Dr. Rich Harrill, Director - College of Hospitality, Retail and Sport ...

Dr. Rich Harrill, Director
International Tourism Research Institute 5 University of South Carolina

SOUTHERN GOVERNORS’ ASSOCIATION
GOVERNOR SONNY PERDUE, GEORGIA 5 2004–05 CHAIRMAN’S INITIATIVE
Dr. Rich Harrill, Director
International Tourism Research Institute 5 University of South Carolina

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Copyright © 2006 Southern Governors’ Association
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or
transmitted, in any form by any means — electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise
— without prior permission of Southern Governors’ Association, Publications Manager.
Written by Dr. Rich Harrill, Director of the International Tourism Research Institute at the
University of South Carolina School of Hotel, Restaurant & Tourism Management
Edited by Liz Purdy, CMP, Charlotte S. Cole and Kathleen E. Hearons, Southern Governors’ Association
SOUTHERN GOVERNORS’ ASSOCIATION
Diane C. Duff, Executive Director
OFFICE OF GOVERNOR SONNY PERDUE, GEORGIA
Heidi Green, Director of Intergovernmental Affairs
Designed by Paras Productions, Inc., McLean, Virginia
Printed by Peake-DeLancey Printers, Cheverly, Maryland

TABLE OF CONTENTS
FOREWARD
V
INTRODUCTION 1
ABOUT THE AUTHOR 5
METHODS 4
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 6
MARKETING 11
North Carolina 12
Arkansas 15
Tennessee 19
Oklahoma 22
West Virginia 26
ADVOCACY 31
Georgia 32
Texas 36
SUSTAINABLE TOURISM 41
Louisiana 42
Missouri 46
Virginia 50
South Carolina 53
TRAILS, ROADS, AND PARKWAYS 57
Alabama 58
Kentucky 61
Florida 65
Maryland 69
Mississippi 73
CONCLUSIONS 77

FOREWORD
During my tenure as the 2004-05 chairman of
the Southern Governors’ Association, I chose
to focus my energies and the resources of this
organization on showcasing the cultural heritage
of the South. My goal was twofold: first,
to draw attention to the changing dynamics in
the tourism industry; and second, to develop
economic development tools and strategies
that would support the region’s governors as
they each work to build stronger economies.
Tourism has always been a big part of our
economy because of the many attractions our
region has to offer. Despite a large influx of
residents and businesses to our region over
the past decade, the South has maintained
its own unique identity that connects with
people across the country and around the
world. Our heritage, our hospitality and our
hometowns make us distinctive. And these
are our competitive advantages in tourism.
Under my leadership, SGA developed
two products aimed at reinforcing
these competitive advantages:
1. Best Practices in Southern Tourism and
Destination Management was commissioned
in order to highlight some of the successful
programs through which Southern states
have increased tourism. Every state has
something special to offer, and by compiling
these case studies, our states have
shared ideas and resources that can be
reproduced throughout the South and in
other regions as well.
2.
In addition to highlighting these many
great individual initiatives, I am proud to
have worked with my fellow governors
in the development of an innovative new
Web site promoting the musical heritage
of the South. Officially launched in
September 2006, www.SouloftheSouth.com,
is an interactive guide to state and local
tourism information. It is designed to
promote Southern heritage to music
enthusiasts and encourage new visitors to
experience the birthplace of an astonishing
variety of genres ranging from bluegrass
and Cajun to gospel and rock and roll.
The site features new information and
event dates from state and local agencies,
helping to promote their ongoing activities
through one central location. It also
creates opportunities to forge communities
around music genres, artists and localities
for music integral to Southern heritage.
Special editorial features help drive traffic
to local attractions within states, and
eventually, the site will help promote local
and state travel packages.
I believe, with this spirit of cooperation
and shared resources, we will continue to
strengthen the economic vitality of the
region, as well as our sense of pride. I hope
you find these tools useful and continue
to use them regularly as we promote our
heritage, our hospitality and our hometowns.
Sonny Perdue
Governor of Georgia
September 2006
v

SOUTHERN GOVERNORS’ ASSOCIATION
BACKGROUND
Founded in 1934, the Southern Governors’
Association (SGA) is the oldest and historically
the largest of the regional governors’
associations. Since its inception, SGA has represented
the common interests of Southern
states’ chief executives and provided a vehicle
for promoting them. The ongoing mission of
SGA is to support the work of the governors
by providing a bipartisan, regional forum to
help shape and implement national policy
and to solve state and regional problems.
The association’s traditional membership
is composed of the governors of Alabama,
Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky,
Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, Missouri,
North Carolina, Oklahoma, Puerto Rico,
South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, the U.S.
Virgin Islands, Virginia and West Virginia.
SGA CHAIRMAN’S INITIATIVES
Each SGA chairman has the opportunity to
impact the region by focusing on a topic
of significance for the future growth and
prosperity of the Southern states. Over the
past decade, SGA Chairman’s Initiatives have
included such areas of interest as education,
urban revitalization, trade, research
and development, environment, health
and wellness, technology and tourism.
2004–05 SGA CHAIRMAN’S
INITIATIVE
Tourism has always played a major role in
the economies of Southern states. Nationally,
cultural heritage tourism is one of the fastest
growing segments of the multi-billion
dollar tourism industry, and with six of
the top 10 heritage destinations located in
the South, the region is well-positioned to
benefit from cultural heritage tourism.
In 2004–05, under the leadership of then
SGA Chairman Georgia Gov. Sonny Perdue,
and with the strong support of all Southern
governors, SGA embarked on an ambitious
initiative to increase tourism—particularly
cultural heritage tourism—in Southern states.
Two tangible outcomes of Gov. Perdue’s
Chairman’s Initiative are this book, Best
Practices in Southern Tourism and Destination
Management, and www.SouloftheSouth.com, a
Web-based initiative aimed at promoting the
South’s multifaceted musical heritage, which
offer innovative and important economic
development and tourism-marketing tools
benefiting all states represented by SGA.
vii

viii

INTRODUCTION
Tourism is becoming an important economic
development tool in the South as result of
global restructuring. Traditional industries
such as manufacturing and textiles continue
to move offshore, even as exemplary
companies innovate to stay competitive.
Despite innovation, the world will continue
to flatten, as was suggested by New York Times
columnist Thomas Friedman, and many
regional jobs will continue to shift abroad.
In the wake of industrial restructuring,
the service sector continues to expand and
mature. Some service industries, such as
sports and entertainment, may be appropriate
for only a handful of communities. However,
nearly every Southern community has
something to offer tourists, from day-trippers
to extended-stays, from leisure visitors to
business travelers. Many Southern communities,
still reeling from the loss of traditional
industries and jobs, are just beginning the first
steps of tourism development. Luckily, the
region can claim many assets and amenities,
however undeveloped, that appeal to tourists,
such as nature, history, arts, and culture.
In short, the region has all the essential
ingredients for rapid tourism development.
This book, Best Practices in Southern Tourism
and Destination Management, might be seen
as a cookbook of sorts, written to offer a
better recipe for Southern tourism. It is up
to all of us, as economic development professionals,
to help set the table for potential
visitors and to invite them to the feast.
Tourism is big business. According to the
Travel Industry Association of America
(2006), travel and tourism is a $1.3 trillion
industry in the United States. Without the
tax revenue generated by this industry,
each U.S. household would pay $898 more
in taxes. The Association also reports
that the tourism industry is one of the
country’s largest employers, with 7.3
million direct travel-generated jobs.
Tourism is quickly shedding its low-wage
image through entrepreneurship spawned by
tourism-related industries and the development
of a tourism-oriented government
sector. High-value managerial and enterprise
positions are emerging in tourism-led
economies, ranging from positions in local
government to those that sell high-tech
equipment used by visitors for navigation and
interpretation, as well as expensive, advanced
materials that many sportsman now prefer.
As Southern communities scramble to
develop and market their attractions, they are
competing in the area of tourism with other
destinations, both nationally and internationally.
Atlanta is competing with Athens,
Charlotte with Copenhagen, and Birmingham
with Brussels, to list but a few of these commercial
contenders. What
makes tourism unique as an
economic good, however, is
that it is location-specific,
which means that no other
country can produce that
which Atlanta, Charlotte,
Birmingham, or any
other Southern city has to
offer. Accordingly, Southern
states should devote more
resources to strengthening
tourism throughout the
region and invest in a
reliable source of revenue to
ensure future prosperity.
Stalwart “bricks-and-mortar”
economic developers often
fail to recognize that tourism
is a major contributor to the
state economies throughout
the region. Georgia Governor
1

