GWCVB Reaches Out to Faith Based Organizations

The Greater Wilmington, DE Area is a popular choice for religious conventions. Conveniently located on Interstate-95, midway between New York and Washington, DC and less than 30 minutes south off Philadelphia International Airport, Wilmington is readily available by car, plane or train.

The Greater Wilmington Convention & Visitors Bureau reaches out to faith based groups by attending national conventions, like this year's Rejuvenate Marketplace in San Jose in November, which specifically target these organizations. Greater Wilmington CVB serves as a conduit to put faith-based organizations in touch with the hotels, meeting places and attractions that best suit their specific needs and requirements. Access to an on-line RFP 24/7 insures faith-based planners quick and easy access to these service providers. GWCVB is presently assisting with the arrangements for the Abundant Life Worship Conference in April, 2012. The 5-day conference is expected to attract 1000 attendees and generate 160 room nights.

Greater Wilmington CVB offers a Transportation Incentive to groups booking at least 100 room nights in a member hotel in New Castle County. A total of $20,000 is available on a first come, first serve basis and can be used to defray transportation incentives. Specific details are available at www.VisitWilmingtonDE.com.

When appealing to faith based organizations, Greater Wilmington CVB capitalizes on its accessibility, the wide choice of event spaces ranging from state-of-the-art facilities which can accommodate 1,600 attendees to unique venues or small, historic properties and the area's broad range of attractions. The fact that Delaware has no sales tax on meeting rooms, food, beverage, entertainment and shopping translates into an immediate return on investment and can easily add hundreds of dollars to a planner's bottom line. It's also an enticing lure for attendees when they realize the savings they can achieve.

GWCVB, in conjunction with Mid-Atlantic Events Magazine, also hosts an annual FAM/ Dine Around for planners. The 2-day event is designed to introduce the planners in a very personalized manner to the area's wealth of meeting and lodging sites, rich history and cultural assets. This year's 43 attendees gave the February FAM/Dine Around rave reviews.

There's plenty to do in the Greater Wilmington Area. Discover world-class museums and gardens, historic towns that retain their 17th- and 18th-century ambience, a revitalized Riverfront, a wide selection of performing arts, family owned wineries and breweries and top-notch restaurants and hotels...all this is just minutes from Downtown Wilmington. Nationally recognized entertainers perform at the Grand Opera House, the DuPont Theatre hosts touring Broadway productions and World Café Live at the Queen is Wilmington's live music venue. Hagley Museum & Library is the ancestral home of the du Pont family in Delaware and site of the original gunpowder mills that provided the foundation for the DuPont Company. Winterthur Museum & Country Estate boasts a 175-room mansion filled with Henry Francis du Pont's world-class collection of American decorative arts and antiques. Built in the style of a grand French chateau, Nemours Mansion & Gardens has been returned to its turn-of-the-century magnificence after undergoing a $39-million renovation. The Delaware Art Museum's excellent collection of American and Pre-Raphaelite art is supplemented by traveling exhibits. The Delaware Contemporary hosts thirty changing exhibits of regional and national significance each year as well as studio space for local artists. Works by three generations of the Wyeth family are on display inside a tastefully restored gristmill at the Brandywine River Museum. Longwood Gardens is spectacular with twenty outdoor gardens and four-and-a-half acres of gardens under glass in the conservatory. Charming towns like Historic New Castle and Odessa which retain their 18th- and 19th-century ambiance and a revitalized Riverfront with excellent restaurants are just waiting to be discovered. All this and more is just minutes from Downtown Wilmington-and it's all tax-free!

In addition to these world class museums and attractions, one can't help but find spiritual rejuvenation in beautiful Old Swedes or Trinity Church. Built in 1698, the church has the distinction of being the nation's oldest religious institution still in use for its original purpose with over 300 years of continuous worship. Wilmington is also the site of the August Quarterly, the oldest African American faith based festival which is now in its 197th year.

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