CELEBRATE NJ! LEADS STATE WAYFINDING INITIATIVE-- ANNOUNCES NJ “POINTS OF INTEREST” MAP SITE TO DRIVE TOURISM Celebrate NJ! (www.CelebrateNJ.org), a non-profit organization committed to promoting and preserving the best of New Jersey, has announced the introduction of NJPOI.com, an interactive New Jersey- focused map site, featuring thousands of arts, history, education, recreation, food, lodging, and shopping “points of interest” for NJ visitors. The site is the latest tangible result of a statewide Wayfinding Initative begun in December 2007 headed by Celebrate NJ! Its goal is to create a seamless, systematic, first-class statewide wayfinding system that makes New Jersey more livable, friendly and easy to navigate for all who travel here. Directed by a steering committee of major stakeholder representatives including Travel and Tourism, Transportation and others, the progress to date on the wayfinding project includes: the development of a statewide Wayfinding Master Plan (now 90% complete); recommendations to NJDOT to improve the TODS (Tourist Oriented Destination Signage) program; plans to create a pilot project to demonstrate a successful wayfinding system across counties and municipalities in 2009, and an interactive map site (www.NJPOI.com) to interface with online technology. All work on the initiative has been funded through private sources. The NJ Points of Interest map (www.NJPOI.com) was created to provide a one-stop online map site to help promote and direct visitors to thousands of New Jersey’s points of interest as one community effort. It features search functions by area or category, public transit information showing sites within walking distance of train stops, member access to update information at all times, and a total focus on New Jersey. “With more and more of us spending our leisure time closer to home and opting for mass transit, NJPOI can help visitors discover new and interesting things to do and see in all parts of NJ, and give them options right off the train or bus lines”, said Karen Hatcher, Executive Director of Celebrate NJ! “Millions of visitors can find great experiences they didn’t even know they were looking for, stay longer and spend more dollars on local tourism supporting our state economy and tourist focused businesses all over New Jersey.” The site currently contains over 2,000 free listings that provide the name, address and directions to a variety of points of interest and is expandable to add locations as needed. Points of Interest locations who want to include additional information may become a member of NJPOI.com. There are two membership levels. “Full” Membership provides a individualized map page that is controlled by the member, featuring text, photos, links and video about the location and is offered at $150 per year ($250 after 1/1/09). Locations may also choose to become a “Link Only” Member for $25/year. For full details and online membership form, visit www.NJPOI.com, Become a Member page. A comprehensive marketing plan including radio, cable and web video spots to promote the site will be added to the site later this year in time for a public campaign kick off in early 2009. The map site is currently a beta version during the membership drive with updated home and search page expected in the coming months. Visit the FAQ page for more information about NJPOI.com or contact Karen Hatcher, Executive Director of Celebrate NJ! at NJPOI@CelebrateNJ.org. For more details on the Wayfinding Initiative including a view of the Master Plan, visit www.CelebrateNJ.org, Wayfinding.