Sonny Perdue seeks to communicate this
message through his initiative entitled “Soul
of the South,” a project that will require the
cooperation of for-profit, non-profit and public
sector organizations and that will use a business
model centered around tourism. Business
models in particular have been espoused
by all best-practice organizations since the
terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, and
the subsequent economic recession, as may be
observed in the case studies presented in this
guide. The model employed by the Southern
states should focus primarily on tourism and
should include industries and corporations, as
well as an array of interest groups like environmentalists
and historic preservationists.
In earlier work, the author identified the best
practices in tourism as being those that exemplify
initiative and innovation, and that represent
a significant improvement over traditional
practices. The term has gained currency
due to the realization, perhaps, that there are
certain practices that work particularly well,
especially when applied to a field as youthful
and diverse as tourism. Due to the relatively
young age of tourism—the industry itself
having begun after World War II, and the age
of mass transportation, ideas that work tend
to be borrowed from other fields in order to
foster immediate success. In the end, cries for
innovation, when taken to extremes, tend to
drown out the practices and programs that
can benefit communities. Furthermore, since
tourism is often referred to as an “invisible”
industry made up of many economic sectors,
the notion of a best practice is often diluted
in a sea of ideas that appear to work, but that
are not optimal or sustainable over any great
length of time. Through subsequent years
devoted to studying best practices, the author
has come to redefine them not as a tidal
change in method or mechanism (although
are there many examples of this type of innovation
in tourism), but rather as approaches
that have withstood the tests of time and
scrutiny, and have produced tangible results
and benefits for organizations and communities
alike. When measured by this new
definition, one can clearly identify the best
approaches to tourism, those being the best of
the best selected from each Southern state.
This book is intended to guide tourism and
destination-management organizations,
including convention and visitors bureaus
(CVBs), chambers of commerce, and state
tourism and economic development agencies.
In addition, it provides case studies
about successful strategies and approaches
that can easily be adopted or adapted by all
types and sizes of tourism organizations,
ranging from local to international.
As mentioned in Guide to Best Practices in
Tourism and Destination Management, Volumes
1 and 2, such a book has multiple uses. The
tourism industry comprises many different
sectors, including transportation, lodging,
and entertainment, and so it can prove
difficult to identify best practices across these
numerous industries. In addition, because
the tourism industry is a loosely knit community
of diverse players—including CVBs,
state agencies, and university academic and
extension programs—it is also a challenge
to disseminate information about programs
that work consistently with identifiable
benefits. Practically, the adoption of a best
practice or practices can help an organization
demonstrate success, which is often
a requirement for continued funding. Of
course, as pointed out in previous editions,
funding is frequently needed to produce
innovative programming. I hope that this
book will significantly reduce research
and other costs for some organizations.
–Dr. Rich Harrill
REFERENCE
Travel Industry Association of America. 2006. Research and Publications. www.tia.org/researchpubs/stats.html.
2

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Author, lecturer, researcher, and consultant,
Dr. Rich Harrill is director of the
International Tourism Research Institute at
the University of South Carolina, School of
Hotel, Restaurant and Tourism Management.
His academic and professional experience
combines tourism with economic development
and urban planning, giving him an
uncommon perspective on all three.
Dr. Harrill has conducted research in tourism
planning and marketing, destination management,
heritage tourism, ecotourism, scenic
byway development, greenways, economic
development and sustainable community
development. His professional work includes
recreation and open-space planning,
land use and comprehensive planning,
environmental planning, citizen participation
and survey research. Additionally, he
taught university-level courses on tourism
planning and policy, community tourism
development, international and national
resort development, behavioral aspects of
parks, recreation and tourism management,
environmental planning and planning theory.
Since 2002, Dr. Harrill has researched some
50 best practice case studies in tourism. His
work has resulted in two guide books for
practitioners and has generated interactions
with national and international clients such as
the Hangzhou (China) Tourism Commission,
American Chamber of Commerce in
Vietnam, Hacienda Pinilla (Costa Rican
resort), Rhode Island Tourism Development
Advisory Council, Harbor Country (Mich.)
Lodging Association, and Destination
Marketing Association International.
Formerly a senior business associate with
Georgia Tech’s Economic Development
Institute, he undertook most of his recent
projects for Georgia clients seeking to
foster tourism as part of an economic
development strategy. They include:
5 Rockdale County Economic Development
Authority
5 Arabia Mountain Heritage Alliance
5 Heard County Chamber of Commerce and
Development Authority
5 Lower Chattahoochee Regional
Development Center
5 Lake Hartwell Regional Marketing Alliance
5 Golden Isles Parkway Association
5 Woodpecker Trail Association.
Dr. Harrill earned his Ph.D. in Parks,
Recreation, and Tourism Management and
his master’s degree in City and Regional
Planning from Clemson University. He
holds a B.A. in Political Science from the
College of Charleston. A member of the
Travel and Tourism Research Association
and the American Planning Association, he
has published his research in the Journal of
the American Planning Association, Journal
of Planning Education and Research, and
Journal of Planning Literature. In 2003, he
authored Guide to Best Practices in Tourism and
Destination Management (American Hotel &
Lodging Association), with a second volume
published in 2005. Dr. Harrill is also editor
of Fundamentals of Destination Management
(American Hotel & Lodging Association,
2005), the first comprehensive textbook for
the destination management industry.
3

METHODS
4
The set of case studies used in this report
was selected from nominations obtained
during fall 2005. One to three cases were
initially obtained from representatives
of each state belonging to the Southern
Governors’ Association (SGA). From the
initial pool, a blue-ribbon panel of five
tourism experts, including the author, made
the final selections. These selections were
then reviewed by SGA for inclusion.
The methods used to make the selections resembled
those used in two previous and very
successful volumes, Guide to Best Practices in
Tourism and Destination Management, Volumes 1
and 2, published by the Educational Institute
of the American Hotel & Lodging Association.
To determine the eligibility of a practice as
an exemplary case study, the researchers
used the following screening criteria:
5 Marketing
0Traditional practices: singular theme,
appealing to one or two broad visitor
markets, limited media vehicles for
communicating message, little or no
supportive research
0Innovative practices: integrated themes,
appealing to multiple markets, diverse
media vehicles for communicating
message, strong underpinning research
for accountability and advertising
effectiveness
5
Sustainable Tourism
0Traditional practices: nonprofit, local sustainability
initiatives, “green” marketing
0Innovative practices: public-sector
sustainable development programs,
integration of sustainable development
ethic into development plan, holistic
approaches to sustainability, global
distribution of information on sustainable
tourism via the Internet
5
5
Advocacy
0
0
Traditional practices: interest-group
lobbying, including personal communication,
letters, and petitions
Innovative practices: coordinated and
sustained media campaigns; use of
multimedia
Trails and Parkways
0Traditional practices: poorly marketed
and developed trails; loosely related
attractions and destinations; lack of
focus and, consequently, lack of funding;
sponsored by one organization or agency
0Innovative practices: developed and
marketed for multiple markets; tightly
integrated thematically and organizationally;
strong focus with consistent funding
mechanism; sponsored by public,
private, and non-profit partnerships.
In spring 2006, telephone interviews were
conducted with the program managers
and directors of the selected cases. The
interviews resulted in the organizational and
best practice descriptions and determined
whether the case was worthy of selection
as a best practice, based on the following:
5
5
5
5
Broad applicability
Ability of the interviewee to indicate
what was innovative or distinctive about
the practice
Evidence of an ongoing program
Evidence of an outcome or outcomes.
The selection criteria used to choose the final
cases were based on qualitative considerations
rather than scoring or summing categories.
Such quantitative methods were not necessary
because of the sufficient number of practices
generated by the nominations. Obtaining
a final set was not a matter of eliminating

