MILWAUKEE — Rebounding and planning ahead are big focuses for Milwaukee’s tourism business in 2023.
Visit Milwaukee President and CEO Peggy Williams-Smith said travel in the city bounced back big time in 2022. However, especially early in the year, the rise of the COVID-19 Omicron variant still had an impact on tourism.
In 2023, she said expects things to be much closer to normal.
Williams-Smith said having a strong 2022 meant a lot to the city’s hospitality industry.
“To be able to open their doors, have their hotels filled, people who were in and out of the hotels hitting our restaurants, our shops, all of our attractions — it made it easier for us to talk about tourism and what it does for our economy,” she said.
Now, Williams-Smith and the staff at Visit Milwaukee are looking ahead to 2023 and beyond. Milwaukee will host several events in the next two years that will put Milwaukee on a national and international stage.
Perhaps the most notable will be the Republican National Convention in July 2024. In addition to focusing on logistical details planning the convention, Williams-Smith said sharing Milwaukee’s story is key.
“What I think we have are many opportunities to make sure we present Milwaukee in the best possible light as we approach the 2024 convention. We will have over 15,000 credentialed journalists descend upon Milwaukee telling the story not just of Milwaukee but of Milwaukeeans,” said Williams-Smith.
The 120th anniversary of Harley Davidson, continued growth of the cruise industry and Summerfest will all be additional opportunities in 2023 to raise Milwaukee’s national profile.
And as Visit Milwaukee focuses their marketing efforts for 2023, they are drawing on some recent positive press.
National Geographic named the city a top 25 travel destination. It is something Visit Milwaukee is getting the word out about.
“My team has been so excited when they found out there was even a whisper that this could happen for Milwaukee,” said Williams-Smith. “They are like, ‘this is the PR communications holy grail that we are going to be able to use this designation for the next solid 13 months.’”
Visit Milwaukee began their 2023 marketing efforts with a big splash. They ran a billboard in New York’s Times Square during New Year’s celebrations, touting Milwaukee as a must-visit destination.