Friday, April 10, 2009
RESORTQUEST HILTON HEAD ISLAND WELCOMES HARBOUR TOWN RESORTS TO OUR EXCLUSIVE VACATION HOME AND VILLA RENTAL OFFERINGS.
ResortQuest Hilton Head Island is excited to announce that Harbour Town Resorts will now be part of our exclusive vacation rental program. Harbour Town Resorts consist of 75 vacation rentals, all located in the heart of Sea Pines, and many overlooking the famed Harbour Town Yacht Basin and Harbour Town Lighthouse.
April 10, 2009 Hilton Head Island, SC – Preserving the essence of Harbour Town Resorts has been a goal for David White, conservator of Harbour Town Resorts since the disappearance of his sister and brother in-law, Liz and John Calvert last year.
“ResortQuest is poised not only to run, but expand on what we know as Harbour Town Resorts. White recently wrote in a letter to the Harbour Town Resorts homeowners. “Through my due diligence, I have come to know ResortQuest’s expertise, marketing power, and resources."
“We feel very privileged to be selected to continue to grow and develop this collection of vacation rentals in Harbour Town," said Robert Stenhammer, General Manager of ResortQuest Hilton Head Island, "and we are confident in our abilities to provide a high rate of return and expert care for our homeowners and extraordinary vacation rentals for our guests.”
ResortQuest will begin marketing and booking reservations for Harbour Town Resorts immediately and will transition the homeowners and guests in the following weeks. The Harbour Town location in Sea Pines offers ResortQuest the opportunity to enhance their selection of elite accommodations in this much sought-after location.
As part of the Harbour Town Resorts Agreement, ResortQuest will partner with the Harbour Town Yacht Club, which will enable ResortQuest to attract more specialty groups; including weddings, golf groups, family reunions and corporate retreats to the benefit of all ResortQuest property owners in Sea Pines.
About ResortQuest Hilton Head Island:
About ResortQuest:
Friday, February 6, 2009
Blizzard Internet Marketing Partners with ResortQuest
Fort Walton Beach, Florida - February, 2 2009 - Blizzard Internet Marketing, a search engine marketing company out of Glenwood Springs, Colorado has formed a partnership with ResortQuest, one of the nation's leading vacation rental and resort real estate companies.This partnership joins two market leaders to provide added benefit and value to the vacation rental industry. Blizzard Internet Marketing is a leading provider of search engine marketing services for the hospitality industry. ResortQuest and its Partners represent a portfolio of over 50,000 vacation rentals, encompassing over 100 resort locations in the United States, Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean and Europe. Blizzard and ResortQuest perfectly compliment one another in product, expertise, and their mutual belief in the importance of web marketing and Search Engine Optimization to the vacation rental industry.
John Ellis, ResortQuest Senior Online Marketing Manager and renowned SEO expert comments on Blizzard:
'Blizzard Internet Marketing understands search engine marketing in the vacation rental business in a way that few agencies do. Blizzard SEO experts often break down the complex issues involved in SEO into bite size nuggets of actionable items. Even individuals with very little experience in internet marketing can turn to the Blizzard team for real-world search engine solutions that increase the bottom line. '
ResortQuest continues to aggressively expand into new markets across North America and Europe by partnering with established, local vacation rental management companies. Blizzard will serve as an additional preferred internet marketing and Search Engine Optimization option for these ResortQuest partner affiliates. The partnership will ensure expert optimization and marketing services for all involved. As part of the partnership, Blizzard will also conduct online marketing webinars to help educate ResortQuest Partners on the latest techniques and technology available.
Both companies are thrilled with the new arrangement and the mutual benefits it is sure to provide. Trent Blizzard, owner of Blizzard Internet Marketing offers the following sentiments about the budding relationship:
'We are proud to work cooperatively with an industry leader of ResortQuest's stature. Like Blizzard, ResortQuest offers expertise and experience to the vacation rental and holiday destination markets. Blizzard shares a likeminded philosophy about the importance of online marketing and Search Engine Optimization. We are pleased to extend our services and add more value to the online marketing components of the ResortQuest Partnership program.'
