Members of Bermuda's public and private sectors have joined forces to create a diverse group dedicated to enhancing next year's Bermuda Festival.

Hoteliers, concierges, restaurateurs and retailers have been working with the Department of Tourism and Bermuda Festival organisers toward the collective goal of attracting more visitors to Bermuda during the off-season.

Bermuda Festival general manager Toni Davis noted that boosting Bermuda's tourism business between January and February was the idea behind the festival's creation 24 years ago.

"But local people were so starved of culture,'' she said, "that they took over the tickets.'' This year the festival moves some of its 16 events to the newly completed Ruth Seaton James Auditorium.

"This gives us double the capacity of seats so we will be able to offer more seats to visitors,'' said Mrs. Davis.

And the joint venture with the other entities is helping to market and sell these extra seats.

Concierges at the various hotels have been briefed on the festival, restaurateurs -- who have been involved in year's past -- are prepared to stay open later for festival-goers and are offering special early menus and retailers are selling highly prized festival merchandise.

Helping their cause is the new Bermuda Festival web site at www.bermudafestival.com which was created by Mrs. Davis' son Michael's firm Tree Frog Graphics in New York.

The website features an on-line order form for potential overseas guests as well as a link to Bermuda Reservation Services.

The joint effort is proving a success as a number of events are already sold out and others are almost sold out.

The team is following a similar model to that used to enhance the Bermuda International Film Festival earlier this year. New ideas developed through marketing the Bermuda Festival will be passed onto that entity and the Jazz Festival also.

The efforts are being advised by CAG Ltd., the local group behind Boston-based consultants Monitor Company Monitor, who have been working locally for the past 18 months in a bid to boost local tourism, have pushed local hospitality competitors to recognise the need to have a shared vision, which when fulfilled will benefit them all, and the need to sell more than the typical sun and sand vacation to overseas travellers who want more.