The Greater Miami Convention & Visitors Bureau (GMCVB) is proud to partner with the Greater Miami & the Beaches Hotel Association whose mission is to unify the hospitality industry countywide and to provide, through education and proactive leadership, an enhanced visitor experience that complements other efforts currently designed to make Greater Miami a prime world wide destination.

The Greater Miami Convention & Visitors Bureau (GMCVB) is proud to partner with the Miami Beach Visitor and Convention Authority (VCA) whose mission is to proactively recruit, develop, and financially support and partner with events, festivals, programs and activities that are innovative, high quality and representative of our City, which garner positive or noteworthy media awareness, which enhance and augment the reputation of Miami Beach and the experience for tourists, year-round, or which significantly impact our local hospitality and culinary business.

The Greater Miami Convention & Visitors Bureau (GMCVB) established the Visitor Industry Council (VIC) in 1991. Through scholarships, training, placement and mentoring, the VIC promotes workforce development for the visitor industry, with a focus on diversity and underrepresented populations, in Greater Miami and The Beaches. In partnership with local industry employers and educational partners Florida International University, Johnson & Wales University and Miami Dade College, the VIC awards college scholarships, pairs scholars with industry mentors and facilitates management-track career placement for its scholars and graduates. The GMCVB sponsors the H.O.T. Challenge (Hospitality Open Golf Tournament) and Silent Auction annually to benefit VIC scholarship programs.

The Greater Miami Convention & Visitors Bureau is a Business Champion for the Academy of Hospitality and Tourism (AOHT). The Academy is a national private/public initiative to impact the quality of the visitor industry’s future workforce. With internationally recognized high school career academies at John A. Ferguson, Miami Springs, Miami Beach, Miami Norland, Miami Homestead, and Robert Morgan Educational Center, Academy students gain school-to-work experience in the local visitor industry. The GMCVB, along with other valued industry partners, supports the Academy through student internships, mentoring, job shadowing, in-service training, Board service and in-kind contributions.

Encouraging international travelers to “Discover America,” the Travel Industry Association (TIA) has built a website, DiscoverAmerica.com, to promote the U.S. as a premier destination. “As the organization that represents the interests of the entire U.S. travel industry, we’re uniquely positioned to create world class websites that will provide relevant and meaningful information for travelers from key markets throughout the world,” said Roger Dow, President and Chief Executive Officer at TIA. Dow noted the importance of reaching overseas travelers in particular because that portion of international inbound travel to the U.S. has declined by 17 percent since 9/11, and the U.S. share of the world travel market has declined by 36 percent since 1992.