Ellis adds, 'The addition of Blizzard Internet to the preferred vendor list provides our Partners with another great resource for search engine marketing. We strive to give our Partners access to the best technology and marketing minds in the vacation rental business.'
The ResortQuest Preferred Partner list consists of Visual Data Systems (provider of search engine marketing, website development, and web hosting), Instant Software (provider of 4 industry software platforms), Kaba Ilco Inc and other travel industry companies that consistently out perform the competition in their respective fields. Blizzard Internet Marketing will complement the field.
About ResortQuest ResortQuest, one of the nation's leading vacation rental hospitality and resort real estate companies provides a one-stop resource in North America's premier resort destinations. ResortQuest is the largest marketer and management company of vacation condominiums and home rentals in the U.S., based on a portfolio of over 10,000 vacation rental properties. ResortQuest has local check-in offices at every one of its destinations and full staff on-site to provide the highest service levels to guests. With the inclusion of Partner Affiliates in North America and Europe, ResortQuest now offers over 50,000 vacation rental choices in over 100 destinations world-wide. With over a billion in sales, ResortQuest Real Estate is one of the nation's leading real estate companies focusing exclusively on resort properties, offering superior brokerage services in the country's premier beach, ski and golf destinations.
About Blizzard Internet Marketing, Inc Blizzard is the leading provider of Internet marketing services to the hospitality industry. Services include website design, promotion, statistical analytics tracking, web hosting, Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and Pay-per-Click (PPC) marketing strategies. Blizzard focuses on designing websites that perform well in search engines, excel in usability, and facilitate a purchasing action that results in increased online revenue for their clients. They continuously seek out innovative strategies to keep their clients ahead of the curve.
Uncork the Festival
Wednesday, February 4, 2009
Aqua Grille & Lounge
- 10 North Forest Beach Dr, Hilton Head Island, SC
- 5:30 p.m.
- $35/person
- RSVP: 843.341.3331
Join the Hilton Head Area Hospitality Association in kicking off the 2009 wine and food festival by sharing a memorable wine moment in your lives while also enjoying a food tasting prepared by our host restaurant! Bring your own special bottle(s) of wine to the event and plan to share a taste with your friends and other attendees. No corkage fee will apply and assistance with opening your bottle(s) will be provided if needed. Don't have a special bottle? We'll provide a limited selection of wine that could become something special by the end of the evening!
Menu to include:
- Crab and Brie Fingers
- Tea Smoked Pork Puff Pastries
- Tuna Wontons
- Shrimp Mousse in a Puff Pastry
- Seared and Seasoned Kobe Beef served on Cucumbers
- Shrimp Escabeche on crackers
- Pouring more into the HHI W &F
Hilton Head Island, SC - Thinking outside the box to attract visitors and guests to the island is something the Hilton Head Area Hospitality Association (HHAHA) began taking seriously in 2007. As the local trade association representing the hospitality industry it was important to map a future that expanded its showcase wine and food event that at the same time benefited the economy of the island. To do that Ann-Marie Adams, executive director of the HHAHA reached out into the local island community and to other wine festival producers to make that happen.
In a field of many wine and food festivals produced in the United States a limited few incorporate an international judging component as part of their activities. In 2007 Adams reached out to Rebecca Murphy of the Dallas Morning News' Dallas Wine Competition for assistance. In doing so the two found a way through a unified online wine entry process (Enofileonline.com) to make the Hilton Head competition more efficient that also allowed several wine competitions to cross market their endeavors at the online entry point in 2009. Those competitions include: International Wine Judging and Competition, Hilton Head Island, SC; Best of the Bay, Alamedia, CA; National Women's Wine Competition, Santa Rosa, CA; Dallas Wine Competition, Dallas, TX.
