoach spaces on a first-come, first-serve basis at the 4th Street municipal parking lot at Rudee Loop. Parking fees apply. Through September 30, the rates are $15 daily and $25 overnight.

By city ordinance, the lot closes from midnight to 8:00 am, seven days a week.  Operators wishing to depart during these hours must notify a cashier or the resort management office. Contact the Virginia Beach CVB for a copy of the bus ordinance.

Let the fun begin
Down on the boardwalk, the 12-ton King Neptune Statue rises 34 feet with an 11-foot sea turtle and two 15-foot dolphins by his side, and is easily the most popular photo op. The Rockfish on the boardwalk is home to the world’s greatest collection of authentic Beatles memorabilia.

A climb to the top of the old and new Cape Henry Lighthouses would personally commemorate the nation’s first federally funded lighthouse began serving faithfully in 1792.

The Virginia Aquarium and Marine Science Center features over 350 hands-on exhibits and the spectacular IMAX® 3D Theater, while the nearby Chesapeake Bay Center extols the nature unique to this area.

Charter boats operations offer opportunities for fishing as well as dolphin and whale watching excursions. Several of the local restaurants will prepare the daily catch. An alternative to open sea boating might be a kayak float down quiet waterways to out of the way restaurants; or tour the inland waters on the Virginia’s Jewel to view natural features and spectacular homes along the shore.

The Navy Air Station Oceana is home to more than 250 jets that F/A-18 Hornets and welcomes visitors. Meanwhile Warbirds Over the Beach offers hops in WWII aircraft for interested aviation buffs.

Get more great articles like this one with a subscription to BusRide!
Click here to subscribe.

Town Center in the heart of Virginia Beach offers myriad fine dining choices that include Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse and Sonoma Wine, as well as the Funny Bone Comedy Club & Restaurant.

Edgar Cayce’s Association for Research and Enlightenment addresses mysteries of the ancient world, health and wellness principles and dream interpretations.

The Schakolad Chocolate Factory offers private tours and the Adam Thoroughgood House gives history lessons in chocolate. The chocolate theme continues with a visit to The Royal Chocolate at Town Center before coach departs.

Local sources say tourism-related employment accounts for nearly 15 percent or 8,500 jobs of the county work force and more than $250,000 in earned wages.

According to a 2006 Global Insight study, tourism in the region of Pennsylvania accounts for 3.5 percent or $377 million of the Franklin County economy.

“It’s critical that county tourism director Janet Pollard spend face time with people who bring people into the county,” says L. Michael Ross, president of the Franklin County Area Development Corp. “The point here is to encourage commissioners to invest the money to increase tourism.”

Pollard accompanied the operators on the bus from Lancaster and Chambersburg to Pittsburgh, site of the Heartland Travel Showcase and the Stars & Stripes Heartland Tour, one of three tours for operators attending the industry’s annual convention.

The local stopover included a dinner buffet with personifications of Ben Franklin, Chambersburg businessman Jacob Hoke and Robert E. Lee as hosts, as well as a performance of the Pennsylvania Opry at the Capitol Theatre.

Get more great articles like this one with a subscription to BusRide!
Click here to subscribe.

The operators also met with vendors representing the H. Ric Luhrs Performing Arts Center at Shippensburg University, Penn National Golf Course, Whitetail ski and golf resorts, Totem Pole Playhouse, Franklin County Historical Society-Kittochtinny and the Conococheague Institute.