How to Prepare a Car for Sale

Gloucestercitynews.net (February 4, 2020)–Every driver has at least once experienced the necessity to sell his/her means of transport. When this happens, the price at which it will be sold is crucially important. There is the possibility to refer to an agency and let an experienced vendor sell it. However, in this case, the amount of money one will get is considerably lower than in the event of selling on one’s own.

Hence, if you are looking for ways to sell your automobile and get as much money as possible, it makes sense to fulfill this by oneself. There are several hints that may help you out with this process.

The first step one should make is to carry out his/her Toyota or

Lexus VIN check

so that to make sure that the info available on VIN lookup services is true. In general, a car report contains valuable information on servicing, maintenance, repairs, accidents, etc. However, it may happen that something is missing, like important maintenance that has been carried out on time. In such a case, it is necessary to find corresponding documentation that may confirm this.

Tips for Getting Ready to Sell

Let your automobile look attractive. In other words, let it shine like a new coin – wash it inside and outside and clean seats, ceiling, and floors. If necessary, you can also polish it. Besides, it is necessary to check if there are any corroded parts. It is better to get rid of this and repaint these parts. The cost of this work is lower than the discount you will have to make when a potential purchaser finds this corroded element.

Take good pictures to post them with the announcement on the sale. Check the web and see which pictures are uploaded on such platforms. To increase the chances that a potential buyer will want to acquire your vehicle, it is recommended to upload as many pics as possible. In such a way, people will be able to decide if they like an automobile or not before seeing it. You will at least save time instead of meeting those who won’t purchase it.

Remember about a reasonable margin. Undoubtedly, a purchaser will bargain. Make sure that you can provide a discount. However, it is essential to remember that the price cannot be overestimated so that not to frighten potential buyers.

Be honest and answer all the questions. People who acquire pre-owned vehicles understand that the condition cannot be perfect. If there is a defect or trouble, it is better to honestly reply to this question. The truth will be revealed, and this deal will not happen.

It is not so easy to sell an automobile unless you are a professional vendor. However, selling own vehicle provides a great advantage as buyers are more prone to trust owners than vendors. Having this benefit, it is crucial to present your machine in the best possible way so that to increase the chances to sell it at the desired rate.

Different Instagram Apps To Grow Your Followers:

Gloucestercitynews.net (February 4, 2020)–Instagram has become one of the best-known platforms in history, so it is also said, which is one of the most extraordinary applications today.

Taking into account that the numbers never fail, this social network has reached more than 700 million active users. A study conducted by Social Media Marketing says that Instagram is the second most used network.

image unsplash.com

Also, it is called as a network where you get more customers since Instagram works with interactions and with the audience.

This does not mean that you can upload anything, if you want to stand out in the middle of the entire audience, you must generate quality content. Now We have created a list of the best apps to get more followers on Instagram.

Real Followers:

This application is not found in the Play Store since it is an APK (a package for the Android operating system). It is beneficial to gain followers on Instagram, extremely important.

Real Followers offers the option of “follow me and I follow you”, it also gives you input to see the posts that other people publish and that they can also see yours and finally, likerforlike you can like the publications of users and that they like you back.

Do not think that followers are bots, this is an app to get more followers on Instagram, and they are totally real.

In order to get real followers you need to post content consistently. You can post viral videos, photos and stories of other instagram influencers and give them credits. In this way you can give benefit to your account as well as the other influencers. You can easily

download videos

and photos of any instagram profile by simple using

instadownloaderpro

for absolutely free.

Instafollowfor Instagram:

This is also one of the apps to get followers on Instagram, it is one of the most used applications, since she shows you who are the people who have stopped following you or the followers you have obtained.

In order for you to have followers, you must hire the paid version (Premium) and know who has blocked you on this network.

It is very effective at the time of interacting and to show multimedia content, making these videos more viewed and win more likes.

GetFollowersBoost:

It is very simple and you can find it in the Play Store, it is very effective for creating hashtags and you can publish videos and photos on Instagram very easily and quickly.

