22
Jun
2004
A glance at the events slated for Grand Excursion 2004 can be more than a little overwhelming. The event's centerpiece is a six-boat flotilla that convenes in the Quad Cities on Saturday, June 26, and travels up the Mississippi, arriving at Minnesota-St. Paul on Sunday, July 4. But the riverboat flotilla is just one component of the event.
The festivities start in the Quad Cities on Friday, June 25, and continue into Sunday. In addition to events tied directly to the Grand Excursion, a number of major Quad Cities festivals will be taking place this coming weekend, including Taste of the Quad Cities and the Quad City Air Show. And beyond that, many local institutions have adopted Grand Excursion themes, including an exhibit at the Putnam and Showboat at Circa '21.
The level of the Mississippi River has changed some plans for the Grand Excursion. The Mississippi Queen (the flotilla's seventh boat) will not be taking part in Quad Cities festivities this weekend, but the Delta Queen will be participating as planned.
Lynn Hunt, the local coordinator for Grand Excursion, said her organization has lined up nearly 500 volunteers to help make the event a reality.
On this page you'll find an explanation of the Grand Excursion as well as highlights from this weekend's many activities. For a full listing of all that's going on in the Quad Cities, this and every other week, check out the River Cities' Reader calendar.
What Was the Grand Excursion?
In 1854, the Rock Island Railroad Company celebrated the first continuous railroad connection from the East Coast to the Mississippi River with the Grand Excursion. The event included 1,200 prominent people - dignitaries, journalists, and politicians (including former President Millard Fillmore) - who traveled by train from Chicago to Rock Island, and then by boat to what is now Minneapolis, Minnesota.
What Is Grand Excursion?
150 years later, Grand Excursion 2004 has the goal of "establishing the upper Mississippi as one of the nation's most appealing destinations for tourists, businesses, and future residents," press materials state. "The events surrounding Grand Excursion 2004 will tie the communities together in a common bond while showing the world the new face of the upper Mississippi River - a reclaimed treasure for tourism, housing, and recreation."
The event also features an education component. "River exploration trunks" - with materials for kindergarten through eighth grade - have been distributed to 180 local schools and will be updated, Hunt said.
To volunteer for Grand Excursion, call Nick at 355-4753.
What to Do This Weekend
Grand Arrival: On Friday from 5 to 7 p.m., people can celebrate the arrival of the Grand Excursion train - historic steam locomotive Milwaukee #261 - at Modern Woodmen in Rock Island. This event coincides with the Fusion gallery hop/street party in The District.
Fusion: Running from 5 p.m. to 12:30 a.m., Fusion: The Art & Soul of the District, melds the quarterly Gallery Hop and a cutting-edge street party. For more information, visit (http://www.ridistrict.com). Expect to see local art and artists at a variety of venues in The District of Rock Island.
Taste of the Quad Cities: With 35 local restaurants, Taste of the Quad Cities will give residents and visitors a good sampling of the culinary delights available in this area. The event runs from noon to midnight on Friday and Saturday in the John Deere Commons. Admission is $5. For more information, visit (http://www.tasteofthequadcities.com). Joan Jett performs at The Mark on Saturday night, and local bands perform both days starting at 4 p.m. on an outdoor stage.
Fireworks: Two identical displays will start at 9:30 p.m. on Friday, one between Moline and Bettendorf and the other between Rock Island and Davenport.
Train rides: People can get a sense of what the original Grand Excursion was like with a railroad ride or a riverboat cruise. Round-trip train rides leave at 8:30 a.m. on Saturday (to Sabula, Iowa, from Davenport) and Sunday (to Bureau County, Illinois, from Rock Island). A one-way train ride to Dubuque leaves at 9:30 a.m. Monday from Davenport. Available tickets range from $69 to $299.
Riverboat cruises: A variety of different cruise options, including meal cruises and overnight affairs - many with live musical entertainment - are available, including breakfast, lunch, and dinner excursions. For a complete listing, visit (http://www.grandexcurscion.com).
Hospitality Landing: At 1777 Isle Parkway in Bettendorf, Hospitality Landing is a place to board the cruise boats and also to hear a lot of local bands. This Grand Excursion central will include entertainment, arts, crafts, food vendors, and a children's play area. It will be open from 9 a.m. to midnight Friday, 6 a.m. to midnight on Saturday, and 6 a.m. to noon Sunday. For a complete listing of bands playing, see the Reader's "live music" listings on page 22.
Grand Flotilla Ceremony: From 4:45 to 5:15 p.m. on Saturday, the six Grand Excursion boats will be together for the first time, as five of the boats meet the Delta Queen in the lower pool between Rock Island and Davenport. The ceremony will be held in Davenport's LeClaire Park. At 3 p.m. before the ceremony, the Quad City Symphony Orchestra will present Grand Excursion Pops.
Quad City Air Show: On Saturday and Sunday, the Quad City Air Show will delight aerial enthusiasts with performers such as Masters of Disaster and Tora Tora Tora at the Davenport airport. For more information, visit (http://www.quadcityairshow.com).
