Montauk chamber promotes family vacations, not partying

The Montauk Chamber of Commerce is preparing for what members say they hope will be another relatively quiet spring and summer by stepping up efforts to attract families, nature lovers and mature adult tourists.

To that end, they are debuting new video and TV productions, and advertisements at The New York Times Travel Show this weekend, chamber executive director Laraine Creegan said.

Chamber of Commerce president Paul Monte said Tuesday that the organization has participated in the Manhattan travel show for many years as “an opportunity to showcase Montauk in a positive light to a mature travel demographic,” but he noted that for the past couple of years, efforts have been intensified to target that group.

“That demographic will carry us into the future,” Monte said. “Several years ago we started seeing a decline in families and the younger demographic [choosing Montauk as a summer party spot]. Now we’re going back to the families to rediscover Montauk.”

Creegan, in a news release, called the targeted visitor groups “the leave-no-footprint” type of tourist that Montauk seeks.

“They have as little impact as possible on the communities they visit,” she said.

In 2015, young adults visiting Montauk caused such a disturbance in the hamlet, starting with the July Fourth weekend, that officials have since established new laws and other measures to gain more control over activities at bars, restaurants and rentals.

By last summer, the new measures had reduced complaints and citations over noise, parking and public behavior, and more families started returning to Montauk for vacation, officials have said.

“The targeted visitor campaign achieved 95 percent lodging occupancy in August 2016 and we saw more families and mature travelers than the year before,” Creegan said. “Nature lovers — surfers, fishermen, trail walkers, beach and ocean lovers — have always been a mainstay.”

Chamber members, she said, “want people to see and experience Montauk the way locals do: as a conserved resort community with a unique seaside character and laid-back quality of life.”

The travel show, which is being held at the Javits Center, starts Friday and ends Sunday. It is the largest travel consumer and trade show in North America, according to the show’s website, representing more than 500 destinations and travel suppliers.

Creegan said the chamber will debut new television, radio, online and print advertisements at the show that are “This is Montauk” productions. They include images of a family riding bicycles, surfing, doing yoga on the beach and having a dockside lunch. One of the videos shows Montauk visitors fishing and participating in water sports.

“They depict Montauk as an authentic vacation spot for families, outdoors and culinary tourists,” Creegan said.