Its only function is to position labels to generate likes and followers.

Later:

It is one of the many ways to generate followers and makes you known on Instagram through the original content publications, while the publications are constant, the more attraction you generate to users.

This application was called Latergramme, but today it is known as Later, the best completely free tool that allows you to always be connected with followers and also gain new ones.

With Later you can plan when you want to publish your posts, photos and videos, you can also manage several accounts, this application will also present you with a report with all the most outstanding searches.

Royal Likes for Instagram:

Royal is also one of the apps to get more followers on Instagram, what happens is that, if they fulfill what they promise but in one way, this means that they help to gain followers but those followers are not real.

Although not all people want followers to be bots or followers with fake names, or would you like it to be so? If your answer is Yes, then you are not clear what social networks are used for.

The idea of all this is that people are influences and can gain Followers, that they are people who really want to be part of what you publish.

But, if you don\’t mind if your followers are bots we present this application that is free. This application also shows you which are the fake accounts or followers.

The application is available in Play Store especially for Android versions from 4.1 onwards, you can start earning followers from now on.

Gloucester Township Police Alert: It\’s Tax Time- Avoid The Scams

Thousands of people have lost millions of dollars and their personal information to tax scams. Scammers use the reg

ular mail, telephone, or email to set up individuals, businesses, payroll and tax professionals.

The IRS

doesn\’t

initiate

contact with taxpayers by email, text messages or social media channels to request personal or financial information.

Note that the IRS does not:

Call to demand immediate payment using a specific payment method such as a prepaid debit card, gift card or wire transfer. Generally, the IRS will first mail a bill to any taxpayer who owes taxes.

Demand that you pay taxes without the opportunity to question or appeal the amount they say you owe. You should also be advised of

your rights as a taxpayer

Threaten to bring in local police, immigration officers or other law-enforcement to have you arrested for not paying. The IRS also cannot revoke your driver’s license, business licenses, or immigration status. Threats like these are common tactics scam artists use to trick victims into buying into their schemes.

Here is what the IRS will do:

If an IRS representative visits you, he or she will always provide two forms of official credentials called a pocket commission and a

HSPD-12

card. HSPD-12 is a government-wide standard for secure and reliable forms of identification for federal employees and contractors. You have the right to see these credentials. And if you would like to verify information on the representative’s HSPD-12 card, the representative will provide you with a dedicated IRS telephone number for verifying the information and confirming their identity.

Collection

IRS collection employees may call or come to a home or business unannounced to collect a tax debt. They will not demand that you make an immediate payment to a source other than the U.S. Treasury.

Learn more about the

IRS revenue officers’ collection work

The IRS can assign certain cases to private debt collectors but only after giving the taxpayer and his or her representative, if one is appointed, written notice. Private collection agencies will not ask for payment on a prepaid debit card or gift card. Taxpayers can learn about the IRS payment options on

IRS.gov/payments

. Payment by check should be payable to the U.S. Treasury and sent directly to the IRS, not the private collection agency.

Learn more about how to know if it’s really an IRS

Private Debt Collector

Beware of Impersonations

Scams take many shapes and forms, such as phone calls, letters and emails. Many IRS impersonators use threats to intimidate and bully people into paying a fabricated tax bill. They may even threaten to arrest or deport their would-be victim if the victim doesn’t comply.

For a comprehensive listing of recent tax scams and consumer alerts, visit

Tax Scams/Consumer Alerts

Know Who to Contact

Contact the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration to report a phone scam. Use their “

IRS Impersonation Scam Reporting

” web page. You can also call 800-366-4484.

Report phone scams to the Federal Trade Commission. Use the “

FTC Complaint Assistant

” on FTC.gov. Please add \”IRS Telephone Scam\” in the notes.

