Press Releases

Winning group will receive $5,000 donation from Visit Bend to their organization or the charity of their choice.

Lara House Lodge becomes one of only 11 properties in Oregon and the only property in Bend to be listed in Select Registry.

Twisit before you visit: Visit Bend enters social marketing arena with launch of ‘Twisit Bend Virtual Welcome Center’ on Twitter.

Representatives from Travel Oregon recently announced that Bend has been selected as the host city for the 2010 Oregon Governor’s Conference on Tourism, scheduled for April 11-13, 2010.

It’s not even April, yet the May 2009 issue of Mountain Bike Action magazine is out and so is the secret about Bend’s mountain biking scene.

Art in the High Desert recently announced that it has received a record 397 applications for its 2009 festival. From this pool of applicants, 110 artists will be selected to display their works and offer them for sale during the 2009 Art in the High Desert festival, scheduled for August 28-30 in the Old Mill District.

Arts organizations throughout community invited to participate in raising awareness of Bend’s arts & cultural assets among travelers.

Event marks the first time in recent history that two USA Cycling National Championships will be held in the same city in the same year.

USA Cycling today announced that it has awarded the 2009 and 2010 Cyclo-cross National Championships to Bend. This event returns to the Central Oregon region for first time since 1976

Levi Leipheimer and local star Chris Horner headline elite field for 29th Annual Cascade Cycling Classic, July 9-13, 2009 in Bend, Oregon.

XTERRA Trail Running National Championship Race Set for 2008.

The Bend Visitor & Convention Bureau today announced plans to change its name to Visit Bend, in an effort to more closely align the organization name with the destination brand. The agency has also introduced its new logo (shown above) and has unveiled a comprehensive branding campaign that will be reflected throughout the organization’s marketing and operations.

Visit Bend (formerly the Bend Visitor & Convention Bureau) has hired Lynnette Braillard as marketing director. Prior to joining Visit Bend, Braillard spent more than six years as the marketing director for RE/MAX Sunset Realty & Vacations, the largest independent property management company in Sunriver.

Country’s Top Terrain Park Designer and Bend Resident Pat Malendoski Creates Custom 75-foot Features for Riders and Film Crew.

New co-op program allows local businesses to customize the video with their business name/logo for promotional use.

April 11-13 at the Riverhouse Convention Center. More than 400 tourism leaders from across the state expected to attend, including Governor Kulongoski

Online and social media contest lauded by Twitter co-founder Biz Stone.

Conan O’Brien’s tweeting beard served as inspiration. Until an A-List bearded celebrity agrees to serve as a judge in the June 5 2010 National Beard and Moustache Championships in Bend, Oregon, organizers will court them online.

Tourism Development Program to Promote Bend’s Craft Brewery Culture

City’s tourism industry outpaces county, state and nation.

What does a pulse-pounding, adrenaline-fueled national championship bike race have in common with the arts? Quite a lot, thanks to the second annual “Cross Culture: Bike + Art Love Festival” scheduled as part of the 2010 USA Cycling Cyclocross National Championships in Bend this December.

Long after the 3,600 athletes and fans from the USA Cycling Cyclo-Cross National Championships have packed up their bikes and gone home, local residents and tourists will enjoy the gifts they left behind, including groomed Nordic ski trails, a new community park, and even arts education for kids.

EVENTS SOLIDIFY BEND AS PREMIER TRAIL RUNNING DESTINATION On the heels of hosting three XTERRA trail running national championships and two USA Track & Field trail running national championships over a three year period, Bend, Oregon has been picked to host the 2011 Half-Marathon and 50k Trail Running National Championships.

Chris Horner, a world class road cyclist and resident of Bend, Oregon will kick off the first Cascade Gran Fondo fundraising cycling event in Bend this August. This announcement comes on the heels of Horner’s best season, which was highlighted by a top 10 finish at the Tour de France, road cycling’s version of the Super Bowl.

Triple Crown Sports, a national youth baseball tournament organizer, has partnered with the Bend Elks to take the annual Memorial Day Youth Baseball Tournament to the next level. The Youth Baseball Tournament has been held in Bend since 2005, and is set to take place May 28-30, 2011. The new partnership between Triple Crown, the Bend Elks, and Visit Bend is designed to grow the event into one of the premier youth tournaments in the country.

On February 2, 2011 Visit Bend became the first destination marketing organization in the Pacific Northwest to offer a smartphone application. The new travel app is designed to help visitors navigate Bend, Oregon’s popular Bend Ale Trail, which showcases the region’s renowned craft beer industry.

Visit Bend released the results of a study aimed at determining the economic impact of summer concerts at the Les Schwab Amphitheater in Bend’s Old Mill District.

(BEND, Ore.)—Northwest Outdoor Writers Association (NOWA), which is comprised of professional outdoor communicators dedicated to the pursuit of excellence in outdoor journalism, has awarded the 2012 Northwest Outdoor Writers Association Annual Conference to Bend, Oregon.

On June 1, the Bend Ale Trail will celebrate its one year anniversary with a special giveaway.

BEND, OREGON to Host “Day Of The Dead Cyclocross Festival” October 28-30, 2011

(BEND, Ore.)— Officials from the US Gran Prix of Cyclocross announced today they have accepted a bid from Visit Bend to host the final two races of the U.S. Gran Prix of Cyclocross series presented by Greenware®.

New program showcases local artists, and Bend’s unique arts & culture scene.

(BEND, Ore.)— Signaling a major shift in how cross country races are organized and operated, USA Track & Field announced they have selected Bend, Oregon as the site of the 2013 USATF National Club Cross Country Championships.

Bend, Oregon launches Roundabout Art Route.

The outdoor playground of the west is slated to welcome the 2012 Fly Fishing National Championships later this year

Dog Fancy magazine declares Bend 2012 DogTown USA