The Land of Enchantment, specifically the city of Santa Fe, illuminated Los Angeles with
all its culture, beauty, art, and recreation last week at the Taste of Santa Fe. The Santa Fe Convention & Visitors Bureau and a coalition of city businesses brought the luxurious event, Taste of Santa Fe, to the recently remodeled Hotel Shangri-La in Santa Monica last Wednesday, October 28th. Los Angeles tastemakers sipped on fresh fruit margaritas poolside while enjoying art, music, theater, dance, and food to raise awareness about the city’s 400th Anniversary, to encourage more meetings to be held in the city, and to mark the beginning of direct air service between LAX and Santa Fe on American Eagle in mid-November.
Alluring Santa Fe
Juan Siddi Flamenco Theatre performed a stunning dance number filled with color and passion. Two-time Grammy Award Winning Native American Flutist Robert Mirabel gave a beautiful performance while guests experienced Santa Fe cooking demos, indigenous spa treatments, viewed world class art from local artists, pottery demonstrations and a film showcase . Representatives from Santa Fe’s most exquisite and luxurious boutiques and hotels were there showing southwestern fashions and services. Hundreds of the Los Angeles area press, meeting planners, tour operators, travel agents, and members of the film industry turned out for the sensational 5-hour, experiential open house event.
Santa Fe Swag
Gift bags abundant with Santa Fe goodies and door prizes of Santa Fe hotel stay, dinners and jewelry were happily received. One lucky guest won a 3 night stay at the famous Bishop’s Lodge in the fabulous presidential suite, two round trip tickets from LA to Santa Fe on American Eagle, dinner for two at Bishop’s Lodge and two passes for two days of exhilarating skiing at Ski Santa Fe, valued at $6000.
“Los Angeles is one of Santa Fe’s most important leisure travel markets in addition to being a national media market and film center,” said Santa Fe CVB Executive Director Keith Toler. “By providing hands-on Santa Fe experiences we think the LA media and the city’s travel and film professionals will come away with a better idea of what Santa Fe has to offer and, in turn, result in more visitors, meetings, and films coming to the city. This has been an excellent collaboration between public agencies and Santa Fe’s various business groups and is a model for working together in the future, especially our partnership with IATSE 480.”
Grammy Award Winning Native American Flutist Robert Mirabel.
Sponsors and Contributors
The bureau brought together the city’s public and private sectors for the event. The Downtown Merchants Association, Santa Fe Gallery Association, Santa Fe Arts Commission, Santa Fe Lodgers, New Mexico Department of Tourism, Heidi Lowen Porcelain, Theater Grottesco, Juan Sidi Flamenco Theater Company, American Eagle, Downtown Day Spa, Santa Fe School of Cooking, Ski Santa Fe, Santa Fean Magazine, Town of Taos and the Taos Ski Valley, Native American musician Robert Mirabal, and the film and television technicians of New Mexico union IATSE Local 480 were involved in the planning and were represented at the event.
LATSE Local 480
New Mexico IATSE Local 480 is a chapter of the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees, Moving Picture Technicians, Artists and Allied Crafts of the United States, its Territories, Canada, AFL-CIO, CLC. www.iatselocal480.com
To plan your ‘enchanting’ trip to Santa Fe, visit: www.santafe.org
