PRESS RELEASE

Visit Bellevue Unveiled New Programs, Tours, and a Yuru-Chara
at the 2024 Annual Meeting and Destination Awards 

Bellevue, Washington (April 29, 2024) -  Visit Bellevue, the official destination management organization for the City of Bellevue, held its 3rd Annual Meeting and Destination Awards with the theme Expanding Horizons on April 24. Bellevue’s long-time friend, television and radio sports broadcast journalist, business consultant, and author Jen Mueller, served as Master of Ceremonies to an audience of over 180 tourism and hospitality leaders.  Author and Director of Avant-Guide Institute, Daniel Levine, provided the keynote and The Memphis Belles from NM Entertainment performed. Visit Bellevue has been busy, and there was a lot to cover during the 2-hour luncheon at the Meydenbauer Center.

Mayor Lynne Robinson provided a warm welcome to the audience of over 150 tourism and hospitality leaders from Bellevue and surrounding cities, including Kirkland, Redmond, Issaquah, Woodinville, Bothell, Seattle, and the Port of Seattle. She celebrated Visit Bellevue’s successes and championed the BellHop program, which she shared, “is thriving with over 60,000 passengers, saving over 34 metric tons of carbon dioxide since it began service.” 

Visit Bellevue’s Executive Director, Brad Jones, provided a land acknowledgment to the Coast Salish tribe. "Our 2024 goals are to Expand our Horizons by promoting and achieving a full rebound in [travel] segments,” he said. “We aim to position Bellevue for new historic records in business travel arrivals and capitalize on our competitive advantage in international travel, conventions, and meetings.” 

Jane Kantor, Visit Bellevue’s Director of Destination Sales, celebrated her team’s successes, stating that they achieved “an all time-record high exceeding our room night booking goal by 140%. The economic value of these group bookings is $51 million in future spending.”  

Director of Visitor Experience Meredith Langridge shared successes for Visit Bellevue’s Mobile Welcome Center,  affectionately called SCOUT, and Enhanced Kiosk Program. She unveiled Visit Bellevue’s upcoming tourism priorities, including Bellevue Adventures, a new program that incubates tour operations in Bellevue. This means new tours are launching from Bellevue, such as Duffy Boats on Lake Washington, Waterfall and Wine Tours, Bellevue Walking Food Tours, and more.  

Meredith also teased an upcoming program, BikeHop, created in partnership with REI. BikeHop will provide visitors staying at participating hotels with free electric bike rentals. She said, “guests can embark on thrilling journeys along incredible bike trail systems and scenic parks, such as the 44-mile Lake to Lake Corridor and the upcoming 42-mile EasTrail trail, connecting Renton, Bellevue, Woodinville, and more.” 

Sheila Freeman, Visit Bellevue’s Director of Marketing and Communications, shared successes, new campaign materials, new culinary tourism program activations, and unveiled Visit Bellevue’s newest team member, Belle the Bobcat. 

Belle has been thoughtfully created as part of an overseas marketing campaign for Japanese tourists in collaboration with the Japan America Society and PacRim Marketing Agency.

“Think of her as a mascot for Visit Bellevue and keep an eye out because she’ll be making more appearances after she finishes her CTA training and our rigorous Visit Bellevue orientation, of course,” said Sheila.  

Daniel Levine’s keynote address dug into the nitty-gritty of travel trends, providing inspiring and thought-provoking insights for tourism facing businesses. He shared that Bellevue is uniquely positioned for a thriving leisure tourism sector, with many of the amenities and hospitality already in place, due to the existing corporate and business travel to the city. 

To round out the event, the Visit Bellevue Destination Awards celebrated the crème de la crème of Bellevue’s thriving tourism industry. Nominations were sought, submitted, and meticulously assessed by a panel of respected industry professionals and peers. The awards were presented by City of Bellevue Councilmember Jared Niuwenhuis, who also serves as the Council Liaison to the Bellevue Convention Center Authority & Visit Bellevue. 

