Sedona
Arizona’s largest cities are planning their own events and promotions, hoping to cash in on some of that $400 million windfall.
“We do think we will capture part of that business,” said Jennifer Wesselhoff, president and chief executive officer of the Sedona Chamber of Commerce. “It’s a great time to be in Sedona.”
The city will advertise in materials sent to Super Bowl ticket holders, Wesselhoff said, hoping to reach potential visitors before they make travel plans.
In January and February, banners promoting Sedona tourism will hang in Sky Harbor International Airport’s Terminal 4.
The Sedona chamber is encouraging local businesses and hotels to offer Super Bowl discounts. With 3,000 hotel rooms and time-share units available 90 minutes from the Valley, Sedona “is a very viable” home base for Super Bowl guests, Wesselhoff said.
Prescott
In Prescott, innkeeper Jeanne Watkins has become a one-woman promoter for her town.
“I am marketing my B&B, but even more, I am marketing the Prescott area,” said Watkins, owner of the Pleasant Street Inn and a rabid football fan. “Prescott is the perfect area for people who don’t want to pay the prices down in the Valley.”
As Valley room rates skyrocket, Watkins’ prices are holding steady at $125 to $175 for a room and breakfast, about average for Prescott, she said.
She’s banking that Super Bowl bigwigs have booked high-priced lodging in the Valley. When the Super Bowl teams are decided just weeks before the game, their fans will scramble to find affordable housing, she predicts, and Prescott will look like a bargain.
If Watkins and other hoteliers see an uptick in reservations, they’ll join Prescott sports bars to throw a big Super Bowl party on Feb. 2.
Flagstaff
February is usually a slow time for Flagstaff, said Mark Ross, general manager of the Flagstaff Holiday Inn Express and president of Flagstaff Hospitality and Innkeepers Association.
So the city’s three larger hotels - the Holiday Inn, Little America and the Radisson - are hoping for a piece of the Super Bowl action.
“I think it presents an opportunity we would not normally see,” Ross said. “For those (hotels) who have the foresight, they’ll try to market it as best they can.”
While Flagstaff might be too far as a home base for those attending the Super Bowl - it’s a 140-mile trip to the Valley - it could be part of the Stay for the Week campaign, scoring tourists before or after the game.
Heather Ainardi, public-relations manager for the Flagstaff Convention & Visitors Bureau, said it will depend on which teams play. Miami fans might welcome a trip to snow country, while fans of Green Bay or New England would savor the Valley’s balmy weather.
The Grand Canyon Railway, which runs between Williams and the South Rim, will lure tourists north with special rates from Jan. 19 to Feb. 17 of 50 percent off train rides and 20 percent off hotel packages.
Their slogan: “You’re in Arizona for Super Bowl XLII. So Go Deep!”
Tucson
Arizona’s second-largest city has hung up a “No Vacancy” sign.
From Feb. 2 to 17, Tucson will host the annual Tucson Gem, Mineral & Fossil Showcase, an event that draws 50,000 visitors and adds $100 million to the economy, said Kimberly Schmitz, director of communications and public relations for the Metropolitan Tucson Convention & Visitors Bureau.
Tucson is happy to have Super Bowl fans travel south for the day, but rock hounds have booked all the hotel rooms. And they return year after year.
“We want to keep their heads in the beds. They’re our priority,” Schmitz said.
But Super Bowl gravy will still trickle down, she said, and she’s happy to have the game in the state.
“When people come to Arizona, they fall in love with Arizona. And they always come back,” she said.