cases; it was instead a matter of culling
cases from the nominations that met the
selection criteria and whose contacts agreed
to participate in the case selection process.
The case selection process was not designed
as a true sampling procedure. As a result,
any attempt to tally the final case studies
and make numeric comparisons among
different cases would be highly misleading.
The main contribution of the effort was to
describe a variety of practices that benefit
communities and the tourism industry. The
book is not a review of all practices, but is
limited to cases nominated by members
of the Southern Governors’ Association
and selected by the panel of experts.
Readers should remain aware that there is
a distinct difference between performance
standards and best practices. Performance
standards are comparative, quantitative, and
presented as rankings or indices. Conversely,
best practices are not comparative but
qualitative and interpretative, and are often
presented as case studies. The best practices
here should be construed as models that may
be partly or entirely applicable to many destination
management organizations (DMOs).
However, by no means are these models suitable
for adoption by all such organizations;
to do so would be to compare apples and
oranges, undermining the intent of best practices
in general and this book in particular.
Also, there is a concern that best practices of
any description can be too widely adopted, thus
stifling the creativity and innovation that must
lie at the heart of any good organization. The
adoption of a best practice in one organization
should by no means stop the processes of
innovation already working within that group.
Finally, it is possible that individuals outside
the tourism industry might inappropriately
and unfairly use a best practice guide as a
yardstick for a convention and visitors bureau
(CVB) or DMO in their community. Good
ideas evolve within a certain organizational
culture, influenced by many social, economic,
and political variables. Thus, an excellent
best practice in one city or community may
be unsuitable or untenable in another.
The author conducted the case study research.
The data collection method was chosen to
meet the project’s time and budget restrictions.
The author interviewed representatives
of organizations implementing the practices
and also relied on relevant brochures, fact
sheets, reports, and Web sites provided by
these sources. The case studies themselves
were compiled from the materials submitted
by the states, organizations, and destinations.
In effect, these are their stories, and this
book is a means of sharing them. Where
possible, these selected sources are listed at
the conclusion of each chapter. Each state,
organization, or destination selected was
provided an opportunity to review its chapter
before publication. The resulting volume is
intended for tourism industry professionals
rather than for academic audiences.
Each case begins with an “Overview” of the
practice and a brief description of what was
special about the practice that resulted in its
selection. The “Context and History” section
explains the problem that the practice was
designed to address and the processes that
led to establishment of the practice. The “Best
Practice” section describes the major features
of the practice and how it is used. The
“Results” section describes program outcomes
based on evaluation or program measurement
results. The “Reference Materials” section includes
information used to construct the case
studies, as well as Web addresses of contacts.
5

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
These case studies are grouped into four
categories: marketing, advocacy, sustainable
tourism, and trails, roads, and parkways.
However, readers will find that many of
these cases can easily fit into one of many
categories. They are grouped in the following
categories out of convenience and readability.
MARKETING
Although requiring dollars to stay competitive,
marketing has always been easy for the
South, blessed as it is with myriad assets and
attractions. Southern states have excelled
in projecting a unified brand image both
nationally and internationally, and they have
encouraged internal regions to band together
for the common good. Demonstrating a
common Southern soul and an awareness
that a “high tide lifts all boats,” many states
also work to promote one another.
North Carolina’s Integrated Marketing
Campaign provides a best-practice example
of how travel guides, Web sites, and media
advertising should fit together. Although
ranking only 13th in population, North
Carolina holds a solid position among the
country’s top 10 most-visited states, with
annual expenditures more than doubling
over the past 10 years to exceed $14.2 billion
in 2005. The state’s Division of Tourism,
Film and Sports Development attributes that
success largely to marketing consistency, or
“staying on message,” and it achieves that with
an integrated approach involving media relations,
advertising, sales and travel programs,
and leveraging partnerships. This approach,
and its consequent achievement, warrants a
best-practice designation in Southern tourism.
Although many states focus on regional
tourism or specific valuable assets, the
Arkansas Department of Parks and Tourism
understands that tourism must be nourished
at the grassroots level, meaning local communities.
The department supports Arkansas
communities not only in words, but also with
deeds, in the form of badly needed marketing
dollars. Although the monies involved are
modest, the department believes that in terms
of economic impact, it will reap rewards much
greater than the original investment. However,
the department also recognizes that through
the matching of private-sector money, it has
facilitated a partnership in those communities
that will lead to further collaborations
beyond tourism. In essence, the Arkansas’
Community Partnership Marketing program
is an exercise in community-building.
Tennessee’s Department of Tourism is a
best practice for its entertaining marketing
strategy. That marvelous maxim, “If you’ve got
it, flaunt it!” suits Tennessee to a T and finds
apt expression in its branding message—The
Stage is Set for You. The state’s marketing
campaign consciously takes advantage of all
Tennessee has to offer—from the arts to the
great outdoors—and extends an invitation
that’s tough to turn down. A broad publicity
effort utilizing every possible print and
graphic avenue, seasonal pitches, and a
changing list of activities, as well as native
celebrities, has raised Tennessee’s profile and
attracted tourist dollars. Already well-known
for its entertainment qualities and natural
beauty, Tennessee could become acclaimed,
too, for its best practice in advocacy.
However, if there is one theme that runs
through most of the best-practice case studies
in this volume, it is that collaboration
pays. Oklahoma’s Wild West Marketing
Cooperative is a best-practice case study
because it exemplifies how rural communities
can pool scarce resources and assets to
develop a regional tourism experience much
larger than the sum of its parts. The case
6

study also demonstrates the effectiveness of
a simple organizational model, with modest
goals pertaining to collateral materials
and events, and with an attainable dues
structure for cash-strapped communities.
Regional collaborations are a proven approach
in many areas of tourism, and not the least in
marketing. Borders don’t stop U.S. travelers
from venturing across state lines to explore
parks, visit sites, sample restaurants, or take
in the view. Tourism public relations professionals
in the Mid-Atlantic states of Maryland,
Pennsylvania, Delaware, Virginia, and West
Virginia and the District of Columbia formed
a volunteer group to promote their region,
focusing mainly on helping travel journalists
“get” the story. Promoting common threads,
coming up with themes, cross-selling, and
serving as a single resource for a large and
multi-faced area, MATPRA (Mid-Atlantic
Tourism Public Relations Alliance) has
found a way to get attention on virtually no
budget and with no government mandate.
Despite the arrival and departure of various
individuals involved, the alliance has stuck
together and continued to serve the travel
media, which in turn means informing the
traveling public about the region’s innumberable
things to see and do. Effective
voluntary cooperation on a broad plane, one
where competitors are actually allies, makes
MATPRA, nominated as a best practice by
West Virginia, worth studying and possibly
adapting to other locales further South.
ADVOCACY
In the area of advocacy, Georgia’s Tourism
Development Alliance is a best-practice case
study because it represents a true grassroots
effort to promote tourism as an economic
development strategy. It was born out of the
recognition that the state has yet to fully
realize its potential regarding tourism, and
has carefully focused on positive change, in
both policy and perception, to influence the
top levels of Georgia state government.
Similarly, the Texas Tourism Legislative
Caucus, a bipartisan group of state legislators
interested in the Lone Star State’s tourism
industry, seeks to create sound legislative
policies to support the industry. Established in
2003, it also provides a forum for legislators
and industry leaders. In less than two years,
some six dozen senators and representatives
have joined the caucus, reflecting a growing
awareness of tourism’s role and impact at
the state level and a growing presence of the
industry there, as well. The caucus is a best
practice because it is an innovative initiative
that brings together politics and business but
transcends them both in fostering tourism to
the benefit of the state and its communities.
SUSTAINABLE TOURISM
Many Southern states are leading the way
in sustainable tourism, offering models in
ecotourism, heritage tourism, and agritourism.
For example, Louisiana’s A Place Called
America’s Wetland initiative is creating a new
market for an emerging type of tourist—the
upscale, ecology-minded traveler interested
in adding genuine experience to broader
knowledge of environment, history, and
culture. This “eco-cultural tourism” combines
habitat preservation with adventure and
heritage travel, and the initiative serves as
an advocacy mechanism for both. Because
of this unusual approach and sustainable
theme, the initiative is a best practice, one
advanced and reinforced with strong media
relations, multiple partnerships (including
corporate giant Shell Oil), and promotion of
local venues and events. Given the efforts of
visitors to participate in this program and
help protect the state’s fragile ecosystems,
7

