(Black PR Wire) Washington, DC - Visit Lauderdale and National Blacks in Travel and Tourism Collaborative (BTT) today announced their partnership on the launch of Culture365 Live, an initiative created to amplify and promote Black-owned businesses in Greater Fort Lauderdale to Black leisure travelers, meetings and travel group leaders.

Culture365 Live aims to raise awareness of the various cultural heritage assets found in the diverse and inclusive community of Greater Fort Lauderdale, where everyone under the sun is welcome. In addition, the program showcases Black businesses and attractions that provide local authentic experiences throughout the year in the area’s 31 municipalities.

“We want visitors to know that our destination is full of diverse people, places, businesses and experiences that celebrate and represent the rich cultural diversity of Greater Fort Lauderdale,” says Stacy Ritter, President & CEO of Visit Lauderdale.

Through a series of online and offline events offered through the Culture365 Live initiative, Visit Lauderdale and BTT are striving to level the playing field for local Black-owned businesses and attractions, and welcome Black travelers to enjoy the many diverse experiences found throughout the destination.

“Visit Lauderdale has been one of the leading destination marketing organizations making intentional moves to broaden diversity, equity and inclusion in its destination since we have been working them following the unfortunate death of George Floyd last year. Its leadership has taken actionable steps to become more inclusive of their local stakeholders and to promote and market diverse experiences available to visitors. BTT is a proud partner for the Culture365 Live initiative and look forward to continuing to assist Visit Lauderdale in achieving their DEI and local stakeholder engagement goals,” says Stephanie M. Jones, Founder, National Blacks in Travel and Tourism Collaborative.

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About Visit Lauderdale

Visit Lauderdale is the official destination marketing organization for Greater Fort Lauderdale and serves as the tourism department for Broward County, Florida. Visit Lauderdale promotes the area’s 31 municipalities to a global audience of leisure and business travelers, and books conventions into the Greater Fort Lauderdale/Broward County Convention Center and area hotels and resorts. In 2019, more than 16.9 million annual visitors supported 180,000 direct and indirect tourism jobs and spent over $6 billion. For more information visit: sunny.org and follow @VisitLauderdale on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube.  

About National Blacks in Travel and Tourism Collaborative

The National Blacks in Travel & Tourism Collaborative’s (BTT) works in collaboration with DMOs, national travel & tourism organizations, small businesses, educators, media and influencers, and other industry leaders. We curate and implement initiatives designed to increase diversity, equity and inclusion, eliminate racial inequalities, and create economic opportunities to advance Blacks in travel and tourism. In addition, we assist our DMO partners in the implementation of strategies to best position their destinations and businesses as inclusive and diverse for travelers and community stakeholders.