The 2024 Visit Bellevue Destination Awards Winners Are:  

• Convention of the Year: Alpha Kappa Alpha Far Western Regional Conference 
• Best Marketing Campaign or Promotion: Northwest Trolls – Scan Design Foundation 
• Event of the Year: BrickCon 
• Outstanding Individual: Jennifer Leavitt, The Bellevue Collection 
• Rising Star: Conrad  Hoernke, Ride Circuit/BellHop 
• Business of the Year: Bellden Café – Claire Sumadiwirya 

Convention of the Year winner Alpha Kappa Alpha Far Western Regional Conference came to Bellevue in April 2023, bringing over 1,3000 people who used more than 1,500 hotel room nights and generated over $1.4 million dollars in economic impact through visitor spending.  

Best Marketing Campaign or Promotion winner Scan Design Foundation brought the magnificent Northwest Trolls to the State of Washington, celebrating the crux of human experience – art, culture, and connections with the natural lands around us. The mythical storytelling in this campaign has attracted discerning travelers from around the world to Bellevue’s region, while amplifying the significant cultural heritage of the Coast Salish tribe communities with Danish/Scandinavian traditions. 

Event of the Year winner BrickCon made Bellevue it’s new home in September 2023. This brought over 5,000 attendees to Bellevue who used hundreds of hotel room nights and generated over $6 million dollars in visitor spending. This event celebrates an iconic fandom that draws adult fans of Legos and families to our city through themes of Sci-Fi, art, history, fantasy, and play, and amplifies the significance of STEM fields while providing inclusive accommodations for varying neurotypes. 

The Outstanding Individual winner Jennifer Leavitt, Director of Marketing at The Bellevue Collection, is a proven industry and community leader who has left an indelible mark on Bellevue’s hospitality landscape, mentoring and inspiring many professionals, and igniting their passion to deliver unparalleled visitor experiences. With over 30 years of industry experience, Jennifer produces culturally relevant events critical to Bellevue’s multicultural community throughout the year, including Snowflake Lane, which brings 12 to 15 thousand visitors to Bellevue each night during the winter holiday.  

Rising Star winner Conrad Hoernke, Market Manager for Ride Circuit/BellHop, oversees the team that makes the BellHop program successful. He is a true hospitality professional, representative of outstanding service, dedicated to improving visitor experience and community engagement.  

Business of the Year winner Bellden Café owned by Claire Sumadiwirya is known by Reader’s Digest as the Nicest Place in Washington. Armed with incredible Avocado Toast options, Claire sacrificed her profits to help lift the community through the pandemic, keeping her doors open to patrons. She creates strategic and meaningful partnerships with nonprofit organizations year-round, and she builds culture and community at and beyond Bellden Café. Claire is passionate about developing the workforce, street level activation and just about everything else going on in Bellevue. 

Claire created a Charity Candle for Visit Bellevue, launched at this event, without any inkling  she would receive the award. Guests at the event received the take-home candle in the scent of Bellevue Botanical Bliss, which will be sold online and at Bellden Cafe with the proceeds benefiting Tourism Cares.  When introducing the award, Jen Mueller said, “Claire embodies the destination spirit of Bellevue in every way. Her kindness and compassion consistently bring tears of joy to our eyes.” 

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For visitor information, please visit www.visitbellevuewa.com or look for Visit Bellevue’s mobile welcome center.  

About Visit Bellevue Washington 

Visit Bellevue Washington (VBW) is Bellevue’s official Destination Marketing and Management Organization (DMMO), representing the city’s hotels, the Meydenbauer Convention Center, and the entire Bellevue hospitality community. A safe, walkable, and easily accessible city, Bellevue provides a vibrant fusion of welcoming hotels, restaurants, nightclubs, lively culture, outdoor recreation world-class shopping. Surrounded by pristine natural beauty with big-city amenities, Bellevue offers a wide variety of entertainment experiences and is home to innovative global corporations. www.visitbellevuewa.com   

Media Contact 
Anna Yan, Communications Manager 
Visit Bellevue Washington 
ayan@visitbellevuewa.com