Sonoma County tourism leaders hope for rebound in 2010

<p>Sonoma County's $1 billion visitor industry survived a tough 2009, and there are signs 2010 will be better, tourism leaders said Wednesday at a conference in Santa Rosa.</p><p>“We want to go out there and seize market share,” said Ken Fischang, president of the Sonoma County Tourism Bureau, the county's destination marketing arm.</p><p>Hotel occupancy was down 11.5 percent through November, according to PKF Consulting, a San Francisco firm that tracks the hospitality sector.</p><p>Still, Sonoma County performed better than Napa, Monterey, Lake Tahoe and Palm Springs, four regions that compete for its visitor business, Fischang said.</p><p>The bureau will increase its promotion efforts this year, with social networking campaigns and special promotions, he said.</p><p>One attraction hoping for a rebound is the Cloverdale Citrus Fair, which kicks off Friday. The four-day fair expects 12,000 to 15,000 visitors, twice the turnout of last year, when rain kept crowds away, said manager Bonnie Wlodarczyk.</p><p>The weather forecast affects attendance more than the economy, she said. “Our fair is weather-dependent,” Wlodarczyk said.</p><p>Last year was the worst in memory for tourism, with leisure and business travel at historic lows, Fischang said. </p><p>“It's going to take us, as an industry, many years to recover,” he told guests at the bureau's annual meeting at Fountaingrove Inn.</p><p>But Sonoma County made the best of a bad situation, targeting international visitors and promoting close-to-home “staycations,” Fischang said.</p><p>The county outperformed other regions because it offers lodgings at all price levels, he said. While high-end hotels saw declines last year, campgrounds filled up.</p><p>The year ended with larger properties reporting better results, said Jim Davidson, the bureau's chief financial officer.</p><p>“We're coming into 2010 with some encouraging numbers,” he said.</p><p>This year, the bureau will target the international, eco-tour and lesbian-gay-bisexual-transgender markets, according to chairman Percy Brandon. </p><p>It will offer incentives for groups to hold meetings in Sonoma County and special deals for weddings.</p><p>The bureau also is using YouTube, Facebook, Twitter and other social networking tools to spread the word about Sonoma County attractions.</p><p>“It's going to be a tough year but we're ahead of the game,” Brandon said.</p><p>The tourism bureau receives about $3.8 million a year from hotel occupancy taxes and assessments.</p>