Report an unsolicited email claiming to be from the IRS, or an IRS-related component like the Electronic Federal Tax Payment System, to the IRS at

phishing@irs.gov

For more information on Tax Fraud Visit:

https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/how-to-know-its-really-the-irs-calling-or-knocking-on-your-door

Address/Location

Gloucester Township Police Department

1261 Chews Landing Rd

Gloucester Township, NJ 08021

Contact

Emergency: 9-1-1

Non-emergencies: 856-228-4500

HSI at Super Bowl LIV

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) has been a constant presence at the Super Bowl for many years, having built and maintained a successful partnership with the National Football League. This year, HSI personnel in Miami will work with a range of federal, state and local law enforcement partners throughout Super Bowl week to provide essential public safety measures in and around the city to help combat many of the criminal threats the league and host city might face leading up to and throughout the big game February 2, 2020.

Why is HSI involved in preventing the sale of counterfeit products?

The illegal manufacture and sale of counterfeit goods is one of the primary concerns of HSI, as it is for U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), and the HSI-led

National Intellectual Property Rights Coordination Center (IPR Center)

, which includes many additional federal and international partners. It is criminal activity that endangers public health, harms the economy and restricts the competitiveness of U.S. products in the global market.

As part of those efforts, Operation Team Player, an ongoing effort developed by the IPR Center to crack down on the illegal importation of counterfeit sports apparel and merchandise, has worked through the year to identify warehouses, stores, flea markets, online vendors and street vendors selling counterfeit and game-related sportswear and tickets throughout the country. The IPR Center leads coordinated efforts with many of the United States’ major sporting leagues to target contraband that negatively impacts the economy, enables additional criminality and poses health and safety hazards to the public.

As in years past, effective teamwork will be the key to success on and off the field during Super Bowl LIV. For HSI, the size and scope of the task will again be met with personnel who are prepared to successfully execute the agency’s game plan and safeguard the city and everyone traveling to and from the Super Bowl.

With Super Bowl week winding down, the men and women of HSI remain hard at work, focused on ensuring the safety and security of everyone who has come to Miami for the game itself and all of the surrounding festivities.

As the Chiefs and the 49ers are finalizing their game plans with an eye on bringing home the coveted Lombardi trophy, members of HSI’s elite Special Response Teams are standing by at Miami-Opa Locka Executive Airport, ready to move out at a moment’s notice and join their law enforcement partners throughout the region to provide whatever assistance may be needed.

Special agents and investigators with HSI’s IPR unit will also be busy until the opening kickoff, protecting fans by looking out for and arresting counterfeit ticket sellers and continuing to confiscate phony, sub-standard team merchandise in the parking lots and other areas around the stadium.

As the pre-game festivities wrap up Sunday afternoon, all that’s left are the words of country music legend Hank Williams, Jr. hanging in the air – “are you ready for some football?!”

At a Thursday morning press conference, federal agents with ICE HSI announced the seizure of more than 176,000 counterfeit sports-related items, worth an estimated $123 million manufacturer\’s suggested retail price (MSRP), through a collaborative enforcement operation with CBP targeting international shipments of counterfeit merchandise into the United States. The National Football League and Miami-Dade Police department joined ICE and CBP for the announcement just days before Super Bowl LIV.

Through the ongoing initiative known as Operation Team Player, developed by the HSI-led IPR Center, ICE and CBP join with state and local law enforcement partners across the country, targeting the illegal manufacture, import, and distribution of counterfeit sports merchandise.

“Every day, cargo containers containing billions of dollars’ worth of counterfeit goods enter the United States through its land, sea and air ports of entry. This year’s record-breaking ‘Operation Team Player’ results affirm HSI’s commitment to protecting American consumers, the economy, and legitimate business, by ensuring the Super Bowl is not compromised by transnational criminal networks exploiting fan enthusiasm for illicit profits,” said HSI-led IPR Center Director Steve Francis.

Special agents from HSI teamed with industry partners, CBP, Miami-Dade police officers and other agencies to identify flea markets, retail outlets and street vendors selling counterfeit goods during the week leading up to Super Bowl LIV. They seized fake jerseys, jewelry, hats, cell-phone accessories and thousands of other bogus items prepared to be sold to unsuspecting consumers.