the case is also a model for “voluntourism,”
one which takes on a larger significance in
the wake of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.
Not killing the goose that lays the golden
egg is the premise that underlies the concept
of sustainable tourism development.
Perhaps there is no greater practitioner
of that rule than Missouri’s Division of
Tourism with its Streams of Consciousness
campaign. This public-private partnership
between the division, Missouri Department
of Conservation, educators, the Missouri
Broadcasters Association, and Missouri canoe
outfitters and canoeists, has dramatically
reduced the propensity for littering along
the state’s rivers and streams by distributing
200,000 liter bags to canoe liveries statewide.
It is a best-practice case study because it
demonstrates the division’s commitment to
a relatively simple, cost-effective program
promoting sustainable tourism development.
The Thomas Jefferson Planning District—one
of 21 such regions in Virginia and comprising
Charlottesville and the counties of Albemarle,
Fluvanna, Greene, Louisa, and Nelson—decided
to formalize preservation to embrace
rapidly growing heritage tourism. That, in
turn, would further encourage stewardship
and boost economic development in the
district. An important product of that effort
was a set of instruments: Virginia’s Heritage
Tourism Toolkit and Site Map. Introduced in
2004, these tools help property owners and
potential owners, site operators and potential
operators, and local convention and visitor
bureaus, educators, historical societies, and
elected officials seeking “to use the past as a
means of ensuring the future.” These awardwinning
tools are a best practice because of
specific, targeted assistance undertaken in
considerable detail and fashioned in a way
that makes them eminently adaptable.
The South Carolina National Heritage
Corridor, established by Congress in 1996,
stretches 240 miles across the state from
Charleston to the Blue Ridge Mountains,
covering 14 counties and yielding a textured
cross-section of South Carolina’s history,
culture, and landscapes. In January 2003,
a group of farmers within the corridor
founded the South Carolina Heritage Corridor
Farmers Association to implement a tourism
strategy for developing the agritourism niche
market. Its goal is to develop the strongest
agritourism farms and partners within the
corridor and provide enjoyable, familyoriented
educational experiences. From this
it is hoped the public will glean increased
awareness of agriculture and its vital role
in the state’s past, present, and future.
TRAILS, ROADS, AND
PARKWAYS
Finally, the South is internationally renowned
for its “linear tourism” attractions—meaning
trails, roads, and parkways.
Alabama’s Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail is
an acclaimed 24-course public golf trail built
to help expand tourism, recruit industry,
and attract retirees, thereby strengthening
the state’s economy while enhancing its
quality of life. Funding for the effort came
from the Retirement System of Alabama,
the state’s public employee pension fund.
The three-year construction effort, reportedly
the largest golf construction project
in history, cost $165 million. The concept,
a hole-in-one for tourism development,
is deserving of best-practice designation
because of its scope, its objectives, its execution,
and its unusual funding mechanism.
However, sports aren’t the only thing that
can hold a trail together. Kentucky’s Bourbon
Trail taps into the interests of the burgeoning
8

food-and-beverage market by focusing on
tourists known as “foodies.” The Bourbon
Trail offers a distinctive experience deeply
rooted in the American food-and-beverage
tradition, emphasizing simple preparation
and natural ingredients. The trail intersects
with food and travel, American history and
geography, and celebration and adventure.
Trails, routes, and scenic byways are becoming
important as baby boomers hit the road with
more leisure time and discretionary income—
“Spending Our Children’s Inheritance!” has
become more than a popular bumper-sticker
slogan. Florida’s Cuban Heritage Trail is a bestpractice
example of such a route because it
represents the best of several trends in travel
and tourism. For example, many of these baby
boomer retirees are using this new-found time
to rediscover America, reflecting on their own
cultural ancestry. For many Floridians, this
ancestry includes Cuban roots. For others,
this free time enables them to rediscover the
cultures that helped shaped the country’s
destiny as a major player on the world’s stage
and the communities that have exported
their diverse talents and culture worldwide.
Yet another route emphasizes heritage and
adds preservation to the mix. Maryland’s
National Historic Road is a best practice
because it represents a grassroots effort to develop
a scenic byway not only for protection
and preservation, but also for tourism development.
The road takes advantage of many
factors contributing to renewed interest in
America’s byways and historic routes. These
include: global economics that favor tourism
as a form of economic development as traditional
industries have relocated elsewhere;
and the affluence of the aforementioned baby
boomers, who are purchasing land and building
homes beyond the suburbs, and are caring
about what is happening there regarding
sprawl and historic preservation. Finally, the
road shows the maturing of environmental
and historic preservation movements, emphasizing
both sense of place and quality of life.
Finally, Mississippi’s Natchez Trace Parkway
and Compact is a 444-mile journey across
three Southern states. The road is a best
practice because its cooperative character
allows for participation by multiple partners
in a successful campaign to foster greater
visitation to an area and greater appreciation
of the region’s plentiful resources. Its
advocacy efforts, which extend from small
communities to the federal government,
combine traditional methods of brochures and
trade shows with new techniques and marketing
venues such as the World Wide Web.
CONCLUSIONS
The tourism industry is becoming increasingly
competitive due to a variety of social,
economic, and environmental factors.
Fortunately, not only do these case studies
reflect a unique tourism product that makes
the region globally competitive, but they also
demonstrate a collective spirit, or as Governor
Sonny Perdue would put it, a “common soul,”
that is also best practice worthy. Thus, this
guide not only offers the mechanisms to
adopt or adapt a best practice, but it can also
help an organization overcome those intangible
qualities that separate organizational
excellence from adequacy. Although culled
from a single region, this volume reflects
best practices that should be considered
universal in their replication and adaptability.
9

MARKETING
11

NORTH CAROLINA
12
INTEGRATED BRAND
MARKETING CAMPAIGN
OVERVIEW
Although ranking only 13th in population,
North Carolina holds a solid position among
the country’s top 10 most-visited states,
with annual travel expenditures more than
doubling over the past 10 years to exceed
$13 billion for the first time in 2004. The
state’s Division of Tourism, Film and Sports
Development attributes that success largely
to marketing consistency, or “staying on
message,” and it achieves that with an integrated
approach involving media relations,
advertising, sales and travel trade programs,
and leveraging partnerships. This approach,
and its consequent achievement, warrants a
best-practice designation in Southern tourism.
North Carolina’s marketing approach is a best
practice because it is one of the first in the nation
to be almost seamlessly coordinated—the
Web site, the printed materials, and print and
media advertisements share the same look
and feel. As a result, the integrated marketing
campaign is a brand in itself, with a great way
to sell North Carolina’s tourism assets and
attractions, from its mountains to its beaches,
its collegiate and professional sports and its
entertainment venues. The benefit of such
integrated marketing is that it creates power
much greater than the sum of its parts.
CONTEXT AND HISTORY
North Carolina has a long tradition of marketing
state tourism. In 1937, the state legislature
authorized the creation of a state advertising
division. Within two years of its creation,
the division placed North Carolina stories in
out-of-state papers and magazines at a rate of
500 per day. In addition, the division—now
established as a clearinghouse for North
Carolina information—published promotional
materials, established photo and informa-
tion files and set up correspondence with
key media contacts throughout the nation.
North Carolina lies within a day’s drive of
more than 50 percent of the U.S. population,
an aspect underscored by the fact that in 2004,
85 percent of travelers to the Tar Heel State
came by road. Besides the convenience of
its proximity, its appeal is further enhanced
by: diverse geography; abundant natural,
historical, and cultural resources and developed
attractions; interstate highways (I-40,
I-95, I-26, and I-85); and international airport
access (in Charlotte and Raleigh-Durham).
On the western side of North Carolina,
one finds the famed Appalachian Trail, the
beautiful Blue Ridge Parkway, the opulent
Biltmore Estate, homes of writers such as
Carl Sandburg and Thomas Wolfe, spas, folk
art centers, bluegrass music, and even casino
gambling at the Cherokee reservation. On
the coast, where the Wright Brothers were
early beachgoers, travelers encounter sun,
sand, and sea and their many attendant
activities ranging from game fishing and
wind surfing to hang gliding and bird-watching.
In between are rivers, museums, sports
arenas, festivals, and historic sites. The
state also boasts some 50 winemakers who
produced 600,000 gallons in 2004, with a
highly reputable cluster in the Yadkin River
Valley, a fruitful tourist draw that holds
designation as North Carolina’s first federally
recognized American Viticultural Area.
The foundation of the integrated brand
marketing campaign was established in
1991, and the program has evolved over
the years. It began by asking what people
wanted in a vacation and what came to
mind when hearing the words, “North
Carolina.” Research revealed that consumers
primarily sought restorative relaxation in
a lovely natural setting, but it found no

