Tourism

New Bedford, Massachusetts- Today, Mayor Scott W. Lang and Lafrance Hospitality Co., announced that the proposed downtown waterfront hotel has cleared another major hurdle; Lafrance Hospitality has received approval from the Marriott Corporation to establish a Marriott Fairfield Inn and Suites in New Bedford.  The franchise approval allows the developer, Lafrance Hospitality, to progress to the next stage of the multi-million dollar waterfront project.

Be inspired by the "Changing Facade" of a cultural city. Explore the new faces and places of the downtown landscape. This forth year of the Changing Facade May AHA! night highlights the new and expanded businesses of the past year, young entrepreneurs and innovative artists, and exciting programs offered by the AHA! partner venues.

New Bedford, Massachusetts- The Walt Whitman documentary that includes segments filmed on location in the New Bedford Whaling National Historical Park, will air on PBS (WGBH/Channel 2) as part of its American Experience series on April 14, 2008 at 9:00p.m.  Last summer, HiddenHill Productions recreated early 19th Century New York on the streets of New Bedford to help illustrate the life of one of America’s most influential poets.

New Bedford, Massachusetts- Mark your calendar, the Standard-Times Greater New Bedford Summerfest 2008 is scheduled for the first weekend in July.  The event kicks off in the Downtown New Bedford Historic District on Friday evening with a concert and the City’s fireworks display and then continues on both Saturday and Sunday with music, artisan crafters, local and ethnic cuisine and more.

AHA! New Bedford invites you to celebrate Black History Month. This month the focus is on the rich cultural history and contributions of people of color to the city of New Bedford. Special programs this evening includes a screening Frederick Douglass: Profile in Courage at the Whaling Museum followed by a dramatic reading at Friends Meeting House. Other programs include a talk dispelling 20 myths about the Schooner Ernestina and a panel discussion of Cape Verdean contributions to the working waterfront. There will be a special performance by the Rhode Island Black Story Tellers at ArtWorks!, Marissa Terryce at NBAM and an open drum circle at Joe Piper.  Also featured this evening are more live music, new exhibits and fine dining.

NEW BEDFORD, MA --- Two southeastern Massachusetts actors have been cast in Your Theatre, Inc.’s upcoming production of Jeff Baron’s  compassionate and touching comedy Visiting Mr. Green . The actors are Roger H. Allen of New Bedford and Wade Martin of Berkley.

The New Bedford Whaling Museum has many diverse goals, not all of which are devoted to the specifics of whaling history.  Part of the institution’s mission is to promote the local history and heritage of the city and region, and there are many programs devoted to this specific cause.

Needlework as an art, craft, and industry has played a significant role in the history of New Bedford and its environs.  The plying of needle and thread – whether domestic or commercial, for ornamental or utilitarian purposes – symbolizes the impact of whaling both as a source of wealth and a means of subsistence.  The lives and work of merchants’ and captains’ wives and daughters; seamstresses, dressmakers, and tailors; embroiderers and knitters; sail- and flag-makers; and the whalemen who carved exquisite scrimshaw needlework tools for the women in their lives, demonstrate the complexities and contradictions inherent in the domestic ideal and working realities of needlework.

As you may or may not know, the Whaling Museum’s president and CEO Anne Brengle will be leaving the her position after 13 years at the institution.  She has accepted a wonderful opportunity to become president of the Coast Guard Foundation, a non-profit organization that supports the United States Coast Guard through a variety of means.

AHA! will be joining First Night as a FREE venue on December 31st from 5-9pm with a "Fire and Ice" celebration in downtown New Bedford. AHA! Program Director Lee Heald states that AHA! received over $90,000 in in-kind support in 2007 from local non-profit venues and businesses and that this evening is as a way of showing appreciation to the downtown community and partner venues.

New Bedford, MA – Hop on board the M/V Cuttyhunk and motor out to Cuttyhunk Island with the LLOYD CENTER FOR THE ENVIRONMENT in search of wintering seals hauled out on Gull Island, a small sand bar the seals love, located just off Cuttyhunk and Penikese islands. Catch a glimpse of gray and harbor seals, or even ringed, hooded and harp seals. Gray and harbor seals are the most abundant seals in this area. Ringed, hooded and harp seals are known as ice seals and are only seen during the winter months in this region. These seals are called ice seals because their pups are born on the ice floes or the pack ice off the eastern coast of Canada. During the winter, many of these juvenile seals migrate south and are frequently seen along the coast of New England.

Westport, MA – Is one of your New Year’s resolutions to get outside and walk or to learn more about the natural world around you? If yes, this is the perfect trip for you. Celebrate the start of the new year with a relaxing walk on Gooseberry Neck beach! The walk will focus on coastal ecology and bird identification. Winter is a wonderful time to walk the coast and observe the effects of wave action on the slope and shape of the beach.