The IPR Center – formally codified in the Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act of 2015 – is one of the U.S. government\’s key weapons in the fight against criminal counterfeiting and piracy. The center uses the expertise of its 25 member agencies to share information, develop initiatives, coordinate enforcement actions, and conduct investigations related to intellectual property theft and its enforcement of international trade laws.

Gloucester Catholic Principal Ed Beckett Selected as Grand Marshal For St. Patrick\’s Day Parade!

Gloucester Catholic Principal Ed Beckett has been selected as the Grand Marshal for the Fifth Annual St. Mary\’s Parish and Gloucester City St. Patrick\’s Day

Parade. The parade will be held on Sunday, March 1 starting at 1:00 pm.

Mr. Beckett will receive his Grand Marshal sash from Bishop Sullivan at the 9:30 am Irish Mass at St. Mary\’s Church..

Mr. Beckett has served as Gloucester Catholic\’s Principal since August 2013 and is highly regarded for his work with youth and his devotion to the Catholic Community. Mr. Beckett also served the school as Assistant Principal for Spiritual Formation for 8 years. An alumnus of the Gloucester Catholic Class of 1978, he previously taught at St. Joseph\’s Preparatory School and served as an administrator at Boston College High School.

The Parade begins at Martin\’s Lake (Baynes Ave and Johnson Blvd) and continues down Monmouth Street, and will feature String Bands, Bagpipes, Irish Dancers, Irish Music. Memorabilia, and Community Organizations.

Gloucester Catholic alumni are encouraged to attend the parade, and are invited to march with the school\’s contingent as we salute

Mr. Beckett as well as celebrate Irish Pride and the great city of Gloucester!

Local parade officials also announced that Mr. Beckett will receive the First Community Impact Award on Friday, March 6, at Elizabeth Ballroom in Gloucester City. Doors will open for the event beginning at 6:30 pm. Tickets are $25 and may be purchased by calling the Rectory at (856) 456-0052.

Link to St. Patrick\’s Day Parade Festivities

For further information please contact St. Mary Rectory at (856) 456-0052. You may also click on the link below for general information and a sponsorship registration form!

General Information on St. Patrick\’s Day Parade and Activities

Thank You from St. Mary\’s Parish and Gloucester Catholic

Making Birthday Celebrations Even Better

(NAPSI)—Birthdays: we all have them, and we all have a chance to make them memorable for the people we care about. From unique ideas for celebrating to top birthday gifts at any age, here are some ways to put the happy in these special occasions, turning every birthday into a “birthYAY!”

A World of Birthday Wishes

No matter how you express it, the love you feel when wishing someone a happy birthday is universal. So the next time a friend or family member’s big day comes around, surprise them by saying it in a different language. Strut your international style by reciting your best Bosnian, “Sretan ro?endan”, or Bulgarian, “Chestit Rozhden den.” Or show off those superior language skills in Swahili, “Siku ya kuzaliwa ya furaha,” or Swedish, “Grattis på födelsedagen.” Get the whole list online and get ready to send your best birthday wishes!

Making the Most of Milestones

We all know that one person who loves to stretch their day of celebrating into a whole week…or even a month! And while any age is worth recognizing, milestone birthdays are the perfect opportunity to get a little carried away. How about welcoming each new decade with a unique way to celebrate? Turning 30? Think of 30 fun things to do, however big or small. Feeling adventurous? Go skydiving, bungee jumping or rock climbing with a few of your closest friends. Like to keep it low key? A new hairstyle, massage or treating yourself to a gift of flowers or chocolates is a great way to go. Check out more awesome ideas and start planning.

Now Trending: Buzz-Worthy Birthday Surprises

Speaking of birthday gifts, nobody knows more about finding the right one than the team at 1-800-Flowers. Which gifts rise to the occasion? Truly original is the way to go, and their very own decorative birthday flower cakes take the cake. New to the collection is a vibrant floral cake creation, designed to brighten their celebration at any age.

