Meeting planners from around the world now have access to virtual tools to aid the planning of future events in Ottawa. Last week, Ottawa Tourism launched Virtually Ottawa, an interactive experience which aims to inspire conference planners to consider Ottawa, Canada’s capital, for their next meeting. This tool helps bridge the gap while in-person site visits are not a possibility.
Viewers are virtually welcomed to the Shaw Centre, Ottawa’s award-winning convention centre, which is celebrating its 10th anniversary in 2021. They will have the opportunity to explore Ottawa’s landscape through the panoramic city tour from the Trillium Ballroom and tour the centre to discover locally inspired experiences, including:
A mixology demonstration with Greg O’Brien from Bar from Afar demonstrating the art of making craft cocktails at home, a 15-minute break with Brittany Bryden, a yoga and movement teacher and a visit to Create Kitchen with the Shaw Centre’s Chef Patrick Turcot as he shares the recipe for a decadent treat for the whole family.
Upon entering the platform, meeting planners are greeted by a virtual member of the Ottawa Tourism sales team, who provides a virtual site visit of the city and its landmarks, as seen from the ballroom. Venues and attractions are tagged, allowing the viewer to be directed to the appropriate section of Ottawa Tourism’s website for more information.
The virtual space contains billboards with links to destination videos, a Meet the Team piece as well as information on Ottawa Tourism’s Convention Services.
“Ottawa Tourism’s Business Events team is proud to launch this tool, which allows them to show off Ottawa’s assets in a safe, secure, accessible way to meeting planners both near and far,” says Michael Crockatt, President and CEO of Ottawa Tourism. “Given that many meetings are booked years in advance, this allows our staff to continue their work bringing important business to Ottawa and helping to set the scene for a robust recovery of Ottawa’s hard-hit tourism sector.”