consistent answer to the second inquiry. In
other words, the state was not well-defined
in travelers’ minds. That became the task.
BEST PRACTICE
The integrated marketing campaign focused
on reaching audiences through (1) the World
Wide Web; (2) television; (3) print; and (4)
public relations. Given that people want to
relax in scenic settings, it was appropriate
to capture some of the essence of North
Carolina’s natural beauty and convey it in
print. For example, three principal color
illustrations depicting a lake scene, a mountain
stream, and a barrier island setting were
used in posters, calendar art, and print ads.
These images also were integrated with the
consumer Web site to create a consistent look
for greater recall. Likewise, television spots
showcased scenic beauty and sense of escape.
An e-newsletter goes to 95,000 subscribers
each month, conveying timely reports on
activities, travel packages, and the like. Again,
top-quality photos of outdoor settings and
activities underscore the possibilities for
“getting away from it all.” These simulated
web-based “experiences” enable users to
explore facets of North Carolina history,
culture, and place in detail. For example,
they can hear the Cherokee language and
traditional music, follow a Civil War time
line, read journal entries of Orville Wright,
and feel the roaring excitement of race cars.
In print media, small-space magazine ads
have catchy, provocative copy in page-fraction
blank spaces, such as, “If you’re reading
tiny ads in the back of magazines, it may be
time for a vacation,” followed with a Web
site address and phone number. New print
concepts were integrated into the print co-op
program and featured in such publications as
Budget Travel, Good Housekeeping and Southern
Living. The co-op program involves destinations,
attractions, and private-sector entities
such as vacation rental agencies within
the state, enabling these partners to reach
targeted markets at lower cost. The division
utilizes partnerships with statewide media
associations to promote in-state travel (more
than 35 percent of visitors are North Carolina
residents) under the tag line, “Discover the
State You’re In.” A billboard campaign, in
partnership with the North Carolina Outdoor
Advertising Association, used that tag line and
featured scenes of the
beach, the mountains,
a golf course, and
a historical reenactment.
Member
radio and television
stations of the North
Carolina Association
of Broadcasters ran
some 27,000 spots
generating $1.7
million worth of nonpaid
announcements
promoting the state.
Also, the division
underwrites a
weekly TV magazine
produced by UNC-
TV called “North
Carolina Weekend”
that showcases
events and attractions
statewide; in 2004, it
covered 75 percent
of North Carolina’s
100 counties and
produced 175 stories.
The emphasis
on seashore and
mountain beauty and
recreation, as well as
golf, also appears in
promotions aimed
at international
visitors, which
constitute a small but growing percentage of
the North Carolina tourist market. In 2004,
Canadian visitation grew 13.2 percent from
the previous year. State tourism is promoted
with partners in the United Kingdom,
Germany, and Canada; indeed, there’s even
a separate Web site—www.visitNC.co.uk.
New Web sites have been introduced for the
United Kingdom and for German-speaking
markets: www.northcarolinatravel.co.uk and
www.northcarolinatravel.de.
Communicating the message doesn’t stop
there, though. For instance, tour operators can
receive “Itineraries Journal,” which presents
26 North Carolina trails from which to choose,
and “Newslink,” a weekly e-mailed publication,
which provides relevant information on
the division’s marketing programs to 1,200
tourism industry leaders around the state.
13

RESULTS
Government and tourism industry leaders
reportedly were supportive from the outset.
The program was research-based, “true” to
the state’s strengths, and has contributed to
consistent long-term growth. The division’s
mission is “to unify and lead the state
in developing North Carolina as a major
destination for leisure travel, group tours,
meetings and conventions, sports events
and film production,” and this is where
consistency, as well as creativity, comes
to bear. The state’s tourism budget for
2004–05 was $11.3 million, ranking 18th
nationally, but according to the division’s
2004 annual report, it’s hitting
the high notes. Approximately
49 million visitors traveled to
North Carolina, ranking the
state eighth in the nation. In
2005, the state earned $14.2
billion in visitor expenditures,
representing $3.7 million
in payroll, 185,200 in jobs,
$747,700 in state tax receipts,
and $461,000 in local tax
receipts. Web marketing proved especially
strong in this success, with a record 46 percent
increase in visitation to www.VisitNC.com
from the results in 2003, reaching 4.8 million
visitors in 2004. In addition, North
Carolina’s marketing programs regularly
receive recognition from the Travel Industry
Association of America, including its 2003
Odyssey Award for International Marketing.
In sum, North Carolina’s Division of
Tourism, Film, and Sport Development
measures success in several ways, including
volume of inquiries, traffic to the Web site
measured as unique visits, and volume of
calls to its toll-free 1-800 number, as well
as economic analysis such as conversion
(the number of people that actually visit
after viewing an ad) and return-on-investment
(the number of dollars that the state
accrues for every dollar invested).
However, there have been some challenges
with implementing such an integrated
campaign. For example, many states that have
essentially the same combination of assets
and attractions—a similar product—struggle
to stand out among their peers. These
similarities are especially true among
Southern states, documented in this book
as both friends and occasional rivals. North
Carolina has to work hard to stand out, and
the marketing campaign has to perform
well to stand out among similar marketing
campaigns from neighboring states.
CONCLUSIONS
In the future, the integrated marketing
campaign will continue to evolve. The
campaign has been so successful that the
division intends to develop more programs
around the integrated theme. Given that in
today’s competitive tourism environment,
cities across the world compete with one
another, North Carolina feels that it is in
its best interest to continue to invest in
marketing. According to one official, “If you
don’t stay in the game, you get bypassed very
quickly.” Apparently, North Carolina learned
from another state’s experience, where voters
once repealed tourism-marketing dollars.
Although, that state’s funding has since been
restored, several years passed before it could
compete with other states in it’s region and
with states with similar assets and attractions.
It’s one thing to possess features that others
may want to see, feel, experience; it’s
something else to make folks aware of those
features and to choose them over competing
attractions. That’s the challenge and the work
of tourism marketing, and North Carolina’s
Division of Tourism, Film and Sports
Development is doing that work and meeting
that challenge with impressive results. It clearly
appeals to residents of neighboring states
(source of some 30 percent of visitors), but it
doesn’t overlook the huge in-state market either.
Employing several different avenues, the
division has established a desirable image and
reinforces it in multiple ways. Consistency,
creativity, and quality—all are elements
of a best practice—they work for North
Carolina, and they can work for others, too.
REFERENCES
WEB SITES: www.VisitNC.com
www.nccommerce.com/tourism
North Carolina Division of Tourism, Film and Sports
Development 2004 annual report
14

ARKANSAS
COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIP
MARKETING PROGRAM
OVERVIEW
For years, the Arkansas Department of
Parks and Tourism has been asked by communities
statewide for financial assistance
regarding a variety of tourism projects. For
the department, the numerous requests
often result in awkward situations, with one
community asking for significant dollars
for one proposal while another asks for a
significantly smaller amount of funding.
Although both projects have merit, the
department must make hard choices.
The department’s solution has been to set
aside $50,000 each year from its marketing
budget to fund the Community Partnership
Marketing Program. The criteria used to
evaluate competing projects are short and
to the point: (1) proposals must contain
uncommon and creative promotional ideas;
(2) strong community support must be in
evidence; (3) each proposal must contain a
promotional plan (with definite starting and
ending dates); (4) a realistic budget must
be prepared; and (5) the Parks and Tourism
department contribution cannot exceed
25 percent of the total project costs (with
a limit of $25,000 from the department).
The program is a best practice case study
because it demonstrates a commitment to
community tourism marketing. The Arkansas
Department of Parks and Tourism is supporting
the marketing plans of the local community,
not only in words but also through
deeds in the form of badly needed dollars.
Although the monies involved are modest, the
department knows that in terms of economic
impact, it will reap rewards much greater
than the original investment. However, in
the end, the department also recognizes that
through matching private sector money, it
has facilitated partnership
in those communities
that will hopefully function
far and beyond the
initial tourism project. In
essence, the Community
Partnership Marketing
Program is an exercise in
community building.
CONTEXT AND HISTORY
Created in 1971, the
Department of Parks and
Tourism is one of Arkansas’
largest state agencies,
employing more than 1,100 full-time and
part-time employees. The primary responsibilities
of the department are to manage the
state parks system, to promote and develop
tourism, to manage the state archives, and
to prevent litter on roadsides and parks.
According to the department, the program
began in 2001 as a means of evaluating
requests among communities needing marketing
funds. It is expected that private-sector
players will come to the table to match the
state’s contribution, resulting in a good mix of
public-and-private sector partners. The Parks
and Tourism Department effectively uses
the program to leverage additional dollars,
which results in improved marketing for
state destinations. Further, the department
sees its role as providing seed money for
the development of new and innovative
marketing of Arkansas’ tourism assets
and attractions. The department supports
these marketing programs knowing that
they will, in turn, benefit the entire state
economically. The Community Partnership
Marketing Program is both competitive
and selective. The department has funded
approximately eight projects since 2001.
15