"The HHI Wine & Food Festival has fined tuned its operations and its programming over the last several years. With the first change in 2008 to combine two established events (WineFest and FoodFest) into the HHI Wine & Food Festival and a second change to add a fall beer festival called Seafood Jazz and Brew," says Tony Fazzini, president of the HHAHA. A revised festival schedule also included the development of a volunteer-based destination event steering committee that has grown in size to 40 individuals from the local market place. "The input of the residents, business owners, and hospitality industry leaders on this steering committee makes a significant difference in leveraging our resources to create a quality experience for our attendees in 2009, " says Fazzini.
2009 brings growth to the island's number three destination event in its planning and preparation, but it also heralds a new location for its Public Tasting and Auction to transpire on Saturday, March 14, 2009 at the Coastal Discovery Museum at Honey Horn. "We will grow into the space at Honey Horn with the full expectation that as more wine and food lovers discover Hilton Head Island we will rival our fellow destination events (Heritage and Concours) in terms of attendance," says Ann-Marie Adams, executive director of the HHAHA.
Wine Centered Women is an addition to the pre-event activities of the festival that reaches across the electronic highway through Facebook to generate buzz about wine as well as to attract individuals to the island's premier wine and food event. Several local food and wine related representatives contribute to the content of this virtual discussion, making suggestions and inviting women from across the country to join them on the island for the HHI Wine and Food Festival. Those who answer the call will find an opportunity at the festival's public tasting and auction on March 14th to socialize and meet in person to continue the discussion in a live dialogue format.
The Wine 101 offering scheduled for Friday, January 30, 2009 at 4 p.m. at the Hilton Garden Inn is an added value component to an annual "free" event hosted by the hospitality association. Each year the HHAHA provides an orientation for its volunteers and sponsors so that they are well informed about the activities associated with the HHI Wine & Food Festival. After an overview of the festival, Larry Jones, Director of Training for the Ben Arnold Beverage Company will provide the group with a wine seminar covering such topics as what is wine and how it is made, wines of the world and how to read labels and varietals, and how to taste.
The Uncork the Festival event scheduled for Wednesday, February 4th at 5:30 p.m. at Aqua Grille and Lounge is fashioned after another popular wine activity called Open That Bottle Night. "Most of us have a special bottle of wine, champagne or spirits tucked away in a closet or in the back of the refrigerator. The bottle is special because of who gave it to us, or why they gave it to us, or why we bought it, or even if we made it ourselves. The originators of Open That Bottle Night realized that we all have such bottles, but we never find just the right occasion to open them up and enjoy the contents," says Chris Katon of Aqua. To kick off the 2009 event the organizers of the HHI Wine & Food festival are inviting members of the public to reserve a space at this exclusive event and to bring their special bottle(s) of wine to taste with their friends and other attendees. Interns from USC Beaufort will be present at this event with tape recorders in hand to collect the stories behind the special bottles so that those memories can be converted into memorable moments in print as part of the HHI Wine & Food Festival.
More than sixty professional wine judges will gather at the Hilton Oceanfront Resort and Spa in Palmetto Dunes February 5th-8th to evaluate wines during the International Wine Judging and Competition as part of the 2009 Hilton Head Island Wine and Food festival. Over forty local volunteers will staff the "back room operations" of the competition to pour samplings of over nine hundred wine entries for tasting by the judges. A total of five judging sessions will be conducted during the competition. The proceedings are monitored by a chief of judges and ten respected wine experts serve as moderators to head up wine panels throughout the competition. The moderators are chosen for their specialist knowledge and comprehensive understanding of wine. Each wine panel is composed of individuals connected to the wine industry through trade, education, media, retail, or restaurant operations. The competition will conclude on February 8th with the results posted to the award recipients on February 9th and publicly announced on March 14th at the Public Tasting and Auction.
The success of the Grand Wine Tasting event last year established an annual activity of the festival and in year two of this offering there is an increase in the value of the wines submitted for tasting ($75 or greater) as well as an increase in the number of attendees to 200 people. The tasting transpires at the Sea Pines Country Club, Sea Pines Plantation on Friday, March 13th at 5:30 p.m. with reservations secured through a ticket purchase in advance at $150/person. "This event sold out last year and provides those with sophisticated palates the opportunity to discover wines that they may desire to include in their private collections," says Fazzini.
