A $75,000 services agreement with RK/PR Inc., a public relations and marketing firm, was approved Monday by the Carson City Convention & Visitors Bureau Board.

The Carson City Convention and Visitors Bureau on Monday nominated former Carson City manager Linda Ritter as interim executive director.

Board members meeting unanimously approved Ritter after she had expressed interest in the position. Ritter was nominated by Karen Abowd, board member of the CCCVB and a Carson City Supervisor. Ritter was not at the meeting and hasn't accepted the offer.

The 2012 Polar Express train aboard the historic V&T Railway in Carson City has sold all of its tickets, officials said. The all-ages train ride is set for 15 different dates, Nov. 23 through Dec. 23. The V&T officially sold all 10,794 of its tickets as of Thursday, said Candy Duncan, executive director of the Carson City Convention and Visitors Bureau.

After 21 years serving as executive director of the Carson City Convention and Visitors Bureau, Executive Director Candy Duncan has announced her retirement.
She will officially retire on Jan. 1, she told the board in a letter. During her tenure, Duncan oversaw the transformation of Carson City as a travel destination, changing the tourism paradigm by highlighting the area's rich history and modern amenities as attractive attributes to luring visitors to the capital city.

Carson City is getting a big present this upcoming holiday season with the return of The Polar Express™ train that will roll through the frosty Northern Nevada landscape on 15 different dates throughout November and December.

For the second year, the Virginia & Truckee Railroad is one of the officially licensed Polar Express Train Ride events nationwide this holiday season. This historic 100-year train, complete with decorated passenger cars and Christmas music, leaves the Carson City Eastgate Depot and travels nearly two miles before staging at Santa's mythical North Pole retreat.

With any number of great restaurants and bars in Carson City, there are a number of sweet spots around town that are considered hidden gems. These are off-the-beaten path and favorites among the locals, according to the Carson City Convention and Visitors Bureau.

The luck of the Irish will be celebrated in Carson City this weekend with plenty of music, traditional fare and beverages to go around.

Music, theater, dance and all things creative, the Brewery Arts Center is Carson City’s hub of all forms of art and continues to blaze a trail into the hearts and minds of the capital city.
In the heart of the historic district of Carson City, the BAC and the Brewery Arts Center Performance Hall hosts more than 100 events annually in multiple venues, including theater productions, concerts, art classes, children’s programs, recitals and receptions.

When we were young it was always the field trip that got us out of the classroom to see for ourselves what our teachers wanted us to learn. The museum is always a place of wonder; a time machine that transports you to places where there were no smart phones or computers, let alone electricity and flushing toilets. Carson City has some great museums filled with enough old time artifacts, pictures and interactive learning centers to intrigue parents and their children.

There's plenty to celebrate as the clock is set to ring in the New Year this weekend. The celebration begins tonight at Carson Lanes with an inaugural pre New Year's Eve Rock and Roll show. Check out the Carson City Convention and Visitors Bureau blog for parties, deals and happenings around town.

Whether it’s serving a traditional ham or roast beef for a family dinner, hanging stockings over the fireplace or sending cards, Christmas traditions are celebrated all over the world. Go to the Carson City Convention and Visitors Bureau blog to learn more about the origins of some of our favorite holiday traditions. You can also follow the latest from the CCCVB on Facebook by going here.

Even though it remains among the least expensive holiday meal, the retail cost of menu items for a classic Thanksgiving dinner including turkey, stuffing, cranberries, pumpkin pie and all the basic trimmings increased about 13 percent this year, according to the American Farm Bureau Federation.
The Bureau’s annual Thanksgiving dinner price survey shows the average cost of 2011′s feast for 10 is $49.20, a $5.73 price increase from 2010’s average of $43.47. The survey shopping list includes turkey, bread stuffing, sweet potatoes, rolls with butter, peas, cranberries, a relish tray of carrots and celery, pumpkin pie with whipped cream, and beverages of coffee and milk, all in quantities sufficient to serve a family of 10.
If you’re not in the mood to cook and want to enjoy the holiday without the work, a number of Carson City restaurants will offer traditional family dinners. Read more here on the Carson City Convention and Visitors Bureau blog.

