Tourism Council February Meeting Update: Celebrating Our Evolving Tourism Community
The February 16 meeting of the Cape Ann Chamber of Commerce Tourism Council spotlighted what members of the region’s visitor-based economy have known for quite some time: our tourism scene is constantly evolving and growing, with new and exciting additions.
All that Cape Ann is famous for – including our beaches, waterfront activities, restaurants, artists, downtown shops, unique accommodations, and museums – is still a vibrant part of tourism here. But there is so much more, and at our February meeting, the Council got a glimpse of what’s new and what’s ahead.
We welcomed special guests from The Open Door, Cape Ann’s amazing social services organization that operates a food pantry and programs to connect people to good food, to advocate on behalf of those in need, and to engage others in the work of building food security. While the organization’s work is an important part of the community visitors experience when they visit Cape Ann, we also heard about The Open Door’s thrift store – Second Glance – and how this represents a new tourist attraction…thrifting.
Our other guests were representatives from The Cut, the downtown Gloucester restaurant and music venue that opened a few months ago. The Cut is already transforming Cape Ann and our music and food scene for visitors and for locals. In our meeting, we heard about plans for future performances and other efforts to engage with the community.
Other updates discussed in our February meeting included new e-bike plans shared by representatives from Gloucester Rentals and CATA’s continuing commitment to support Cape Ann visitors.
We also looked back on activities from this winter, including the latest edition of Gloucester So Salty, which had another successful weekend celebration in mid-January (January 20 & 21), and looked ahead to initial plans for Pride events and activities in June.
In keeping with the focus on what’s new, we heard reports from Council members who attended the recent North of Boston Tourism Summit, where topics like international travelers and digital communications were top-of-mind. We also began discussions around the Council’s annual Spring Tourism Mixer, which will be held in May or June. This will be an opportunity for anyone in the tourism community to provide updates on new happenings and plans for the seasons ahead.
We’ll continue to talk about the exciting future of Cape Ann tourism in our next monthly meeting, on March 15. We invite anyone who is involved in or has an interest in Cape Ann’s visitor-based economy to join us for this or future meetings. We gather on the third Friday of each month at the Greater Cape Ann Chamber of Commerce offices — and via Zoom. If you’d like to be part of these discussions, please reach out to me or contact the Chamber staff.
Tony Sapienza
Co-owner, Blue Shutters Beachside Inn
Chair, Tourism Council
tsapienza@gmail.com