Fall is a popular birthday season, the perfect time for sending their new Harvest Glow Bouquet, a farmhouse-style design full of rustic charm. And because you can never go wrong with a classic, their exclusive Magnificent Roses—in radiant red or passionate purple—leave a lasting impression.

Plants are having their moment, and 1-800-Flowers is now offering more green and blooming beauties than ever. Try a unique, new glass succulent terrarium, or their best-selling Happy Birthday Succulents by Lula’s Garden. And because birthdays were made for indulging, 1-800-Flowers is serving up some exclusive hand-dipped strawberries from the newest addition to their family of brands, Shari’s Berries.

So there you have it! The scoop on making birthdays special, straight from the experts. For more on sending smiles for birthdays, or any day, call 1-800-FLOWERS, visit

www.1800flowers.com

, or visit a retail store. To find one nearby, visit

florist.1800flowers.com

5 Resume Tips to Wow Recruiters in 2020

Gloucestercitynews.net (February 1, 2020)–Let’s say you found a job posting where you believe your skills will fit like a glove. You applied to it by sending a resume and not only did you not get the job, but you also didn’t even get called in for an interview.

What do you think might have gone wrong?

image unsplash.com

It is safe to assume at this point that the fault lies within your resume.

Without a perfect resume, a recruiter will never even know what they missed. Being the first point of contact, your resume needs to be flawless. It is through this piece of document that you are going to dazzle the recruiter and score a place in the shortlist.

These are the 5 resume tips that will wow any recruiter in 2020:

Structure your resume in neat sections

Structuring your resume not only makes it look appealing, but it also breaks down the information in brief relevant sections. This helps the recruiter take in one piece of information at a time and thus makes it easy to read and comprehend.

The presentation of information on a resume is more important than the information itself. Wrongly presented, it will have no impact on the recruiter and thus has no relevance. So, be incredibly careful about what you put in your resume and how you display it.

The first thing you need to do is decide what sections will go on your resume.

Compose the following sections in the order given below to cover every information a recruiter needs to know about you:

Header

Personal Information

Profile Title

Summary

Key Skills

Professional Experience

Education

You can also add additional sections like ‘Certifications’ or ‘Additional information’ if you have data that can be filed under these. Add these sections only if they are relevant to the role you are applying for and you are positive that adding this information will favor your chances at a shortlist.

2. Make your resume easy to read

Most resumes that get tossed are due to their length or bulkiness.

These

statistics

by CareerBuilder show that 66% of employers said a resume should be one page long for new college graduates and 77% agreed that it should be at least two pages long for seasoned workers.

So, do yourself a favor and optimize the length of your resume. Discard all the fluff and only keep the essential information that a recruiter needs to know on your resume.

This eye-tracking

study

suggests that recruiters spend an average of 7 seconds on a single resume, that is not enough time for them to go through everything in detail. This means recruiters are only focusing on a few key points before making their decision about a candidate.

A cluttered resume might turn their interest off immediately as they won’t have any idea where to start looking for the required information.

To ensure that your resume gets read at least once, use one-liner bullet points instead of paragraphs to describe your past roles & responsibilities in the ‘Professional Experience’ section.

Further, categorize points under relevant subheadings and highlight the important information to draw the attention of recruiters towards it.

3.Write effective professional experience statements

However high your qualifications may be, they won’t score you a job if you haven’t presented them effectively on your resume.

Following are a few actions that you can take to make your resume more effective:

Bring the STAR method into action as it brings a cause-effect relationship in your statements. STAR stands for:

S stands for the ‘situation’ that demanded your contributions.

T stands for the ‘task’ you performed.

A stands for the ‘actions’ you took to perform the assigned task.

R stands for the ‘result’ in the form of an achievement figure.

An example of using this method can be seen in this one-liner point: “Delivered

10+ articles

weekly which increased the web site’s

traffic by 20%

”

Include as many achievement figures as you can while keeping them relevant: These numbers will help you back up your claims and make you look like a competent and useful asset. Performance figures prove that your contributions were helpful for the company.

