Leveraging Business Travel Growth
The rebound of business travel is bringing renewed energy and activity to Lancaster City’s downtown core, and the Convention Center is already poised to help recognize the economic benefits of this trend with current booking showcasing a strong trajectory for 2025 visitation. This is good news for the local downtown district which relies heavily on conference and convention activity to drive year-round foot traffic.
To maintain this momentum and support the local small and independent business ecosystem in increasingly uncertain economic times, Lancaster City should be prepared to use this increased volume to build local brand awareness, affinity, and market attention with proactive city advertising, event promotions, coordinated destination marketing and cross-promotion activities, including proactive public relations and media outreach – especially around incoming conferences.
Further, local hotels, restaurants, coworking spaces, and meeting and event facilities should take advantage of the current uptick in corporate travel by proactively marketing their offerings to executives affiliated with the region’s top employers.
The city can further elevate these efforts by developing dedicated landing page content that promotes the availability of local meeting and event space on the Visit Lancaster website. Cross-promotion between tourism and economic development initiatives and outreach campaigns can also help ensure the city is maximizing the value of business travel and using tourism as a front door to economic development.
Capitalizing on “Bleisure” Travel
The growth in “bleisure” travel presents significant opportunities for Lancaster City. Longer stays are good for local hotels, but they also translate into more meals in local restaurants, more time to shop, to visit local museums and/or performance venues, and offer increased opportunity to fall in love with something special at a local gallery or boutique.
Increased coordination and cross-promotion between event organizers, hotels, restaurants, and arts and retail establishments can help ensure marketing efforts are cost effective and productive, schedules are optimized, and valuable opportunities aren’t missed.
The existing Lancaster City Welcome Center and the Visit Lancaster City website are two critical pieces of infrastructure that can serve as a centralized repository for source information but marketing technology such as a strong Customer Relationship Management (CRM) database, and visitor and stakeholder newsletters, and customizable email marketing systems with engagement analytics will help take connection opportunities from responsive to transformational.
International Tourism Opportunities
The City of Lancaster is well positioned to participate in upcoming international events and should look for opportunities to partner with Brand USA, Visit Pennsylvania, Amtrak, Visit Philadelphia, MATPRA, and the International Society of Travel Writers to publicize its story and ensure that the city is placed in front of international travelers interested in American history, arts, culture, and entertainment.
International travelers are especially interested in discovering history that is uniquely American. Lancaster City’s connection to history (American Civil Rights, Black history, and diverse multicultural immigration trends) is a valuable tourism asset that represents tremendous opportunity for further destination product development and storytelling.
International campaigns should highlight the city’s close proximity to major metros via Amtrak, but also its easily accessible, historically and culturally relevant attractions. Key assets to promote include cultural and historical sites such as Bethel AME Church’s ‘Living the Experience’ performance, the new Thaddeus Stevens and Lydia Hamilton Smith Center, the Demuth Museum, and the Amtrak route from Lancaster City to Philadelphia itself (the only place where the Underground Railroad was documented as going above ground on an actual railroad).
The City of Lancaster can emphasize its role as the most diverse city per capita in the United States, showcase its farm-to-table standards, and highlight its Dutch Country heritage as it highlights its culinary story and international sophistication. The city’s small independent boutiques, bespoke retail scene, and strong artisan traditions hold strong appeal for international travelers looking for unique and highly authentic American experiences during their stay.
Lancaster City has an opportunity to position itself as both a historic destination as well as a welcoming multicultural community that offers easy access to unique American experiences, beautiful scenery, independent retail, affordable hand-crafted goods, and a tremendous food and arts scene which is all easily accessible via a short train trip from many other well-trafficked U.S. destinations including New York City, Philadelphia Pennsylvania, and Washington, D.C.
Sustainable Travel
Lancaster City is uniquely positioned to capitalize on the shift toward sustainable tourism through its impressive combination of historical preservation, agricultural heritage, and modern sustainable initiatives. The city’s crown jewel, Lancaster Central Market, perfectly exemplifies the intersection of cultural preservation and sustainable food systems, while embodying the farm-to-table movement that increasingly attracts conscious travelers.
The City of Lancaster’s sustainable assets extend far beyond its local food system. The city’s commitment to green infrastructure, including expanding bike lanes, electric vehicle charging stations, and public transportation, demonstrates practical environmental stewardship.
The preservation and adaptive reuse of historic buildings throughout downtown showcases how cultural heritage and sustainability can work hand-in-hand. Meanwhile, the city’s network of parks, urban gardens, and public squares provides green spaces that enhance both visitor experience and environmental health.
The region’s richness of Amish and Mennonite agricultural traditions also offers unique opportunities to showcase sustainable farming practices that have endured for generations. They appeal to travelers interested in both cultural heritage and environmental stewardship and should not be ignored.
Marketing these initiatives effectively will require a multi-faceted approach, highlighting Lancaster City’s commitment to sustainability across digital platforms, partnership development, and event programming. By emphasizing these sustainable practices and cultural assets, Lancaster City can attract conscientious travelers while helping to preserve the city’s unique character for future generations.
Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging (DEIB)
Lancaster City has long held a leadership position with regards to inclusivity policies and practices. This is a strategic advantage in tourism, and industry stakeholders should continue to showcase their welcoming commitment and openness to travelers of all backgrounds and categories through targeted programs, memberships, affiliations, and campaigns as these opportunities become available.