Approximately 5,000 wine lovers, connoisseurs and novices, will attend the Public Tasting and Auction on Saturday, March 14, 2009 at Honey Horn. Ticket holders will have the opportunity to mingle with winemakers, sample hundreds of award-winning wines, learn from leaders in the food and beverage arena and enjoy gourmet treats and live music performed by the Chilly Willy Band. The first 3,000 individuals through the gate will receive an official 2009 souvenir wine glass. Both the live and silent auctions will showcase a magnificent array of premium wines and a portion of the proceeds will benefit the John F. Curry Hospitality Education Scholarship. In the 24th year of offering this event on the island many popular spectator events have been added to the agenda: ACF Chefs Lowcountry Chapter Category 3 competition, Hilton Head Kitchen & Bath's Tailgate Gourmet Challenge, Grey Goose Best Bartender Drink Making Contest, Southern Wine & Spirits Hospitable Waiters Race, Friends of the Library Used Cook Book sale, and the Junior League of Savannah South Carolina Low Country Projects Pie Baking Contest.
Great Chefs of the South is a new program of the festival transpiring on Thursday, March 12th and represents a partnership between four distinct food establishments in promoting the culinary destinations of Hilton Head Island. The Old Fort Pub, Red Fish, Sea Pines Country Club and Aqua Grille and Lounge will provide a unified seating time of 6:30 p.m. and a reservation cost of $99++ per person, but not the same menu. Each restaurant pairs its host chef with a guest chef from other destinations to collaborate on a menu designed specifically for each venue. Guest chefs scheduled to appear include: John McAllister, The Old North State Club, New London, North Carolina. Mike Juliano, South City Grille, New Jersey Shipley, Johnson & Wales University, Rhode Island
In addition to the core offerings of the festival many local restaurants and other entities have scheduled events to coincide with the popular destination event as part of a cooperative marketing endeavor. The 3rd Annual Pol Roger Champagne Dinner hosted by the Hilton Head chapter of the American Institute of Wine and Food will transpire at The Studio on Wednesday, March 11th. On Friday, March 13th the Lowcountry School of Wine will host a walk through to entice potential wine makers from the local community. On Saturday , March 14th Barefoot Sports provides attendees with an opportunity to work off their wine with the annual Shamrock Run and San Miguel's offers its annual After the Tasting Party at 5 p.m. at Shelter Cove Marina. When the wine events have concluded attendees can continue their stay on Hilton Head Island to enjoy the island's St. Patrick's Day Parade to transpire at 3:00 p.m. on Sunday March 15, 2009.
For information: 1.800.424.3387 or 843.686.4944
"The Hilton Head Area Hospitality Association is a non-profit organization serving the hospitality industry and related businesses in the Hilton Head region. The Association actively represents its members to federal, state and local agencies and organizations, provides members networking opportunities, develops and implements industry workforce training, and produces acclaimed destination related festivals to enhance the region's tourism."
Hilton Head Island is among only three destinations chosen by savvymommy.com as a favorite vacation spot in "The A List." The award winning parenting website is viewed by 4.5 million visitors each month.
Victoria Pericon, the site's publisher, is also a spokesperson for several corporations, as well as a consumer and lifestyle correspondent for television and radio. She has been seen on the nationally syndicated morning show; The Daily Buzz, and VH1's The Fabulous Life of Celebrity Kids.
Savvymommy.com was inspired in 2002 by Pericon's search for the best baby products on the market. The site only lists recommendations of products and services that Pericon has actually used and does not feature advertising.
Hilton Head Island, South Carolina (PRWEB) December 1, 2008 -- ResortQuest Hilton Head Island, the leading provider of Hilton Head Island vacation rentals, homes, villas and condominium rentals, announces that General Manager, Robert Stenhammer will serve on the Board of Directors of the Hilton Head Island-Bluffton Chamber of Commerce in 2009.
