Brand USA Touts American Music At Toronto Event

The United States might be the world’s best destination for music. And nobody gets Canadians to the U.S. like Air Canada.

Brand USA and the U.S. consulate put on a wonderful, music-filled event in Toronto on Thursday as part of Canadian Music Week, showing off and talking up everything from traditional country to jazz to California surf rock.

Music and music festivals have become a huge factor in travel decisions, and the U.S. has tons of authentic musical offerings across a wide variety of styles. Tourism officials from Georgia, Virginia and California were on hand at Thursday’s event in downtown Toronto, along with newly appointed Brand USA regional director Colin Skerritt, who handles Brand USA duties in Canada.

A recent study said Canadian visits to the U.S. are on the decline, but Brand USA officials said Canada remains the largest source of international visitors for the U.S.; roughly one quarter of all cross-border visits.

Ally Carlson of DCI, which represents Visit California, highlighted not only major festivals such as Coachella, Stagecoach (both held in the spring in the Greater Palm Springs Area) but also the Monterery Jazz Festival, still the largest in the world. California also is home to bluegrass and Celtic music festivals, while visitors flock to smaller, iconic live music venues such as The Fillmore in San Francisco and The Troubadour in West Hollywood, where Canada’s Neil Young made an appearance early in his career.

Lisa Love of Explore Georgia introduced an outstanding Toronto duo called The Command Sisters, who played several tunes between chats from Love about outstanding music spots in Georgia. Famous Georgia artists include Ray Charles, Otis Redding, R.E.M., Outkast and more, and there are more than 75 music festivals held across the state each year. Another popular attractions are The Allman Brothers Band Museum in Macon, Georgia and the James Brown Family Historical Tour in Augusta.

Virginia officials talked about Virginia is “The Birthplace of Country Music,” with such attractions as The Birthplace of Country Music museum in Bristol, which is affiliated with the Smithsonian. First-rate musical acts can be seen at a variety of Virginia concert venues, including the outdoor Wolf Trap National Park for the Performing Arts.

Anna Innis, Air Canada’s national manager, passenger sales USA, told TravelPulse Canada that Air Canada flies to 57 U.S. destinations, including such Canadian faves as Orlando, San Francisco, Chicago, New York and Phoenix.

New routes are being added regularly, including service between Montreal and Raleigh-Durham, ,North Carolina (another great music state), which begins June 3.

Innis said Air Canada is the largest international carrier flying to the U.S. The airline also is capitalizing on the U.S. market by getting Americans to fly Air Canada to Europe, Asia and other distant markets by using AC hubs in Vancouver and Toronto.