Foremost, we would like to take an opportunity to sincerely thank everyone for the overwhelmingly positive feedback we received about the event in 2015. We also received a lot of good suggestions about how to improve the event and we cannot wait to show you what we will be doing in 2016. International Bear Bash remains committed to our guests and committed to using salient feedback to improve our event. Below you will find just a snapshot of how we will be using your feedback and suggestions.
For 2015, hundreds of men joined us from around the globe and the event continued considerable growth. Our growth from 2014 to 2015 amounts to over 60% growth and we will not rest on this. In 2015 the event played host to men from over 30 different US States and several foreign territories. For 2016 we were excited to welcome men from places like: USA, Puerto Rico, United Kingdom, Brazil, Netherlands, Canada, Sweeden, New Zealand, Argentina, Germany, and Trinidad and Tobago to name a just a few. Additionally, we are proud that the event continues to feature a very diverse crowd in both age and ethnicity.
In planning International Bear Bash – World’s Fair we are so grateful for all of your wonderful comments and suggestions. The “You Spoke, We Listened” segment below illustrates how we incorporated some of the major themes within the feedback our attendees provided about the event in 2015 into the plans for International Bear Bash 2016. We hope that many of our friends make it back for 2016.
The Bear Necessities…
You Spoke: We continue to ask you what factors are most important when determining which bear runs to attend. By and large the two most important factors were (1) value and cost (2) number of attendees.
We Listened: International Bear Bash continues to work with our host hotel to keep the cost of the hotel rooms low. We also benchmark ourselves against other events with an international draw and are confident that we offer some of the lowest cost hotel rooms of any major bear event and one of the best value event passes. We accomplish this without compromising quality as International Bear Bash continues to be held at a Hilton brand property. Hilton remains one of the most globally recognized brands for discerning gay travelers. Similarly, for 2016, we will continue and expand our event marketing strategy that helped us realize tremendous growth on 2015. For 2016 you will see even more promotional partnerships with other bear groups, bear parties, bear runs, and bear bars. You will also see some really cool giveaways if you are able to attend any of our promotional parties.
You Spoke: We asked you what parties and events are most important to you in determining which bear events to attend. The feedback was pool parties, after-hours parties, and our BLU (Bear, Leather, Uniform) Ball. It was also very clear that our BLU Ball should not take place by the pool as we tried out in 2015.
We Listened: International Bear Bash 2016 will continue to feature 6 pool parties and 5 after-hours parties. Our after hours series will, once again, start on Tuesday night with the pre-comers. Come early and stay late to take advantage of our special rate, to see more of what Orlando has to offer, and to join us for our pre-comer parties and events. The BLU will be moved back indoors and we have some creative surprises for the event this year. So do not forget to pack your BLU (Bear, Leather, Uniform) gear because we listed, you had a lot of good ideas for 2016, and we cannot wait to show you what we are doing.
A Hotel Is About More Than Hibernation…
You Spoke: You said that a gay friendly hotel was very important and that most of you said we should return to The DoubleTree by Hilton Orlando at SeaWorld.
We Listened: International Bear Bash will be staying at the DoubleTree by Hilton Orlando at SeaWorld for our 2016 event – World’s Fair. The host hotel is very excited to have us back as well. For 2016, we are moving our main pool parties to the pool on the other side of the property. This will enable us to have a pool with an adjacent hot tub. There are also more things to do around that pool area such as a ping-pong (beer -pong) table, pool table, put-put golf, etc…
You Spoke: You also said you missed having a hot tub and you wanted more guest interaction.
We Listened: For 2016, we are moving our main pool parties to the pool on the other side of the property. This will enable us to have a pool with an adjacent hot tub. There are also more things to do around that pool area such as a ping-pong (beer -pong) table, pool table, put-put golf, etc… We will continue our pool games for 2016 as well.
Let Us Entertain You…
You Spoke: We asked very detailed information about what you thought of our entertainers and our events. We wanted to know what events to drop from our lineup; which entertainers and events you liked and which ones you didn’t. We were pleased that our attendees consistently liked the events and the entertainment.
We listened: This year you will notice many of the same entertainers have agreed to come back for International Bear Bash 2016. For World’s fair you will also see some new faces from around the world. If you have any entertainment ideas please do not hesitate to contact us with suggestions.
We will also be increasing the entertainment during our events as well. For example, the BLU Ball will feature dancers in 2016. The Cigar Socials will have a boot black in 2016. The pool parties will feature other interactive contests and other surprise carnival themed entertainment.
Lastly, we continue to expanded our team of organizers and coordinators. We have coordinators focusing on several areas salient to our feedback from 2015. For example, we continue to look for ways to improve our registration process based on the excellent feedback and suggestions our guests have provided.
We can’t wait to see you in 2016 to show you the great parties that you loved and we kept, as well as, to show off the additions that we have made.