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 Travel & Outdoors | March 2005 
History Re-Sold
 Janet Alicea - Hispanic Magazine
Catchy colloquial phrases, glossy print ads starring twenty-something Hispanics dancing below an “Ama tu vida, New Orleans” banner, and customized websites with colors capturing the Latin essence of Philadelphia are just some of the latest marketing tools employed by savvy tourist boards intent on capturing a greater share of the Latino tourist dollar.
Places such as New Orleans, Philadelphia and Santa Ana are reinventing themselves—or at least their marketing—with a historical and cultural gaze towards their Hispanic past and future.
In fact, a growing number of Convention and Visitors Bureaus across the country are including Hispanic heritage tours in their marketing strategies to retell our history and bring in visitors and revenue. “Heritage,” “ethnic,” or “diversity” are some of the monikers used to describe tours that allow visitors to experience a different culture, locale or time.
Phoenix’s Multi-Cultural Advisory Council’s welcome brochure reads, “Upon first glance, Phoenix may seem like any other bustling, growing American city. But beneath its breathtaking sunsets and world-renowned resorts lies a cultural history more ingrained than the occasional bowl of chips and salsa. Just look around … ”
It’s no mystery why the travel industry is targeting Latinos. The 2003 edition of The Minority Traveler, published by the Travel Industry Association of America, found that Hispanic travel increased 20 percent between 2000 and 2002—the largest increase for any group surveyed. In real numbers, that’s a jump from 64.1 million to 77.1 million trips. About 12 percent of these visited a historical place or attended a cultural event.
Sandra Dove-Lowther, associate director of New York University’s (NYU) Preston Robert Tisch Center for Hospitality, Tourism and Sports Management program is not surprised by the growth in heritage-related travel. Even when traveling, she says, “Hispanics tend to stay close to the roots and symbols of their culture.”
Realizing the economic potential, tourism boards across the country are rushing to capture this growing demographic with heritage-inspired offerings.
Criollo New Orleans
A lot of this is a result of the last census, according to Larry Lovell, spokesperson for the New Orleans Tourism Marketing Corporation. “Since 2000 we’ve put a lot of effort and reach into targeting the Hispanic market.” New Orleans shares many affinities with numerous Latin American cities, particularly in its mix of people and culture. A “blended” approach featuring advertising that incorporates elements of the city’s French, Spanish and Afro-Caribbean past is used to entice Hispanic visitors.
This fusion is found throughout the city, especially in the architecture. The design of the famous French Quarter is actually the result of Spanish building code and law in effect when this part of town was restored in the 1700s. El Cabildo, located on Jackson Square, was the seat of the Spanish colonial government court in New Orleans, and the place where the Louisiana Purchase was transferred from the Spanish to the French in 1803, just before it was sold a month later to the United States.
The French Quarter, the above-ground cemetery where voodoo priestess Marie Laveau is buried and the Longue Vue House and Gardens tours are the most popular among Hispanics, according to Isabelle Cossart, founder of Tours by Isabelle. Cossart has been organizing Spanish and bilingual junkets in the city since 1979, and has seen a 50 percent increase in the number of Hispanic clients in the last few years.
“They just love the garden tour so much, probably because they are modeled after the gardens in the Alhambra.”
Philadeiphia
Ever since the establishment of Philadelphia’s MultiCultural Affairs Congress (MAC) in 1986, the city has been on the top 10 list of destinations for Latino travelers and a major site for Hispanic conventions. The U.S. Department of Commerce, Travel and Tourism Administration named Philadelphia the No. 1 city for minority tourism in 1990.
Sharing a similar name with Puerto Rico’s luxury “Milla de Oro” shopping district, “El Centro de Oro” is the heart of Philadelphia’s Latino community. Also known as “5th & Lehigh,” the area is home to Taller Puertorriqueño, a community-based organization that promotes and preserves Hispanic culture, along with the East Coast’s second-largest Latin music store, Centro Musical.
So how does MAC incorporate the idea of inclusion amidst an urban reality? Catering and customizing local travel literature and tours to reflect the dialect and culture of the majority of Hispanics in the area—in this case Puerto Ricans—is essential, says executive director Tanya Hall.
“We wouldn’t go out to reach [National Council of] La Raza without making sure our ducks were in order with our local Hispanic community.”
Historic New Mexico
At 400+ years old, New Mexico is sometimes called the birthplace of Hispanic culture in the United States. And the story of Hispanics here continues to age gracefully.
Capitalizing on its history, New Mexico continues to build and promote cultural organizations and tourism that reflect the state’s near-bilingual status and 47 percent Hispanic population. The National Hispanic Cultural Center (NHCC) in Albuquerque is built on the historic site of the Camino Real, originally connecting Mexico City to Santa Fe, today called Interstate 25. NHCC is a clearinghouse, repository and performance space for Hispanic art.
Facilities include the Roy E. Disney Center for Performing Arts and the Intel Center for Technology and Visual Arts. Heritage tourism professionals like Dove-Lowther worry that an influx of money will produce a final product that is less authentic and more Americanized.
But Daniel López, public information and outreach coordinator of NHCC, would like the Center to be attractive to both Hispanics and non-Hispanics alike. As he sees it, “New Mexico is the cradle of Hispanic culture in the United States.” And at this stage, there’s no doubting its longevity. |
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