The Magnificent Mile

CHICAGO – In an ongoing effort to attract international visitors to One of the Great Avenues of the World®, The Magnificent Mile®’s website (www.TheMagnificentMile.com) now has five translation options: Mandarin, French, German, Japanese and Spanish. According to the Chicago Convention & Tourism Bureau, these are the top languages of Chicago’s international target markets.  

The translated pages are part of a larger strategy put forth by The Greater North Michigan Avenue Association (GNMAA), the business association that represents The Magnificent Mile brand, to promote the district to visitors around the world. The Magnificent Mile was recently the host of the nation’s first shopping festival, In-Fashion: The Magnificent Mile Shopping Festival presented by MasterCard®, an event model that was inspired by shopping festivals that occur annually in popular international destinations. This year’s celebration drew 114 visitors from China who traveled to Chicago specifically for the event. Those visitors resulted in 262 room nights in the district.  

Last year at the U.S. Travel Association’s International Pow Wow, attended by more than 1,500 international and domestic travel buyers from 70 countries, GNMAA debuted a “passport” of offers for international visitors, a material that is now distributed through tour operators in countries across the globe. GNMAA also expanded its international exposure at ITB Berlin in March 2011. As the World’s Leading Travel Trade Show, more than 180,000 travel trade professionals and consumers attended last year’s event, presenting an incredible promotional opportunity for the district.

“The Magnificent Mile is a destination known throughout the world,” said Grant DePorter, Chairman of The Greater North Michigan Avenue Association. “It’s important that we show international visitors that the district is a welcoming environment that caters to their needs. The translated pages allow us to showcase the district’s offerings in a way that makes it easy for international visitors to understand.”

The Magnificent Mile’s international marketing efforts were made possible by a grant from the Illinois Office of Tourism. For more information, visit www.themagnificentmile.com.