Georgia Tourism has released a Georgia Film Selfie Spot Tour detailing local sites that have made appearances in major Hollywood films. The self-guided tour features 33 sites across Georgia’s various filming locations. Local stops include Georgia Visitor Information Center on I-95 South in Port Wentworth, Tybee Island Pier in Tybee, Wormsloe State Historic Site and Leopold’s Ice Cream, both in Savannah. Social media fans are encouraged to snap a selfie at their favorite location and use the hashtags #GeorgiaFilm and #ExploreGeorgia. The tour is the latest part of Georgia Tourism’s Year of Georgia Film Campaign, which kicked off this year. For a full list of tour sites, go to: http://www.exploregeorgia.org/film.
Virtual Reality Rules. Opened on June 24th across the street from the Empire State Building in New York City, VR World takes a new approach to the problem of adoption. VR World visitors receive a day pass with access to more than 50 different experiences. VR World is brand-agnostic, and aims to curate the best available experiences from today’s market. Downstairs, users can try Tilt Brush by Google or Fruit Ninja in VR. Upstairs, games like Superhot or rock-climbing simulator The Climb attract more traditional gamers. The new attraction has multiplayer games offer opportunities to socialize, along with a bar an event space. A separate room offers music videos and documentaries in VR. The space currently occupies three out of its five floors, leaving plenty of room for expansion. For more information, visit: https://vrworldnyc.com/.
The Hahvahd Tour (“Hahvahd,” of course, is the way locals in the Boston area pronounced “Harvard”) has gone mainstream. The first iteration of the tour was launched more than a decade ago by one-time student Daniel Andrew. It was an unofficial product, not sanctioned by the world-famous university. (There was even a tussle over its use of the Harvard brand. Harvard actually received a trademark for the word “Hahvahd,” which it now licenses to the tour group.) But, in the past several years, the informal tour made peace with Harvard officials, and even concludes its tour midst some university-sponsored gift shops. Founded by a former Harvard student and tour guide, Trademark Tours operates the Hahvahd Tour. It is now available every day of the year, with groups leaving every 30 minutes between 10 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. in the summer. Tickets start at $9.95 for a 70-minute general tour. A private tour for up to 20 people is $250, and tours are also available in other languages. For more information, visit: http://trademarktours.com/tours-of-harvard/group-tours-of-harvard/
$250 million Queen Mary Project Outlined: A new organization that has taken over the master lease of the land surrounding the Queen Mary in Long Beach, California ship has released renderings on what they hope will bring tourism to the area: a $250 million overhaul that includes an entertainment and retail complex: Queen Mary Island. Urban Commons, chosen by the City of Long Beach nearly two years ago to take over the marine complex, officially took over the lease last year under a 66-year agreement. Taylor Woods, principal of Urban Commons, has said the project would involve boat slips, a marina, a 200-room boutique hotel landside, restaurants, retail, possibly doubling the footprint of Carnival Cruises’ port, and major updates to the ship itself that will complement the historic aspects of the Queen Mary. Urban Commons will spend $10 million to $15 million to renovate the ship itself while an additional $250M will be needed to develop the surrounding land—monies that Woods claim Urban Commons can raise itself. According to the lease agreement, will be required to make an annual rent payment of $300,000. The percentage payment would be delivered to City Hall to the extent that amount exceeds Urban Commons’ minimum rent obligation.
