What's New in Tourism

Key Developments in Ithaca/Tompkins County Tourism

Taste the Region at the Finger Lakes Wine Center
Visitors in 2011 will enjoy the opening season of the Finger Lakes Wine Center, located in downtown Ithaca at 237 South Cayuga Street. The 3,000 square-foot center is an educational gateway to the wine region with tastings, exhibits, culinary events and related functions. Along with information on local wine and winemaking, the Center offers a unique tasting experience. With a rotating selection of 25 local wines available for tasting daily, the Center staff can recommend wineries to visit based on your individual palette--a great service considering there are more than 100 regional wineries to choose from. You'll also find live music at the Center's Thursday night Wine Bar along with a great schedule of food and wine classes throughout the season. Details: www.fingerlakeswinecenter.org/

Taste 25 regional wines on any given day at the downtown Finger Lakes Wine Center.

Nevin Welcome Center Opens at Cornell Plantations
If you love gardens, you'll enjoy visiting the new Nevin Welcome Center at Cornell Plantations. Opened in May 2011, the sustainably designed Nevin Center offers exhibits and visitor information on one of upstate's largest public gardens. Cornell Plantations includes 15 distinct collections, a 125-acre arboretum and 4,000 acres of natural areas that hold some of Ithaca's most beautiful gorges and waterfalls. Details: http://www.cornellplantations.org 

New at Cornell Plantations: Nevin Welcome Center. Photo: Jon Reis

Rave Reviews for Two Theater Makeovers
Audiences are loving the 2010 makeovers at Ithaca's Hangar Theatre and Kitchen Theatre. The 349-seat Hangar raised the curtain for its 36th season following a $4.6 million facelift. The remodeled theater, located on the waterfront in the hangar building of the city's original airport, welcomed theatergoers with new auditorium seating, lobby, concessions, restrooms and mechanical systems. The makeover allows the Hangar to move from summer to year-round operation with cabaret and educational programming in non-summer months. The space is also available for private functions. Details here. Downtown, the Kitchen Theatre opened its 20th Anniversary season in a fabulous new space. The new 99-seat theater at 417 W. State/MLK is the crowning jewel of a successful $1.2 million capital campaign. The Kitchen offers original works, family fare and edgy off-Broadway productions. Online calendars and info are here.

Ithaca's downtown Kitchen Theatre (left) and waterfront Hangar Theatre both benefited from major makeovers in 2010.

Plans Approved for New Downtown Hotel
Hotel Ithaca, currently awaiting finanicing, is a nine-story, full-service boutique hotel planned at the intersection of State and Aurora Streets, adjacent to the downtown Ithaca Commons. The hotel will feature 130 luxury rooms and suites and 2,000 square feet of flexible meeting space. The hotel will be built on the same site as the historic Hotel Ithaca, a landmark that operated throughout much of the 20^th Century but was lost to urban renewal in 1963. In addition, the hotel will be the home of the original Zinck's Bar, a cherished icon of the city's past. The $27 million property is developed Rimland & Assoc., and will be operated by Gemstone Hotels & Resorts.

Discovery Trail Celebrates 10^th Anniversary
Marking its 10^th anniversary in 2009, Ithaca's Discovery Trail is a collaboration of eight brainy attractions in the Ithaca area. Look for sepcial events all year at:

Sciencenter: The hands-on science museum for all ages with more than 250 touchable exhibits.
Museum of the Earth: Explore 4 billion years of life on earth and one of America's largest fossil collections.
Cayuga Nature Center: Animals and plant life of the Finger Lakes region.
Cornell Johnson Museum of Art: More than 30,000 works in an iconic I.M. Pei-designed building.
Cornell Lab of Ornithology: If the natural world were a national park, the "Lab of O" would be its visitor center.
The History Center in Tompkins County: Regional history, traveling exhibits and a vast photo collection with more than 100,000 images.
The Tompkins County Public Library: Literature and arts events daily.
Cornell Plantations: More than 4,300 acres of landscaped gardens and natural beauty.

Visitor/Ticket Center Opens on Ithaca Commons
In June 2009, the Convention & Visitors Bureau and Community Arts Partnership, opened a combined Visitor & Ticket Center in the heart of the downtown Ithaca Commons. The move allows the Visitor Center and Ticket Center to better serve downtown residents and visitors with increased parking, visibility, handicap access and gallery space. The new address is 171 The Commons, Ithaca. The visitors bureau provides travel, lodging and activities information at the site. Community Arts Partnership offers information on local arts events and sells event tickets. For tickets and arts information, call (607) 273-4497. For downtown travel & tourism information, call (607) 273-7482.