A complete calendar of events for Grand Excursion is available online at (http://www.grandexcursion.com). Tickets for cruises and train rides can be purchased online or by calling (866)439-2004.
For more information about local activities, call the Grand Excursion office at (309)762-0707 or visit (http://www.visitquadcities.com).
For parking information for Grand Excursion, visit (http://www.visitquadcities.com/pdfs/grandexcursionparking.pdf).
What Impact Will the Grand Excursion Have on the Quad Cities?
It's difficult to pinpoint exactly what Grand Excursion will do for the Quad Cities in the short run.
Joe Taylor, president and CEO of the Quad Cities Convention & Visitors Bureau, said that roughly 90 percent of the Quad Cities' 5,400 hotel rooms are booked for the weekend. "It will be a great weekend for the hotel industry," he said.
But it's hard to tell how much of that is attributable to Grand Excursion. The Quad City Air Show certainly draws people on a regional basis, and so conceivably could the Taste of the Quad Cities.
The local Grand Excursion office estimates that 75,000 to 80,000 people will participate in events around the Quad Cities this weekend. But it's including gate counts from the air show and the Taste in those numbers. Grand Excursion Coordinator Lynn Hunt guessed that between 30 and 40 percent of total attendance in weekend activities would be coming from outside the Quad Cities.
Using those numbers - and Taylor's estimate that 20 percent of visitors to the Quad Cities stay with family or friends - would mean an economic impact of roughly $3 million for this weekend's activities. (Taylor said a typical family of three spends $140 a day on food, lodging, and entertainment.)
But part of the goal of Grand Excursion is to burnish the image of the Upper Mississippi as a destination for tourism and business, and thus its effect should be more of the long-term variety. "The media spotlight should certainly help the Quad Cities," Taylor said. Hundreds of articles have been written about the Grand Excursion, he noted, including a two-and-a-half-page write-up in the Chicago Tribune in May.
Taylor said he wishes Grand Excursion could have gotten the word out earlier and more widely. "Much of the publicity has come in the last few weeks and months," he said. "It could have had a much broader reach throughout the country." He guessed that Grand Excursion as a result is an event with more regional than national draw.
Grand Excursion has also shown how communities can work together, exemplified by Grand Excursion and the recently announced joint-marketing partnership between Dubuque and the Quad Cities. "It just seemed to be the natural progression in the tourism industry," Taylor said. "Visitors come to a region rather than a specific city."
Grand Excursion has also assembled a "legacy" committee that will meet after the event is finished to try to build on its accomplishments.
Taylor also said he hopes that Quad Citians take time to reflect on the community's connection to the Mississippi. "We all need to do our own grand excursion," he said. "It shouldn't take seven riverboats arriving at one time."
The festivities start in the Quad Cities on Friday, June 25, and continue into Sunday. In addition to events tied directly to the Grand Excursion, a number of major Quad Cities festivals will be taking place this coming weekend, including Taste of the Quad Cities and the Quad City Air Show. And beyond that, many local institutions have adopted Grand Excursion themes, including an exhibit at the Putnam and Showboat at Circa '21.
The level of the Mississippi River has changed some plans for the Grand Excursion. The Mississippi Queen (the flotilla's seventh boat) will not be taking part in Quad Cities festivities this weekend, but the Delta Queen will be participating as planned.
Lynn Hunt, the local coordinator for Grand Excursion, said her organization has lined up nearly 500 volunteers to help make the event a reality.
On this page you'll find an explanation of the Grand Excursion as well as highlights from this weekend's many activities. For a full listing of all that's going on in the Quad Cities, this and every other week, check out the River Cities' Reader calendar.
What Was the Grand Excursion?
In 1854, the Rock Island Railroad Company celebrated the first continuous railroad connection from the East Coast to the Mississippi River with the Grand Excursion. The event included 1,200 prominent people - dignitaries, journalists, and politicians (including former President Millard Fillmore) - who traveled by train from Chicago to Rock Island, and then by boat to what is now Minneapolis, Minnesota.
What Is Grand Excursion?
150 years later, Grand Excursion 2004 has the goal of "establishing the upper Mississippi as one of the nation's most appealing destinations for tourists, businesses, and future residents," press materials state. "The events surrounding Grand Excursion 2004 will tie the communities together in a common bond while showing the world the new face of the upper Mississippi River - a reclaimed treasure for tourism, housing, and recreation."
The event also features an education component. "River exploration trunks" - with materials for kindergarten through eighth grade - have been distributed to 180 local schools and will be updated, Hunt said.
To volunteer for Grand Excursion, call Nick at 355-4753.
What to Do This Weekend
Grand Arrival: On Friday from 5 to 7 p.m., people can celebrate the arrival of the Grand Excursion train - historic steam locomotive Milwaukee #261 - at Modern Woodmen in Rock Island. This event coincides with the Fusion gallery hop/street party in The District.
Fusion: Running from 5 p.m. to 12:30 a.m., Fusion: The Art & Soul of the District, melds the quarterly Gallery Hop and a cutting-edge street party. For more information, visit (http://www.ridistrict.com). Expect to see local art and artists at a variety of venues in The District of Rock Island.