For instance in the example, “Delivered

10+ articles

weekly which increased the web site’s

traffic by 20%

” the number of articles and the web site’s traffic is achievement figures.

Use

action verbs

to begin each one-liner point as it gives a tone of assertiveness to your resume. Words like ‘Managed’, ‘Spearheaded’ can give your resume a wow factor.

4.Keep your resume relevant to the job you are applying for

An irrelevant resume is not going to help you get any interviews. For instance, it makes no sense to mention your first job as a busboy or the many internships you did if you have been in the workforce for over 10 years.

Volunteering experience, internships, and similar information are required by inexperienced professionals or students, not someone who has already made their mark in the professional world.

These tips will help you keep your resume relevant:

If you have changed industries and your old job doesn’t fit anywhere near the new profile you are targeting, leave it off your resume.

People with more than 3 years of experience do not need to mention internships or volunteering experiences.

Use keywords as it helps you get past the Applicant Tracking System (ATS). Recruiters set the ATS to explicitly look for keywords in resumes before shortlisting them. You can find these keywords in the job description of your target job. Select the keywords that apply to you and customize your resume accordingly.4

Never forget to mention your contact details

4.Keep your resume relevant to the job you are applying for

Even if your resume got shortlisted, a recruiter will never be able to contact you to further your prospects if they do not have any means of contacting you.

So before you submit your resume, make sure that you have correctly input all the necessary contact details in your resume which include:

Contact Number

Email Address

Current Location

Conclusion

Looking back, these are the 5 resume tips to wow recruiters in 2020:

Structure your resume by filing information under relevant sections.

Enhance the readability of your resume by cutting out any clutter and highlighting important information.

Make your resume effective by using the STAR format, using action verbs, and including performance figures.

Increase the relevancy of your resume by only including relevant information and using keywords.

Provide the correct contact details to enable a prospective employer to easily touch base with you.

Author’s Bio:

Aditya Sharma

On a quest to help professionals across the world land their dream jobs, Aditya lives and breathes

Hiration where he’s a Co-Founder and the unofficial CPO (Chief Problem-solving Officer) of the AI-powered

online resume builder

and platform to help job-seekers find their way in the treacherous job market.

Quick and Easy Ways to Make Your Home More Eco-Friendly

Gloucestercitynews.net (January 31, 2020)–People are thinking a lot more about their carbon footprint these days, the idea of making your home eco-friendlier is not new, but it is becoming essential. From those who want to reduce their

image unsplash.com

environmental impact to those that are preparing their home to sell, being more environmentally conscious is more popular than ever. Make the right eco-friendly changes to your home, and you can even add value to your property, meaning that you can advance up the property ladder even faster. If you\’re looking for ways to make cost-effective changes to your carbon footprint, here are some of the greenest ways to make your home eco-friendlier.

Water Waste

As one of the more expensive utility bills, it always pays to be smarter about your water use. When it comes to being environmentally aware, most people look at electricity consumption, but your use of water is just as vital. Think about the many ways that you can save water, starting with making repairs on any leaking pipes or

a dripping faucet

. Consider installing a showerhead that comes with a low-flow option, and you can save thousands of liters of water every year.

Get Hot and Stay Cool

Temperature is where a lot of people fail when it comes to their carbon footprint. Relaxing at home if it’s too cold or too hot can be very frustrating, so it’s always tempting to play with the air-con or heating system to get the right temperature

to relax in. Check your air-conditioning system and your furnace, making sure to

make a note of your SEER and AFUE

. These two measurements will give you a much clearer idea of your energy efficiency and can have a large bearing on your utility bills.

Always Insulate

One of the most effective ways to use less energy is to need less. Insulated walls and attics prevent cooled or heated air from escaping outside, meaning that you aren’t going to be wasting your energy by constantly adjusting the temperature. You can even go beyond traditional materials by investing in more

eco-friendly materials for your insulation

. Sheep\’s wool and cotton are common options for greener insulation, but there are many materials to consider if you want to improve your insulation and remain environmentally conscious.