BEST PRACTICE
The Tourism Division is responsible for
generating travel to and within Arkansas by
(1) marketing attractions through advertising
in national and state media, and via the
Internet; (2) publishing travel literature; and
(3) getting involved
in national
group tour, travel
writer, tourism
development and
travel research
programs. The
welcome centers
at the state’s
borders are
staffed through
this division,
and it administers the Community
Partnership Marketing Program.
The division has developed criteria to evaluate
proposals submitted to the program. The
criteria are considered guidelines only, and
proposals are evaluated on a case-by-case
basis. Criteria include, but are not limited to:
5 The project plan must be submitted to
the Arkansas State Parks, Recreation,
and Travel Commission through the
Tourism Director for approval no later
than four months prior to its planned
implementation
5 A comprehensive plan for each community
project must include the following:
objectives, strategies and tactics, program
elements, time line, and budget. Proposals
5
5
5
5
5
5
must contain creative promotional ideas
outside the usual realm of existing marketing
efforts
Marketing and communications strategies
must be fully integrated, including public
relations tactics and advertising
The proposal must have the support of
private businesses and organizations (e.g.,
tourism attractions, lodging facilities, and
other service providers) and should be supported
by volunteers who are committed to
the project’s success
The program must contain elements
designed to boost visitation to the
destination, including local entertainment
venues and other tourism attractions and
businesses
Each plan must define a starting and ending
date for its marketing campaign, along
with procedures for evaluating success and
measuring results
The Parks and Tourism portion of the
budget may not exceed 25 percent of the
total project cost (with a maximum contribution
of $25,000)
0It is the intention of the department
and the commission that the state’s
investment be considered seed money
to stimulate development of community
partnerships
0If the program becomes an annual event,
it should become self-sustaining. Any
exception must be approved in advance
by the Tourism Director
Within two months of the project’s completion,
the commission must receive a written
report through the Tourism Director
regarding the results of the project.
One difficulty in setting up the Community
Partnership Marketing Program was to
determine how much funding would be
offered. The department wanted to encourage
significant private-sector contributions, but
at the same time desired to provide enough
money to make a difference. After considering
contributions between 33 percent and 50 percent
of the total project cost, the department
eventually settled on 25 percent, which, for
the time being, has proven to be a good limit.
16

THE USS RAZORBACK
As described by the department, one project
funded by this program was the USS Razorback’s
2004 retirement berth in North Little Rock.
Commissioned in 1944, the USS Razorback
was the only operational submarine present in
Tokyo Bay to take part in the formal surrender
of Japan on September 2, 1945, officially ending
World War II. The USS Razorback earned five
battle stars for her war service and four stars
for service in Vietnam, the only American
submarine to earn battle stars in two wars.
The submarine was decommissioned by the
U.S. Navy in 1970 and transferred to the Turkish
Navy where she spent 30 years of distinguished
service as the TCG Murat Reis. Rather than
seeing the vessel scrapped, U.S. officials began
a two-year negotiation with Turkish officials
to bring the 60-year-old submarine back to the
United States. The city of North Little Rock
acquired the submarine from the Turkish Navy
for $39,684.59 in salvage costs. Joining other communities
that have turned military history into a
tourism attraction, it seemed only fitting to North
Little Rock that a famous submarine named
the Razorback should reside in the state where
the Razorback wild hog is the official mascot.
The Razorback, the longest-serving submarine
the world, began her 7,000-mile journey
from Istanbul, Turkey, on May 5, 2004,
sparking international media interest that
continued throughout her trip. The city of
North Little Rock contracted with Smith
Maritime Company of Florida
to bring the Razorback from
Turkey across the Aegean
and Mediterranean Seas and
the Atlantic Ocean, a 45 day
voyage. She made her first
stop in U.S. waters at Key
West, Florida, on June 12. The
submarine continued later that
week on her journey across
the Gulf of Mexico, making
her first freshwater stop in
a welcoming ceremony near
the French Quarter in New
Orleans on Saturday, June 19.
Several thousand well-wishers
gathered for the ceremony.
After a few weeks of preparation
for the upriver tow on
the Mississippi River, the
Razorback began her journey to Rosedale,
Mississippi, on July 10, with a two-night stop
in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Due to water-depth
concerns on the Arkansas River, arrival organizers
postponed the original ceremony then
planned for July 18th in North Little Rock.
On Thursday, July 15, the Razorback entered
Arkansas waters for the first time with an
overnight stop at the Montgomery Point Lock
and Dam near Tichnor, Arkansas, where she
took part in the next day’s official dedication
ceremony of the Montgomery Point Lock and
Dam. She was towed back to Rosedale that
evening in preparation of her coordinated
event with the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers
for the Montgomery Point and North Little
Rock events, including her delayed journey
up the Arkansas River. They also coordinated
with the Arkansas Department of Parks
and Tourism Director Richard Davies, who
served as master of ceremonies in both
New Orleans and North Little Rock.
RESULTS
With the help of the Community Partnership
Marketing Program, the media relations
outreach was extensive, with an emphasis on
the Associated Press and local and regional
papers, including the development of media
teasers for targeted national press. The
Department created CD-Rom media kits with
logo, photographs, and background information
and news releases. It also coordinated
17

with North Little Rock’s Web site programmer
to make media information readily available
on the Web site www.northlittlerock.ar.gov.
The Razorback event was a huge success. The
value of the media coverage went well into
the millions of dollars. Television stations
across the country, including CNN, aired
well over 300 news segments. Print clips
were even more substantial, with Associated
Press articles running in papers across the
country, including several in USA Today,
Los Angeles Times, New York Post, Seattle
Times, Baltimore Sun, Charlotte Sun, Dallas
Morning News, Miami Herald, Orlando Sentinel,
Memphis Commercial Appeal, New Orleans
Times-Picayune, Houston Chronicle, Washington
Times, Newark Star-Ledger, San Antonio
Express-News, and Cleveland Daily Banner.
Several dozen other newspapers in the region
and in Arkansas ran coverage of the USS
Razorback, with the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette,
North Little Rock Times, and the Arkansas Times
leading the way.
From the international perspective, the United
Kingdom’s Guardian ran an Internet story, as
did Turkey’s largest daily newspaper.
The department’s media planning and logistics
outreach for the Razorback’s homecoming
resulted in extensive coverage of the actual
ceremony in North Little Rock, with all four
local radio stations setting up live remotes that
promoted the event to the public throughout
the week leading up to the homecoming
celebration. As a result of the promotional coverage,
including several local newspapers and
television stories the week of the event, thousands
of people attended the celebration. The
Arkansas Democrat-Gazette and the Associated
Press reported that 7,500 people attended.
Local attractions like the USS Razorback help
keep the state’s tourism numbers healthy,
with approximately 21.8 million travelers
visiting each year. According to the Tourism
Division, these tourists spend approximately
$4.6 billion annually, paying $259 million
state taxes, and $97 million in local taxes.
In addition, Arkansas’ tourism industry
employs approximately 61,000 individuals
and pays $1 billion in wages and salaries.
CONCLUSIONS
The Arkansas Department of Parks and
Tourism has considered the Community
Partnership Marketing Program a success
because it has generated substantial media
exposure, both for the department and the
communities involved in the program.
The program is a best practice case study by
remaining true to its emphasis by making
attractions successful at the local level. As
explained by Tourism Division Director Joe
David Rice: “The program helps us remember
we have to work with the local folks to be
successful. We can’t operate like a bureaucratic
island in Little Rock [the state capital].” In the
future, the department would like to steer more
resources toward local communities, perhaps
even increase its contribution to important
local community tourism marketing projects.
REFERENCES
WEB SITE: www.arkansas.com
Arkansas Department of Parks and Tourism. 2004.
USS Razorback Project Report to the Arkansas State
Parks, Recreation, and Travel Commission Monthly
Meeting. Jacksonville, Ark.: Arkansas Department of
Parks and Tourism.
18

