StayArlington is a monthly publication designed to keep Arlington's hospitality community – hotels, attractions, restaurants and stores – completely up-to-date on news, events and resources that will help our visitors have the best possible experience in Arlington.

ISSUE HIGHLIGHTS
In this issue, we’re on a mission to find out from you how Arlington tourism is getting greener!  Complete our short survey and we’ll get back to you next month with the results. In spite of recent gloomy headlines, we’re happy to share with you great news about the strong performance of Arlington hotels in December and January. And on another positive note, several Arlington restaurants are getting kudos regionally. Plus, enough local eateries have gone smoke-free to merit a Smoke-Free Restaurant Guide – download this handy reference for visitors now! You can also learn in this issue about several opportunities to promote your Arlington business -- whether at the 2009 Taste of Arlington; through coupons on the Arlington Convention and Visitors Service touch-screen visitor information kiosk in Rosslyn; or by participating as a partner in our annual StayArlington sweepstakes. ACVS also continues to enthusiastically promote Arlington as a meetings destination at key industry events -- most recently the Society of Government Meeting Professionals (SGMP) National Capital Chapter’s Annual Winter Meeting & Trade Show on Feb. 11, and at the Destination Marketing Association International’s (DMAI) Destinations Showcase on Feb. 26.

WHAT'S NEW

• Arlington Tourism: How Green Are We?
• Arlington Lodging Stats Strong within Region, Nation
• Four Arlington Restaurants make The Washingtonian magazine’s 100 Very Best Restaurants
• Now Available! Arlington County Offers Smoke-Free Restaurant Guide
• FREE Promotional Opportunity for Arlington Stores and Restaurants
• 2009 Taste of Arlington Seeking Restaurant Partners
• ACVS Exhibits at Society of Government Meeting Professionals (SGMP) and Destination Marketing Association International (DMAI) Trade Events

Arlington Tourism: How Green Are We?
Green tourism is all the rage these days, so we’re taking inventory to find out just how “green” Arlington tourism is. As you know, Arlington County actively promotes green stewardship through its Arlington Initiative to Reduce Emissions (AIRE) initiative. We are also home to the first carbon-neutral taxi fleet in the United States: EnviroCAB, and our hotels are getting greener every day. However, we’re certain that there’s much more happening in Arlington’s hospitality community that reduces tourism’s carbon footprint. Please complete our short survey so we can learn more about how the Arlington tourism community – hotels, restaurants, stores and attractions – is going green. Not only are you sure to find the results fascinating, but the information will also help us to position Arlington as a green tourist destination and increase our appeal to visitors for whom that’s important. Please share your business’s green initiatives with us and get recognition of your efforts in a future newsletter. Click here to complete the survey now!

Interesting fact: In a survey conducted by the American Hotel and Lodging Association, readers were asked if knowing a hotel is green made it more likely they would choose it over one that is not green, and 32.88 percent of respondents said yes. (SmartBrief 2/12)

In case you didn’t know: The Virginia Tourism Corporation (VTC) in partnership with Virginia DEQ, and Virginia Hospitality & Travel Association (VHTA) has launched a green tourism program – Virginia Green –  for hotels, restaurants, and other tourism partners.  Virginia Green promotes practical pollution prevention techniques in all sectors of Virginia’s tourism industry. Read on to learn more about how your business can go Virginia Green. 

Arlington Lodging Stats Strong within Region, Nation
December 2008 and January 2009 lodging data from Smith Travel Research indicates that Arlington hotels are weathering the economic downturn well. Compared to December 2007, Arlington’s overall occupancy for the month was up 3.4 percent. Nationally, occupancy for the month decreased by 6.8 percent, and only two other local areas were up: D.C. by 0.5 percent and Fredericksburg/I-95 by 4.1 percent.  Average daily rates and Revenue per Available Room (RevPAR) had solid December increases for Arlington across the board.  And as expected, the 2009 Presidential Inauguration brought Arlington significant increases for January compared to the same month in 2008: Occupancy was 4.6 percent higher; the Average Daily Rate was 18.3 percent higher; and RevPAR was up 23.8 percent.