A veteran in the hospitality industry, Stenhammer holds a B.A. in Business from the University of St.Thomas (St.Paul, Minnesota) and an M.B.A. in Hospitality and Tourism from the University of Guelph (Toronto, Canada). He will use his managerial experience and prior work as a board member for the Colorado Hospitality & Lodging Association and the Breckenridge Resort Chamber to bring value to the Hilton Head Island Chamber’s Board.
“I am honored to represent our ResortQuest homeowners by serving on the board for our community’s chamber, an organization that is the benchmark for Chambers and Visitors & Convention bureaus around the world. While I will be focused on aspects of travel and tourism to Hilton Head, I will do so with the good of the entire community in mind. I truly respect what the local government and community leaders have accomplished in this special place.”
Stenhammer will be active on the Sales & Marketing Alliance Governance Committee and the Home & Villa Committee for the Chamber.
ResortQuest Partners with RSN Resort TV
ResortQuest International Inc., North America's leading vacation rental company, has announced a cooperative partnership with RSN Resort TV, a national television network that specializes in creating and distributing outdoor content to America's premier resorts, including more than 125 mountain and beach destinations across the country.
Ft. Walton Beach, FL (PRWEB) December 2, 2008 -- ResortQuest, North America's leading vacation rentals company has joined forces with RSN Resort TV, the most popular television network people watch on vacation. ResortQuest and RSN Resort TV have very similar footprints; ResortQuest and its' Partner locations boast over 100 resort destinations and a portfolio of over 60,000 vacation rentals world-wide. RSN stations are located in vacation resorts in most major ski area in the Northeast, the Rockies, and the West, RSN also has affiliate stations in Myrtle Beach, Key West, and along the Florida Panhandle.
In its first year as the Premiere Lodging Partner for RSN, ResortQuest will initiate a national television ad campaign, coupled with a strong online presence on RSN.com, RSN's popular outdoor enthusiast website. RSN's online and television audience of affluent, active vacation travelers fits perfectly with ResortQuest's target audience.
Mark Burchill, CEO of RSN, comments, "ResortQuest and RSN serve the same person...the resort vacationer. A partnership between the two companies makes perfect sense and we couldn't be more excited about the relationship."
"We are eager to launch this new partnership as well," adds Park Brady, CEO of ResortQuest. "This is a great way to provide additional information and services to our vacationing guests. It is also a huge benefit for our owners as this vast exposure on RSN will ultimately lead to increased bookings in their properties."
For more information, please contact Cheryl Spezia, Vice President of Marketing for ResortQuest at 850-362-4008, or Michele McMahon, Director of Marketing for RSN at 207-615-5116.
About ResortQuest:
ResortQuest, one of the nation's leading vacation rental hospitality and resort real estate companies, provides a one-stop resource in North America's premier resort destinations. ResortQuest is the largest marketer and management company of vacation condominiums and home rentals in the U.S., based on a portfolio of over 10,000 vacation rental properties. ResortQuest has local check-in offices at every one of its destinations and full staff on-site to provide the highest service levels to guests. With the inclusion of Partner Affiliates in North America and Europe, ResortQuest now offers over 60,000 vacation rental choices in over 100 destinations world-wide. With over a billion in sales, ResortQuest Real Estate is one of the nation's leading real estate companies focusing exclusively on resort properties, offering superior brokerage services in the country's premier beach, ski and golf destinations.
For more information visit www.resortquest.com or call 1-800-GoRelax
About RSN:
RSN Resort TV is a national television network that specializes in creating and distributing outdoor content for America's premier resorts, including 110 mountain and beach destinations across the country. RSN features local programming geared towards information, recreation, and entertainment. From exciting destinations such as Aspen, Vail, Lake Tahoe, Mount Snow, Key West, and Myrtle Beach, RSN is able to reach a special audience in their favorite places to play.
For more information, visit http://www.rsn.com.