The folks over at Virginia and Truckee Railroad (the V&T) and the Carson City Convention and Visitors Bureau are giving away a pair of tickets for the Polar Express train that will run on Saturday, Nov 26, at 8:30 p.m. If you're on Facebook, hit the "like" button and write what you would name Santa's 10th reindeer. A winner will be picked on Thursday, Nov. 17 at noon.

After they’ve been carved up for Halloween, the pumpkin has served its aesthetic purpose as the jack-o-lantern for all things spooky. Now that the trick or treaters are gone, the big orange gourd can serve its real purpose: all things tasty and delicious.

Legendary R&B singer Marvin Gaye said it. So did retired Nevada boxing official and twice elected Washoe County Judge Mills Lane. With Nevada Day finally here, it’s time to shout: Let’s Get it On.

The Northern Nevada premiere of Phantom of the Opera, Andrew Lloyd Webber's classic tale of forbidden love, will arrive at the Carson City Community Center during weekends in early November, according to the Carson City Convention and Visitors Bureau.
The production will appear Friday, Saturday and Sunday, November 4 - 20 at 2 p.m. or 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $18-22 and may be purchased by phone or in person at the Performing Arts Office of Western Nevada College, 775-445-4249. Parking is free.

Calling all wing lovers, the Great International Chicken Wing Society presents Carson City’s first Wing-Off at Carson Station Casino, Friday through Sunday. Check out the latest Carson City Convention and Visitors Bureau blog for details and go here for a list of happenings through the month of October.

Looking for a great place to dirt bike, four-wheel or cruise through rocks with breeze on your ATV? The public lands managed by the U.S. Forest Service and BLM-Carson City District offer plenty of opportunities for off-road vehicle and ATV recreation. Check out the latest blog from the Carson City Convention and Visitors Bureau outlining some of the local hotspots for off-road adventure.

It's a Saturday stroll through historic downtown Carson City and so much more. In its second season the Downtown Wine Walk is one of the capital city's weekend gems, where sight-seeing goes hand-in-hand with tasting, public art galleries, gift shops, great restaurants, casinos and more. Check out this latest blog from the Carson City Convention and Visitors Bureau.

With Friday well underway, it's time to get the weekend started. Lots of music and activities are stacked up, beginning today, in the capital city. Check out this latest blog from the Carson City Convention and Visitors Bureau on the weekend events.

By the Carson City Convention and Visitors Bureau
Aberrations await and spirits linger during a two-hour walking tour July 23, Aug. 20 and Sept. 24 through the historic district of Carson City.
History and storytelling are the orders of the day on this tour through Victorian-style homes and neighborhoods, where reality and legend come together, leaving ghost walkers to wonder what is truth and what is fiction.

With enough cannon fire, frontier food and Wild West living history to pack a weekend's worth of activities, the 28th annual Carson City Rendezvous continues today, tonight and through Sunday at Mills Park in Carson City.

The Carson City Rendezvous is noted for portraying the lifestyle of early Nevada settlers, with a host of gun skirmishes, mountain man encampments and trapping demonstrations. This year the main demonstration of the Civil War-era gun battles has been moved from afternoon to dusk to better capture the backdrop of live-fire, rounds shot from muskets and cannons.

Carson City's history, arts and culture will be featured throughout the summer with a litany of events and activities to resonate with families and their budgets, according to the Carson City Convention and Visitors Bureau.

Valentine’s Day in Carson City transforms into a week-long display of affection with candlelit dining options, special events, theatre performances and lodging specials, Feb. 12 – 19.

Selecting a restaurant for a romantic evening doesn’t have to be an intimidating task. The Carson City Convention and Visitors Bureau compiled a list of favorites as recommended by the citizens of Nevada’s Capital based on surveys and local “best of” votes.