TENNESSEE
SCENIC BEAUTY AND MUSICAL
HERITAGE MARKETING
OVERVIEW
That marvelous maxim, “If you’ve got it,
flaunt it!” suits Tennessee to a T and finds apt
expression in its branding message—“The
Stage Is Set for You.” The state’s marketing
campaign consciously takes advantage of
all Tennessee has to offer—from the arts
to the great outdoors—and extends an
invitation that’s tough to turn down.
A broad publicity effort utilizing every
possible print and graphic avenue, seasonal
pitches, and changing lists of activities, as well
as native celebrities, has raised Tennessee’s
profile and attracted tourist dollars. Already
well known for its entertainment qualities and
natural beauty, Tennessee could become acclaimed,
too, for its best practice in marketing.
Much like North Carolina’s integrated marketing
approach, Tennessee’s scenic beauty and
musical heritage campaign works because
it seamlessly integrates interrelated themes
of nature-based tourism and heritage and
cultural tourism, creating a powerful brand
appealing to many different types of tourists.
The state recognizes that one of the major
assets in selling its tourism sites and attractions
involves tapping into its unique “sense
of place.” This sense of place is used in the
marketing campaign to stimulate repeat visitation
by combining memorable environments
with unique entertainment experiences.
The other important lesson to be learned from
the Tennessee marketing experience is that
officials created a new, viable campaign from
elements they already knew had widespread
appeal. The state is famous for both its Great
Smoky Mountains and its cultural heritage,
particularly the musical heritage found in
Memphis and Nashville, but also in many
other cities and communities
around in
state. They avoided
classic marketing
gaffes by finding
a creative way to
repackage appealing
tourism images
and experiences.
CONTEXT AND
HISTORY
From the Great
Smoky Mountains
to the mighty
Mississippi,
Tennessee is a
vibrant panorama.
One can imagine it as
a nineteenth century
painted canvas that,
when scrolled across
a stage, would
slake the American
public’s visual thirst for knowledge about the
wondrous land opening up before it. Scenic
beauty extends to wildflower pilgrimages
in Gatlinburg to whooping crane sightings
in Birchwood to a rhododendron festival at
Roan Mountain. Memphis sings the blues and
Nashville plays country tunes, but music also
fills the air in other places, such as Bristol,
Smithville, and Brownsville. Civil War battlefields
dot the state like indelible red badges
of courage. Davy Crockett, Casey Jones, and
other legendary figures loom larger than life.
Signs urging travelers to “See Rock City” seem
like old Burma Shave ads, but new attractions
such as the Tennessee Aquarium pull people
to Chattanooga and its environs today. And
how many states can claim both The King (as
in Elvis) and the National Cornbread Festival?
19

Tennessee residents accounted for 22
percent of all person-trips in the state
in 2004. The top states of origin for outof-state
visitors were Georgia, Alabama,
Kentucky, and North Carolina.
According to Travel Industry
Association of America’s 2004
TravelScope Survey, the number
of visitors to Tennessee in
2004 (43.6 million) outpaced
the previous year’s figures by
890,000, marking a 2.1 percent
increase and moving Tennessee
from 12th to 11th nationally
in domestic travel volume. The
goal, according to state officials,
is to make the top 10.
BEST PRACTICE
Advice from state
tourism officials
is to tie a theme to
something that’s
part of the brand.
Tennessee is known
for scenic beauty and
entertainment, and
the brand is “The
Stage Is Set for You.”
That message opens
doors to the state’s
myriad attractions.
Music fans and artistic
types can dabble
in and experience the arts. Roads less traveled
introduce visitors to nature, Tennessee-style,
and the state’s truly great outdoors. History
and heritage buffs can reflect on and learn
about Tennessee’s richly textured past.
The brand was fully implemented, or “power
launched,” in July 2005 using a $4.5 million,
one-time appropriation proposed by the governor
and approved by the General Assembly.
The campaign featured personal appeals from
two native celebrities—Dolly Parton and
Isaac Hayes, who, in all media used, invited
the audience to “play on our stage,” with
supporting voice-over and text urging viewers
and/or listeners to visit the Web site or call
an 800 number for a free vacation guide.
Subsequently, new TV spots were created to
encourage autumn visitation and aired on cable
channels such as the Travel Channel, Food
Network, and Discovery Channel. Print ad
copy stated, “Tennessee’s a great stage for music.
But it’s also the perfect stage for all kinds
of fun…because good times are always front
and center in Tennessee.” Print ads appeared
in Southern Living, Family Circle, and other
major publications, and in 2006, are scheduled
to run in People, Parents, Fortune, and Oprah.
The graphic design of a new Web site
for tourists (www.TNvacation.com) was
based on the “Stage” brand, and the site
features streamlined navigation plus
seasonal information pages, e-post cards,
maps, detailed partner pages, a trip builder,
and a “top 10 things to do” that changes
regularly with each visit to the site.
RESULTS
The effectiveness of the marketing campaign
was measured in inquiry volume and economic
impact of the campaign.
A consumer research study by Longwoods
International regarding the previous $1.8
million test market campaign in 2004
showed that for every dollar spent on
advertising, the new campaign generated
$17.40 in sales tax revenue—$11.14 for
the state and $6.24 for communities—a 22
percent increase from 2003 tax figures.
The Longwoods study helped justify the
one-time $4.5 million special appropriation,
which enabled the state Department of
Tourist Development to expand the marketing
campaign from nine to 14 key driver
markets and place more frequent buys to
generate tourism industry expansion. Those
original markets included Atlanta, Little
Rock, St. Louis, Birmingham, Greenville-
Spartanburg-Asheville, Louisville, Lexington,
Huntsville, and Cincinnati. The funding
also enabled the department to participate
in 10 print advertising co-op initiatives.
Also, according to the tourism department’s
2005–06 annual report, since the marketing
initiative was launched in July,
inquiries for its vacation guide have
increased significantly, running just over
39,000 compared to a little over 31,000
in July 2004 and some 17,000 in 2003.
CONCLUSIONS
One can have many wonders of the world on
hand, but without a clear, dynamic come-on
20

there may be little benefit to having them.
True, not all locales have a Dolly Parton or
Isaac Hayes or comparable star power, but
the effective link of a well-crafted brand with
themes, seasons, events, or other features perhaps
counts more than the individuals who
extend the invitation. Tennessee’s experience
suggests that having an offer that can hit all
the notes harmoniously and reach appropriate
target markets can make sweet music
for the tourism industry almost anywhere.
The marketing campaign and resulting brand
has worked so well that in the future, the
state only expects to create new and exciting
variations around the original theme, “The
Stage is Set for You!” Tennessee has a wealth
of new “stages” from which to explore its
natural beauty and cultural heritage. The
state has succeeded in creating a memorable
experience that resonates with the public.
REFERENCES
WEB SITE: www.TNvacation.com
Department of Tourist Development 2005–06 annual
report and marketing plan
21

