NEW CONSUMER PARTNERSHIPS AND AD CAMPAIGN HELP REVITALIZE “I LOVE NEW YORK”
JetBlue Airways and Zipcar to Offer Discounts Aimed at Boosting Travel to Upstate

Governor Eliot Spitzer today announced that “I Love New York” has partnered with JetBlue Airways and Zipcar as part of its campaign to encourage travelers to discover New York State this fall. The partnerships are part of a major fall advertising campaign aimed at persuading residents of New York City and Toronto to “Get out of Town” and visit Upstate.

As part of the celebration of its 30th anniversary and as a result of efforts to revitalize the state’s iconic “I Love New York” tourism brand, JetBlue Airways and Zipcar are offering discounts to customers for travel within New York State this fall. Beginning today, JetBlue Airways is featuring a 72 hour sale, with $30 base fares each way for travel on certain days of the week between JFK and Buffalo, Rochester or Syracuse (subject to certain restrictions set forth in detail at www.jetblue.com). New Zipcar members will receive $30 of free driving starting today. Zipcar is also featuring ten cars wrapped with the “I Love New York” logo, and is reducing weekday fares through October 31st. A third partner, Amtrak will also offer a 20% discount for rail travel within New York State through an “I Love New York” discount code. The discount will be available to and from all Amtrak destinations in New York State, including travel from Montreal on Amtrak’s Adirondack Service, which is funded through the New York State Department of Transportation.

“In today’s marketplace, it is important that we go where the consumers are.” said Governor Spitzer. “That’s why we’ve invested heavily in internet advertising and pursued partnerships with innovative companies that are already attracting New York consumers. With the help of JetBlue and Zipcar, we are encouraging visitors to explore all the things that New York State has to offer while also revitalizing the ‘I Love New York’ brand as a one of today’s great consumer brands, like JetBlue and Zipcar.”

The fall advertising campaign is the second since “I Love New York” hired Saatchi & Saatchi. After a successful summer campaign, the “Get out of Town” theme is again featured in the nearly $1 million fall campaign. The advertisements will appear in New York City and Toronto print media, online travel websites, and in other digital media over the next seven weeks. The summer ad campaign marked the first time that “I Love New York” advertised heavily on the internet where the majority of travel decisions are made. The fall campaign continues this trend.

These campaigns are part of the historic state investment that provides $22 million for tourism promotion, including $16 million for “I Love New York,” nearly a 50 percent increase over last year.

Pat Foye, Downstate Chairman of Empire State Development, said: “These promotions are a great example of what Empire State Development strives to do: utilize public-private partnerships for increased opportunity throughout the state. Working with JetBlue and Zipcar, the ‘I Love New York’ brand is reaching consumers in a new and innovative way, and motivating them to discover New York, which results in real dollars spent in the State.”

Dan Gundersen, Upstate Chairman of Empire State Development, said: “Tourism is an important industry throughout New York, and reflects the amazing resources we have here, especially in autumn. This campaign helps remind people that New York is the place to be in the fall. Particularly in Upstate, every community is rolling out the welcome mat so visitors can enjoy fall’s beauty and splendor.”

Dave Barger, CEO JetBlue Airways, said: “JetBlue has been dedicated to stimulating travel within the Empire State by providing low-fare service since our beginning nearly eight years ago. As the airline that carriers more customers per day on flights within New York State than all other airlines combined, we are proud to partner with the 'I Love New York' campaign to celebrate 30 years of bringing awareness to the beauty and resources of this great state, and look forward to continued service for many years to come.”

Scott Griffith, CEO of Zipcar said, “Fall is the perfect time of the year to enjoy all that New York has to offer. Zipcar provides the freedom to travel out of town to go shopping, camping, or simply visit relatives upstate, and we are proud to partner with the I Love NY campaign to make it even easier to love NY.”

David Lim, Amtrak’s Chief Marketing Officer said, “We are grateful to our partners in the State of New York and to Governor Spitzer for their continued support of Amtrak and passenger rail. We hope that the discount fare promotion announced today will encourage travelers to experience New York State’s diverse destinations and enable them to enjoy the state’s wonderful scenery.”

The original “I Love NY” campaign was officially launched in 1977 with the objective of increasing tourist volume by building awareness of New York State as an outdoor, family destination, and positioning New York against major competition, particularly New England. Today, tourism is a $43 billion industry that employs more than 700,000 people in New York State.