New Bedford, Massachusetts - Buttonwood Park Zoo Director, Louis E. Garibaldi announced he will retire today after serving as Zoo Director since 2004.  During his tenure as director, Buttonwood Park Zoo has expanded numerous exhibits and introduced innovative programs that have encouraged more families to discover the zoo.  2007 was a record breaking attendance year for the zoo with 13% more visitors entering the zoo gates than in 2006.

New Bedford, Massachusetts - The First Night New Bedford Committee today unveiled the 2008 button at Shaw’s Supermarket at 500 Kings Highway in New Bedford.  The 2008 button features the winning image of the downtown New Bedford skyline illuminated by fireworks on New Year’s Eve 2007 captured by local photographer Bob Hughes.

WHAT: Unveiling of 2008 First Night New Bedford Button
WHO: Members of the 2008 First Night Committee, Ann Marie Lopes, City Director of Tourism and Marketing and Mayor Scott W. Lang
WHERE:     Shaw’s Supermarket, 500 Kings Highway, New Bedford
WHEN:     Thursday, November 29th, 2007 at 4:00 pm
WHY:     Officials will unveil the 2008 First Night New Bedford button and will give an overview of the fantastic First Night activities planned to help area residents ring in the New Year.  ###

New Bedford, Massachusetts - Downtown New Bedford will be bustling with holiday spirit, shoppers, families and festive activities during the first weekend in December...

DARTMOUTH (MA) –  Neither rain, nor predictions of winds gusting up to 25mph, stopped the hearty rowing and paddling community from enthusiastically racing in the 2nd running of the Lloyd Center Slocum River Regatta here today (Saturday, 15 September) .

New Bedford, Massachusetts- Ferry service linking New Bedford and Woods Hole will resume on Monday, September 17th, 2007.   Ferry service was briefly interrupted for approximately one week due to a mechanical error with one of the ferries.

New Bedford, MA, September 10, 2007—The 2007 Working Waterfront Festival, slated for September 22nd and 23rd, will explore Women in the Commercial Fishing Industry.  Women are employed in all aspects of the fishing industry...

New Bedford, MA— An Azorean whaleboat regatta to be held September 8-9, 2007 will highlight cultural ties between New Bedford, Massachusetts and the Azores, Portugal.

On Sunday, October 14, the New Bedford Preservation Society will present its fifth annual "HISTORICAL CEMETERY TOUR." The tour will take place at the Rural Cemetery in New Bedford, where historic portrayals in period costume will take place at several gravesites along the tour route.

The New Bedford Whaling Museum, like many of the cultural organizations in New England (and the rest of the world for that matter), has much more to it than meets the eye.  For every object on display there are 50 in storage.  For every elementary or high school that visits, there are dozens of students.  And for every story contained within its walls, there are thousands more yet to be told.

New Bedford, Massachusetts- The flotilla of 25 classic yachts scheduled to arrive in New Bedford Harbor this afternoon will arrive in New Bedford earlier than initially expected.  International Yacht Restoration School Classic Yacht Cruise officials project the flotilla will arrive in New Bedford Harbor today between 12-12:30PM.

New Bedford, Massachusetts- A flotilla of some 25 classic sail and powerboats will parade in company through the New Bedford hurricane barrier between 2 and 4 PM on Wednesday, August 22 and spend two days in New Bedford.  Mayor Scott W. Lang, the New Bedford Economic Development Council, the Harbor Development Commission, New Bedford Office of Tourism, and many local businesses, organizations, and individuals have scheduled a full itinerary to welcome the fleet of classic boats and their passengers participating in the Classic Yacht Cruise (CYC).

New Bedford, Massachusetts- Last year the City of New Bedford was awarded a $75,000 grant by the Executive Office of Transportation to finance a study on the feasibility of ferry service between Woods Hole and New Bedford.

New Bedford, MA, August 14, 2007 C The New Bedford Working Waterfront Festival made the thrilling announcement that two of Alaska’s most famous crab fishermen, Captain Phil Harris of F/V Cornelia Marie and Captain Johnathan Hillstrand of F/V Time Bandit will appear at the 2007 Working Waterfront Festival on September 22 & 23.

WHALE HOSTS WALKING TOUR OF NEW BEDFORD WHALING NATIONAL HISTORCAL PARK & DOWNTOWN on THURSDAY, AUGUST 16, 2007 at 6:30PM

WHAT:
The City of New Bedford Welcomes a New Tenant to the Ferry Terminal- The “Wicked Mermaid Coffee & Gift Shop”

WHO:
WORK Inc.
The New Bedford Harbor Development Commission
State Senator Mark C. Montigny
Scott W. Lang, Mayor of the City of New Bedford
   
WHERE:  In the New Bedford Ferry Terminal at State Pier
WHEN:  Friday, August 10th, 2007 at 12:00 noon
WHY:  To celebrate the opening of the new business at the ferry terminal, the Wicked Mermaid Coffee & Gift Shop

New Bedford, MA, July 10, 2007—The American Bus Association (ABA) recently announced that the Working Waterfront Festival, to be held on September 22 & 23, 2007, has been designated as one of the Top 100 Events in North America for 2007 by an elite tourism industry selection committee.