Some programs to consider might include:
Accessibility:
- Certified Autism Center™ (IBCCES)
- Age-Friendly Cities Network (WHO)
Note: The City of Lancaster has already begun pursuit. See https://www.cityoflancasterpa.gov/age-friendly/ for updates and additional information.
Cultural Diversity:
- UNESCO Creative Cities Network
Family Travel:
- Family Destination Guide Certification
Tourism Industry Programs:
- Destinations International’s DMAP Certification
- Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC) Certification
LGBTQ+ Tourism:
- TAG Approved® Certification
- International Gay & Lesbian Travel Association (IGLTA) Membership
Wellness Tourism
Penn Medicine Lancaster General Health has a strong presence in Lancaster City. Their focus on wellness and community health already attracts short-term stays in the city. Amtrak has also reported that many people travel to Lancaster City for medical treatment via rail, potentially highlighting an opportunity for the city to explore more intentional partnerships that support wellness travel to the region. For example, bundling hotels, wellness assessments or treatments, train travel, and local arts programming might offer a way to strategically showcase the city’s assets and values, while highlighting its high quality of life with a segment of traveler that is looking to slow down and appreciate what their destination has to offer. This would also allow the city to take advantage of the enhanced spending patterns this audience segment tends to offer.
Leveraging Technology
Technology is changing the tourism marketing game — at a breakneck speed. It is offering powerful new tools and capabilities that can be used to enhance personalized traveler experiences, automate high-quality customer service experiences, and even predict and respond to individual traveler preferences. These capabilities are helping destinations and travel companies provide more tailored and efficient services to meet customer needs but are also raising traveler expectations along the way. Accordingly, the integration of emerging tourism technology should be embraced and embedded into the budget, workflow, and standard practices of the Lancaster City Bureau of Tourism and Promotions. These tools can be leveraged in any number of ways to advance community goals, but to become, and stay, a top destination, Lancaster City must focus on meeting elevated traveler expectations.
Accessibility
Lancaster City’s commitment to accessibility builds upon its well-established welcoming tradition. The city has consistently demonstrated these values through policies and practices that promote inclusive access across various situations and circumstances.
As visitors increasingly engage with Lancaster City digitally before physically experiencing the city, accessibility must extend to the online environment. All industry stakeholders, particularly the Lancaster City Bureau of Tourism and Promotions and broader city communications departments, should prioritize digital accessibility standards, including the federal 508 compliance and international W3C’s accessibility guidelines (WCAG). This means ensuring videos include closed captioning or transcripts, web designs incorporate proper color contrast, and all digital content is compatible with screen readers. While requiring concerted effort, these digital standards present an opportunity to actively demonstrate Lancaster City’s inclusive values and provide technical benefits like search engine optimization (SEO) enhancements as well.
This commitment to accessibility must seamlessly continue in the physical environment as well. City leaders face the ongoing challenge of balancing Lancaster City’s historic architecture and charm with practical considerations including ADA compliance, age-friendly design, bike and pedestrian infrastructure, and effective public transportation. Much of this work is already underway, but it should be a continual process of optimization. By addressing both digital and physical accessibility, Lancaster City can fully honor its welcoming tradition while meeting the diverse needs of all visitors and residents.
Equitable Tourism Development
Continuing to look for ways to develop additional neighborhood attractions and interest hubs beyond the downtown core will help spread the economic benefits of tourism to more residents all around the city. Increasing tourism product and developing distinctive zones, each with their own anchor attractions, will also allow for longer visits and connect more locals to the power of entrepreneurship.
Other Notable Considerations
Authentic Representation and Cultural Experiences
Since the COVID-19 pandemic, travelers are increasingly seeking authentic cultural travel experiences that celebrate and respect the heritage of local communities.
For example, Discover Lancaster has long promoted local Amish traditions as part of the region’s appeal and this strategy has been very successful for the region at large. To stay true to the intentions of cultural sensitivity, the City of Lancaster should proactively engage and ensure planning representation and cultural reviews of all content showcasing local cultures that may be non-native to the content creator. This is a best practice that will provide added value, as visitors appreciate the authenticity of the materials they access when they arrive and locals are respected and empowered by proactive efforts to ensure accuracy in all storytelling.
Culinary Experiences
The City of Lancaster offers a diverse culinary landscape with regional specialties and international cuisines. Food tours and local dining experiences are often trip highlights for visitors. The city has a tremendous opportunity to play up its food scene and use it to showcase its superlative as the most diverse city per capita in the United States. By showcasing the abundant farm-to-table offerings available locally, and using it to connect to region’s well-established Dutch-Country heritage regionally, the city can use its food scene to attract cultural travelers who are statistically more likely to stay longer, spend more, and invest in the long-term success and sustainability of the community.
Distinctive Shopping
Lancaster City’s small independent boutiques, bespoke retail scene, and strong artisan traditions hold strong appeal for international travelers looking for unique and highly authentic American experiences during their stay. However, shop owners expressed concerns about reduced foot traffic that was hurting their business. Care should be taken to support efforts to drive coordinated activity and special events in independent retail districts.
Visual and Performing Arts
Lancaster City’s arts scene has a long and proud tradition. Places like Gallery Row and the Fulton Theatre are popular destination for out-of-town visitors. Care should be taken to support and develop programming that highlights these unique assets and showcases local art as a critical component of the Lancaster City experience.