Eco-Aware Lighting

Most people have already looked at energy-efficient light bulbs, but if you haven’t researched them lately, then you might be amazed by the drop in prices. While the cost of energy-saving light bulbs used to be quite prohibitive, modern options are much more wallet-friendly. Remember, you don’t have to swap every lightbulb immediately. Buy one or two energy-efficient bulbs every payday and replace your older lightbulbs with the newer bulbs as needed. Take your time, and you’ll soon have all of the

environmentally friendly lighting

that you’ll need.

Turning your home int0 somewhere more eco-friendly doesn’t have to mean huge disruption or costs. Often, it is the small changes to your home that will have the most impact. Whether you\’re putting your property on the market or you want to reduce your carbon footprint, these quick and easy eco-friendly tips could save you a fortune and boost the asking price of your home.

CNB BUSINESS NES: 2019 marked a decade of growth for Center City Philadelphia’s hotels

PHILADELPHIA PA (Jan 28, 2020)–Today, the City of Philadelphia, in conjunction with VISIT PHILADELPHIA

, the Philadelphia Convention and Visitors Bureau and the Greater Philadelphia Hotel Association, announced records, most notably, in average daily rate (up 5.8% year over year to $202.41) and revenue (up 4.3% year over year to $707 million). Occupancy remained solid at 76.3%, as did demand, with 3.49 million room nights consumed. All of these results came during a year when four new Philadelphia hotels opened, adding 491 rooms to the city’s supply.

“I’m proud that even with new properties entertain the Philadelphia market, our hotels continue to set records,” said City of Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney. “Our growing tourism and hospitality industry works collaboratively to ensure that people choose Philadelphia for meetings, business trips and vacations every season of the year. This constant stream of visitor activity generates tax dollars and supports family-sustaining jobs for our residents. That’s hugely beneficial to our city and region.”

Center City Hotel Highlights

Occupancy:

76.3%

Saturday night remained the busiest night of the week, with average occupancy at 88.1%.

Tuesday was the busiest weeknight, with 79.4% occupancy.

Record

Average Daily Rate (ADR):

$202.41

This 5.8% year-over-year increase (up from $191.40 in 2018) is attributable to several factors: a strong convention year, strengthened business demand, solid leisure demand, more high-end hotel room inventory and a slow and steady increase in ADR in recent years.

Record Revenue Per Available Room (RevPAR): $154

Growing 1.2% year over year, RevPAR is up from $152 in 2018.

Supply & Demand:

58 million room nights in supply, 3.49 million room nights sold

2019 demand surpassed the overall five-year average by 4.5%, showing that the market is strong and thriving.

Record Room Revenue:

$707 million

Up 4.3% from $678 million in 2018, this revenue is the result of higher rates (ADR) throughout the year.

Market Mix: One-third for each segment

Of the 3.49 million rooms consumed, demand was split largely evenly among the three segments of travel: business (33%), group (32%) and leisure (31%). Contract business (primarily flight crews and long-term stays) accounted for 4% of the mix.

According to AIRDNA, in 2019, Center City Philadelphia saw a significant increase in demand for limited-lodging options such as Airbnb, with 343,700 room nights consumed by guests renting a private room or an entire home, up 38.9% year over year.

Note to Editors: At tonight’s 2020 Tourism & Hospitality Industry Outlook, industry leaders will celebrate the 2019 hotel performance detailed above and announce plans for the year and decade ahead.

Data Sources: STR, Tourism Economics and AIRDNA; all data points are based on the most current information available and may change slightly as new data becomes available.

About VISIT PHILADELPHIA:

VISIT PHILADELPHIA is our name and our mission. As the region’s official tourism marketing agency, we build Greater Philadelphia’s image, drive visitation and boost the economy.

