Charlottesville Albemarle Convention & Visitors Bureau Launches New Mobile Visitor Centers

CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA – The Charlottesville Albemarle Convention and Visitors Bureau (CACVB) will officially launch its two new mobile visitor centers on Wednesday, May 5. This launch will be done in conjunction with National Travel and Tourism Week, a weeklong celebration of the importance of travel and tourism, hosted by the U.S. Travel Association. The mobile visitor center dedicated to Albemarle County will be at The Wool Factory from 11:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. and the mobile visitor center dedicated to the City of Charlottesville will be at Central Place on the Downtown Mall from 10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. The two mobile visitor centers will run on a predictable weekly schedule, Wednesdays through Sundays, with flexibility to provide on-site visitor services for popular events. These new visitor services efforts will complement online interactions with visitors on the CACVB’s website, www.visitcharlottesville.org.

This new mobile solution will allow the CACVB to reach and interact with even more visitors, by meeting them where they are located. This responsive and agile model gives the CACVB the opportunity to operate remotely in multiple locations and provide more equitable coverage in both jurisdictions. The mobile visitor centers will also provide more socially-distanced visitor services options and offer a safer experience for visitors and employees alike.

“We are thrilled to officially launch our new mobile visitor centers and National Travel and Tourism Week is the perfect time to do it,” said Courtney Cacatian, Executive Director of the CACVB. “This special week in the tourism industry is all about celebrating the value tourism holds for our local community, businesses, and personal well-being. We are so excited to be welcoming visitors at various locations in Albemarle County and the City of Charlottesville, to provide in-person services that we know are valuable to enhancing the overall visitor experience, while doing it safely and more cost effectively.”

The decision to embrace a mobile visitor services model was prompted due to significant cuts to the CACVB budget in the coming years. The organization is currently preparing for a budget decrease of more than $400,000 in the new fiscal year, which begins on July 1, 2021. This cut represents a 21% year-over-year decrease to the overall CACVB budget, which is entirely funded by a portion of the transient occupancy tax collected from lodging properties in Albemarle County and the City of Charlottesville. The CACVB also recently relocated its administrative offices to 501 Faulconer Drive in Albemarle County to help reduce overhead expenses.

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About the Charlottesville Albemarle Convention & Visitors Bureau

The Charlottesville Albemarle Convention & Visitors Bureau (CACVB) welcomes thousands of visitors to the region each year from all over the world who are seeking a variety of unique experiences in history, food, wine, spirits and adventure. The CACVB serves as the global resource for marketing the tourism assets of the City of Charlottesville and County of Albemarle, and assists tour operators, meeting planners, and other groups in planning visits to the destination. The CACVB’s mission is to enhance the economic prosperity of the people of the City and County by promoting, selling and marketing the area as a destination, in pursuit of the meetings and tourism markets.