Goleta Tourism Spotlight

September – November 2019

GOLETA ONLINE

To encourage visitation, Goleta was included in four pieces of premium website content on SantaBarbaraCA.com, featuring things to do during the holiday season, places to dine on Thanksgiving and inspiration on where to sip the best cup of coffee. This content was also promoted through Visit Santa Barbara’s social media and consumer newsletter channels.

*Please note that events included within this piece were removed as they expired.

TOP PERFORMING GOLETA ‘GRAMS

This fall, Instagrammers were treated to the unmistakable beauty of Goleta through two dedicated Instagram posts. These top performing posts reached a total of 57,609 Instagram users and generated 4,391 likes and 75 comments. Posts included:

MEDIA HIGHLIGHTS

The PR department pursued media coverage of the Santa Barbara South Coast and Goleta by hosting press trips, pitching and networking with top media outlets in key travel markets.

Recent stand-out coverage included:

  • A multi-page travel feature story both in print and online in the Toronto Sun (3,495,702 Unique Visitors per Month; 111,241 circulation), titled “Simply Santa Barbara,” which highlighted the Ramada Santa Barbara, as well as a brewery tour with two stops in Goleta, lunch at Jane at the Marketplace and a visit to Goleta Beach.
  • Los Angeles Times (23,969,120 UVM; 458,785 circulation) showcased Visit Santa Barbara’s shoulder season promotion in “Deal of the week: Santa Barbara Savvy,” including The Kimpton Goodland hotel’s offer.
  • Departures, the luxury lifestyle magazine for American Express Platinum Card holders, (466,379 Unique Visitors per Month; 1,400,000 circulation) featured a three-page spread on area hotels, “Weekend in Santa Barbara,” which included The Ritz-Carlton Bacara, Santa Barbara.

In addition, during the fall, Visit Santa Barbara hosted media from Australian Financial Review, Coastal Home and Seacoast Newspapers, and Kia Ora (Air New Zealand’s in-flight magazine), in partnership with Goleta properties.

CLIENT SITE VISITS AND FAMS

Visit Santa Barbara’s group sales and travel trade teams made efforts to attract and educate clients, travel agents and buyers in top domestic and international markets for the Santa Barbara South Coast by hosting FAM tours and six site visits to showcase the diversity of experiences and hotel product in the region.

The group sales team brought six groups totaling 1,006 room nights to Goleta between September and November 2019, consisting of a mix of corporate and association meetings. Between this time frame, the team booked five future programs (most are corporate incentive programs) for 2020 and one program for 2021 totaling 1,724 room nights. 

On the travel trade side, Visit Santa Barbara partnered with Goleta properties for six group site visits and two familiarization trips. Highlights include:

  • A FAM in partnership with Visit California’s U.K. office for 9 U.K. based travel agents and one Visit California representative.
  • In partnership with Montecito Village Travel, VSB showcased the Santa Barbara South Coast to 200 travel advisors from all over the country at their annual meeting held at The Ritz-Carlton Bacara, Santa Barbara, as well as hosted attendees for a city tour and sailing excursion. 

GOLETA HOTEL PERFORMANCE

The Goleta hotel industry reported mixed operating results for the period of September 1 to November 30, 2019. In comparison with the same period in 2018, the city recorded the following:

  • Occupancy: +5.9% to 81.2%
  • Average Daily Rate: -1.5% to $242.47
  • Revenue Per Available Room: +4.3% to $196.93

Growth was strongest in September and October, while November was unexpectedly sluggish. Group bookings, additional air service and warmer seasonal weather each added to performance this fall. However, the late November Cave Fire and subsequent heavy rain decreased demand the last week of the reporting period.