On Greater Philadelphia’s official visitor website and blog,

visitphilly.com

and

uwishunu.com

, visitors can explore things to do, upcoming events, themed itineraries and hotel packages. Compelling photography and videos, interactive maps and detailed visitor information make the sites effective trip-planning tools. Along with Visit Philly social media channels, the online platforms communicate directly with consumers. Travelers can also call and stop into the Independence Visitor Center for additional information and tickets.

About the PHLCVB:

The Philadelphia Convention and Visitors Bureau (PHLCVB) creates positive economic impact across the Philadelphia region, driving job growth, and promoting the health and vibrancy of our hospitality industry by marketing the destination and the Pennsylvania Convention Center globally. Our work engages our local community, as well as culturally and ethnically diverse regional, national and international convention and sporting event and tourism customers, as well as overseas leisure visitors.

About GPHA:

The Greater Philadelphia Hotel Association (GPHA) is a trade association representing more than 90 hotels throughout the Philadelphia 5-county area. In addition to our hotel members, we also have over 150 Allied Members, a diverse group of companies and related industry partners who do business with hotels. Our hotel members employ over 14,000 residents and have over 30,000 guestrooms.

PART OF

Fun Learning Activities for Kids You Can Do at Home

Gloucestercitynews.net (January 29, 2020)–Are you trying to give your kids a little advantage at school? Or are you just interested in finding fun ways you can bond at home and learn a little something along the way? Well, there are so many amazing activities you can do with your kids and teach them plenty of useful things while having

courtesy of unsplash.com

fun.

Doing experiments

Kids are fascinated by the world around them, so you can take easy advantage of that and turn their curiosity into a fun learning opportunity. There are easy experiments you can conduct at home to spark your kids’ interest in science. With only a few ingredients you can find in your pantry or grab at a store, you can create a volcano, make your own lava lamp, make slime or write invisible letters. Kids will learn a lot about material and ingredient properties and have fun in the meantime.

Playing with educational toys

Toys are always fun, but also a great educational material if you know where to look. You can easily fill your kids’ rooms with toys like Legos, building blocks and jigsaws which are great for motor skills and creativity; music instruments for artistic expression; connect four for logical thinking; and many more. These are all fun both for kids and parents and they are a great way to incorporate engineering, math, reading and measuring lessons.

Painting and drawing

Artistic expression is one of the rare fun and useful activities your kid can safely pursue at home. If you just provide them with plenty of (non-toxic) supplies like markers, water colors and different types of material, they will experiment for hours. And you can easily find the best crayons (and toys) at this site –

Home

and provide your kids with all the fun they need from an art supply. Try giving them drawing ideas and allow them to explore them and add their own details. In order to make the situation even more fun, play some music and try drawing what you feel.

Cooking

If you’re often short on time and have a busy schedule, you can use your time spent in the kitchen to encourage your kids to learn and acquire new skills. There’s nothing more fun for kids than handling dough, measuring ingredients and stirring bowls of pasta or cream. Older kids can even get their own knife (there are kid-friendly kinds) and help you chop veggies and fruit. All of these activities will incorporate math (measuring and counting ingredients), reading (recipe books), motor skill practice (stirring and chopping) and learning vocabulary.

Reading before bed

This classic activity is perfect for hard-working parents who come home from work exhausted. No matter how long your day was, you can always tuck your kids in, grab a book and have some quiet time reading and relaxing. Kids love stories, so you can’t really go wrong with any sort of fairytale, pop-up book or kids’ poetry. Make sure to show them pictures, discuss different scenarios and talk further about characters. This activity is great for developing reading and vocabulary skills as well as exercising creativity.

Talk about numbers

Kids are never too young to start learning about numbers. Numbers are present all around us and you don’t have to limit kids’ learning to math books. Calendars, remote controls, phones, registration plates all have numbers, so you can study them from your home. Come up with fun games like Find the Number and ask your kids to go around the house and search for certain numbers. It’s a great way to keep them busy and learning at the same time.

Who says kids can’t have fun and learn at the same time? And the best part, they can do all of that right at home where you can keep a watchful eye on them.