Taste of the Quad Cities: With 35 local restaurants, Taste of the Quad Cities will give residents and visitors a good sampling of the culinary delights available in this area. The event runs from noon to midnight on Friday and Saturday in the John Deere Commons. Admission is $5. For more information, visit (http://www.tasteofthequadcities.com). Joan Jett performs at The Mark on Saturday night, and local bands perform both days starting at 4 p.m. on an outdoor stage.
Fireworks: Two identical displays will start at 9:30 p.m. on Friday, one between Moline and Bettendorf and the other between Rock Island and Davenport.
Train rides: People can get a sense of what the original Grand Excursion was like with a railroad ride or a riverboat cruise. Round-trip train rides leave at 8:30 a.m. on Saturday (to Sabula, Iowa, from Davenport) and Sunday (to Bureau County, Illinois, from Rock Island). A one-way train ride to Dubuque leaves at 9:30 a.m. Monday from Davenport. Available tickets range from $69 to $299.
Riverboat cruises: A variety of different cruise options, including meal cruises and overnight affairs - many with live musical entertainment - are available, including breakfast, lunch, and dinner excursions. For a complete listing, visit (http://www.grandexcurscion.com).
Hospitality Landing: At 1777 Isle Parkway in Bettendorf, Hospitality Landing is a place to board the cruise boats and also to hear a lot of local bands. This Grand Excursion central will include entertainment, arts, crafts, food vendors, and a children's play area. It will be open from 9 a.m. to midnight Friday, 6 a.m. to midnight on Saturday, and 6 a.m. to noon Sunday. For a complete listing of bands playing, see the Reader's "live music" listings on page 22.
Grand Flotilla Ceremony: From 4:45 to 5:15 p.m. on Saturday, the six Grand Excursion boats will be together for the first time, as five of the boats meet the Delta Queen in the lower pool between Rock Island and Davenport. The ceremony will be held in Davenport's LeClaire Park. At 3 p.m. before the ceremony, the Quad City Symphony Orchestra will present Grand Excursion Pops.
Quad City Air Show: On Saturday and Sunday, the Quad City Air Show will delight aerial enthusiasts with performers such as Masters of Disaster and Tora Tora Tora at the Davenport airport. For more information, visit (http://www.quadcityairshow.com).
A complete calendar of events for Grand Excursion is available online at (http://www.grandexcursion.com). Tickets for cruises and train rides can be purchased online or by calling (866)439-2004.
For more information about local activities, call the Grand Excursion office at (309)762-0707 or visit (http://www.visitquadcities.com).
For parking information for Grand Excursion, visit (http://www.visitquadcities.com/pdfs/grandexcursionparking.pdf).
What Impact Will the Grand Excursion Have on the Quad Cities?
It's difficult to pinpoint exactly what Grand Excursion will do for the Quad Cities in the short run.
Joe Taylor, president and CEO of the Quad Cities Convention & Visitors Bureau, said that roughly 90 percent of the Quad Cities' 5,400 hotel rooms are booked for the weekend. "It will be a great weekend for the hotel industry," he said.
But it's hard to tell how much of that is attributable to Grand Excursion. The Quad City Air Show certainly draws people on a regional basis, and so conceivably could the Taste of the Quad Cities.
The local Grand Excursion office estimates that 75,000 to 80,000 people will participate in events around the Quad Cities this weekend. But it's including gate counts from the air show and the Taste in those numbers. Grand Excursion Coordinator Lynn Hunt guessed that between 30 and 40 percent of total attendance in weekend activities would be coming from outside the Quad Cities.
Using those numbers - and Taylor's estimate that 20 percent of visitors to the Quad Cities stay with family or friends - would mean an economic impact of roughly $3 million for this weekend's activities. (Taylor said a typical family of three spends $140 a day on food, lodging, and entertainment.)
But part of the goal of Grand Excursion is to burnish the image of the Upper Mississippi as a destination for tourism and business, and thus its effect should be more of the long-term variety. "The media spotlight should certainly help the Quad Cities," Taylor said. Hundreds of articles have been written about the Grand Excursion, he noted, including a two-and-a-half-page write-up in the Chicago Tribune in May.
Taylor said he wishes Grand Excursion could have gotten the word out earlier and more widely. "Much of the publicity has come in the last few weeks and months," he said. "It could have had a much broader reach throughout the country." He guessed that Grand Excursion as a result is an event with more regional than national draw.
Grand Excursion has also shown how communities can work together, exemplified by Grand Excursion and the recently announced joint-marketing partnership between Dubuque and the Quad Cities. "It just seemed to be the natural progression in the tourism industry," Taylor said. "Visitors come to a region rather than a specific city."
Grand Excursion has also assembled a "legacy" committee that will meet after the event is finished to try to build on its accomplishments.
Taylor also said he hopes that Quad Citians take time to reflect on the community's connection to the Mississippi. "We all need to do our own grand excursion," he said. "It shouldn't take seven riverboats arriving at one time."