Four Arlington Restaurants make The Washingtonian magazine’s 100 Very Best Restaurants
In case you haven’t been paying attention, Arlington is a foodie heaven these days! Adding to an already award-winning cadre of restaurants, this year four of the County’s restaurants were recognized by The Washingtonian magazine as being among the 100 Very Best Restaurants (2008) in the Washington, D.C. metro area. The four restaurants include Ray’s the Steaks, Minh’s, Liberty Tavern and Ravi Kabob House. Ray’s the Steaks (31^st), the original restaurant from Chef Michael Landrum, won praise for seared scallops, crab royale, hanger steak and ribeye steak. Ray’s has just relocated to a larger space at 2300 Wilson Blvd. and has also begun accepting reservations.  Newcomer Liberty Tavern (62^nd) has impressed with a local menu that changes with the seasons.  It was noted for its trout with johnnycakes, fried smelts with escarole, and wood-fired pizzas. Minh’s (58^th), a long-time local favorite was lauded for its appetizer sampler, green papaya salad and lemongrass-marinated short ribs. Not only excellent, but truly authentic, Ravi Kabob House (87^th), has long been the place to enjoy Middle Eastern cuisine on a budget. Ravi Kabob House was honored for its kebabs, chickpea stew and mango lassi.

Now Available! Arlington County Offers Smoke-Free Restaurant Guide
Many Arlington County
     restaurants have
          recognized the
              benefits of
    going smoke-free by voluntarily deciding to offer patrons and employees a smoke-free environment. Arlington County applauds the restaurants that already have gone smoke-free and their support in making Arlington a community in which being healthy and fit is a way of life for people of all ages and abilities. The County now offers a smoke-free restaurant guide that can be downloaded from the County web site. Download a copy now to share with visitors, or go smoke-free and contact Arlington County to be added to the list.

FREE Promotional Opportunity for Arlington Stores and Restaurants
Get FREE exposure for your Arlington store or restaurant with coupons in our touch-screen Visitor Information Kiosk in Rosslyn! The kiosk is located at the corner of N. Lynn and N. 19th Streets, and since late August has enabled visitors to easily look up information about dining, shopping, attractions and events in Arlington neighborhoods along Metro’s Orange Line: Rosslyn, Courthouse, Clarendon, Virginia Square and Ballston. Already the kiosk has logged over 3,000 hits, with the majority of tourists looking for great places to dine, as well as information about historic and entertaining attractions to make their trip to Arlington memorable. Visitors can print out walking directions to Rosslyn-area businesses, plus coupons to participating stores and restaurants.  Take advantage of this FREE opportunity to attract visitors to your business! If you would like to feature a coupon, please complete the ACVS coupon form and email or fax to Jenny Capone at jcapone@arlingtonva.us or 703-228-0806.

2009 Taste of Arlington Seeking Restaurant Partners
Scheduled for May 17 from noon to 5 p.m., the 22^nd Annual Taste of Arlington is just around the corner!  Hosted by the Ballston-Virginia Square Partnership, this community event transforms the Ballston area into a lively street festival, complete with local entertainment and sponsors, children's activities, special exhibits provided by the National Science Foundation, and food from over 40 noteworthy restaurants.  Taste of Arlington  draws an average of 12,000 Washington metro area residents each year, and presents a great opportunity to showcase your restaurant to locals and visitors alike. The web site has been launched, and organizers are seeking restaurant partners. For more information and to register, visit the Taste of Arlington web site.

ACVS Exhibits at Society of Government Meeting Professionals (SGMP) and Destination Marketing Association International (DMAI) Trade Events
The Society of Government Meeting Professionals (SGMP) National Capital Chapter (NATCAP) hosted its 12th Annual Winter Meeting & Trade Show on Feb. 11 at the Marriott Wardman Park Hotel in Washington, D.C. Themed “Ingredients for Change,” the trade show attracted more than 300 meeting planners for state and federal government agencies, government contractors and more. Margaret Sanders represented the Arlington Convention and Visitors Service at the exhibit hall, connecting with SGMP members gathered there for high-energy learning, networking, and fun. ACVS also promoted Arlington as a meetings destination at DMAI’s Destinations Showcase, North America's largest one-day event exclusively bringing conference, convention, and trade show professionals together with exhibiting meeting destinations from the United States and beyond. Held at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center on Feb. 26, Destinations Showcase gave the ACVS team the opportunity to talk with hundreds of pre-qualified meeting professionals seeking locations for their next events.