OKLAHOMA
WILD WEST TERRITORY
MARKETING COOPERATIVE
OVERVIEW
What started as an inquiry by the Fairfax
(Oklahoma) Chamber of Commerce president
to local electric cooperative representatives
regarding what the town could do to boost its
economy has now turned into a best-practice
marketing tool. Their innovative idea led to
more prosperous economic conditions for
host communities in north-central Oklahoma,
a region that is known for its American West
and Native American cultural heritage. The
mission of the Wild West Territory marketing
initiative is to promote the region and to
assist communities with tourism marketing
and development. Dues for membership in
the cooperative are a modest $75 annually,
and monthly meetings rotate among all
member towns. Owing to these cooperative
marketing efforts, the Wild West Territory
has been able to participate in several
regional consumer- and trade-shows, allowing
members to reach a greater audience with
their marketing message, as well as to create
opportunities for one-on-one interaction with
group leaders, tour operators, and potential
visitors. Their best practice success story
has been shared with several other rural
Oklahoma communities as an example of
creating alliances with neighbors to boost
economic and tourism marketing and development.
The cooperative is a best practice case
study because it is an example of how rural
communities can pool their scarce resources
and assets to develop a regional tourism
experience much greater than the sum of its
parts. The case study also demonstrates the
effectiveness of a simple organizational model
with modest goals pertaining to collateral
materials and events and an attainable dues
structure for cash-strapped communities.
CONTEXT AND HISTORY
In 1994, the general manager of the Indian
Electric Cooperative thought that if smaller
towns in the region could band together
and promote themselves as one destination,
they would be able to attract bus tours and
achieve greater marketing success than if
each community worked independently. In
1995, an organization called North-Central
Oklahoma Wild West Tours was formed.
The name was later changed to Wild West
Territory because of the confusion by the
public that the entity was a travel agency.
The Wild West Territory describes itself
not only as a cooperative, but also as a
mutual marketing, advertising, and promotion
organization. Initially, the cooperative
focused on attracting more motor coach tours.
However, it has gradually expanded its focus
to include cultural and heritage tourists.
Even some nature-based tourism marketing
is being explored, given the presence of
remnant prairie ecosystems in the area.
Member communities include Braman,
Blackwell, Cleveland, Kaw City, Newkirk,
Pawhuska, Pawnee, Perry, Ponca City, Ralston,
and Shindler. These communities are located
in Kaye, Osage, and Pawnee counties.
The strength of the Wild West Territory
model is its tour. Assets along the tour are
related to nature, arts, music, entertainment,
history, architecture, Native American culture,
and gas and oil history. The following major
destinations are described on the cooperative’s
Web site, www.wildwesttour.com.
RANCH 101 (PONCA CITY)
Ranch 101 is a National Historic Landmark.
This picnic area commemorates the 101
Ranch which was home to hundreds of participants
in the famous 101 Wild West Show.
22

This show, which traveled around the world in
the 1920s, featured sharp-shooters, trick riders,
ropers, and Native Americans in full regalia.
THE PIONEER WOMAN MUSEUM AND STATUE
(PONCA CITY)
In 1927, a local leader suggested that a statue
be erected to honor the spirit of the women
who played a highly significant role in the
settling of north-central Oklahoma. He hired
12 artists to submit their own design, for
which each was paid $10,000. The 12 reducedscale,
three-foot-tall statues toured the country
by train, traveling to 12 different cities in
six months. Approximately 750,000 people
viewed the statues, and each voted for their favorite.
The overwhelming choice was the monument
of a confident woman and her young
son, created by sculptor Bryant Baker of New
York. Today, the actual statue stands 17 feet
tall and weighs 12,000 pounds. It is mounted
on a pyramid of limestone, making the total
height of the landmark surpass 30 feet.
BOB CLARK’S SPUR COLLECTION (FAIRFAX)
More than 150 pairs of spurs are on display
in the lobby of the First State Bank in Fairfax.
Bank owner Bob Clark received his first pair
of spurs from his father, who was a cowboy, a
former western lawman and a charter member
of the Oklahoma City-based Cowboy Hall
of Fame. The spurs date back to 1853, and
each pair has its own history. Other spurs in
the collection include those that belonged to
such locally famous and infamous people as:
Henry F. Grammers, the 101 Ranch rodeo and
world champion steer roper; Ben Johnson and
his father Ben Johnson, Sr., the latter having
been a world champion steer roper; entertainer
Johnny Lee Willis; Osage County ranchers
R.C. Drummond, Eugene Mullendore, Jr.,
and E.C. Mullendore III of the famed Cross
Bell Ranch; and W.K. “Bill” Hale, a rancher
known to the Osage Indians for his “reign
of terror.” Hale was a cattle baron of Osage
County who was sentenced to prison for
plotting the death of several Osage Indians.
TERRITORIAL SCHOOL (HOMINY)
The 1904 Stone School House was built
as a school on the Osage Reservation. The
building was also used for early church
services, funerals, and plays. Literally saved
from the bulldozer in the 1960s, it now
serves as the administrative office for the
Hominy Independent School District.
THE OSAGE COUNTY HISTORICAL MUSEUM
(PAWHUSKA)
One of the three museums in and around
Pawhuska, the Osage County Historical
Museum is housed in the historic Santa Fe
Railroad Depot built in 1922. The museum
features exhibits on Indian, pioneer, oil, and
western heritage. Most notably, memorabilia
and the history of the first U.S. Boy Scout
troop founded in Pawhuska are on exhibit.
Other points of interest on the museum
grounds include two rail cars that were
actually used by the Santa Fe Railroad
between Kansas and Pawhuska, two gazebos
(one from 1890), and a restored one-room
school—the Edith Layton School House.
THE SHIDLER JAIL (SHIDLER)
The Shidler Jail was built in 1922 and
served all the surrounding counties.
With two cells, this was one of the largest
jails in the area. Henry Majors was
the town of Shidler’s first lawman.
Crime in that region was concentrated in the
town of Denoya, better known as Whizbang,
and the most colorful of the region’s oil field
boomtowns. It was said to be populated by
gamblers and a very tough element. Shootings
sometimes occurred nightly and the town
bank was robbed twice. No one is sure
where the name Whizbang originated, but
some believe it was named after Whizbang
Red, an infamous prostitute. Another possible
namesake, however, was Whizbang
Willie, a popular magazine of the time.
23

THE TALLGRASS PRAIRIE (SHIDLER)
Originally spanning portions of 14 states and
covering more than 142 million acres, the
tallgrass prairie was one of North America’s
major ecosystems. Today, less than 10 percent
of the original tallgrass prairie remains. As a
functioning ecosystem, the tallgrass prairie
is all but extinct. The only existing large,
unbroken tracts of tallgrass prairie are located
in the Flint Hills of Oklahoma and Kansas.
In 1989, the Nature Conservancy purchased
the 30,000-acre Barnard Ranch north of
Pawhuska, Oklahoma as the cornerstone
of the Tallgrass Prairie Preserve, which
now spans more than 37,000 acres. The
Conservancy’s goal is to recreate a functioning
tallgrass prairie ecosystem via fire and
grazing bison. Fire has been reintroduced
to the landscape with carefully controlled
burns. Burns are conducted at different
times of the year to mimic the original
seasonality of pre-settlement fires. Fire
removes dead vegetation, controls encroaching
woody vegetation, and increases the
vigor and flowering of many plant species.
THE ORIGINAL PAWNEE BILL’S WILD WEST SHOW
AND FESTIVAL (PAWNEE)
There were two original “Bills” who were
pioneers of the Old West. Major Gordon W.
Lillie was given the name Pawnee Bill by
the Pawnee Indians when he came to Indian
Territory at age 17. Pawnee Bill and Buffalo
Bill rode together in what was the first of the
Wild West shows in 1883. The “Only Show
of its Kind” once toured America and Europe,
and has now become an annual event with
a cast of hundreds re-enacting the worldfamous
Pawnee Bill Wild West Show. Each
summer, the hillside on Blue Hawk Peak at
the Pawnee Bill Buffalo Ranch comes alive
with trick riders, trick ropers, mock shootings
and hangings, and a battle between cowboys
and Indians. In conjunction with the Pawnee
Bill Wild West Show, visitors can go to the
downtown square for arts and crafts, entertainment,
rides, and a fast-draw competition.
PAWNEE BILL’S RANCH (PAWNEE)
The Pawnee Bill Ranch site features some
of the last remnants of the legendary Old
West. Visitors can drive through the pasture
and view buffalo, longhorn cattle, and elk
as they might have looked to a 19th-century
pioneer traveling across the prairie. They can
walk through the log cabin, the blacksmith
shop, and the Indian flower shrine. Travelers
can also tour Pawnee Bill’s dream home and
visualize life in 1910 Oklahoma via Pawnee
Bill memorabilia, photographs, and more. In
1903, Pawnee Bill purchased land from Blue
Hawk, his Pawnee friend whom he had met
prior traveling to Indian Territory in 1879,
and built a log cabin on this property for
himself and his wife, May. Construction of
their dream home began on the highest point
of the property in 1908, and it was completed
in 1910, when they moved into that building
and left the log cabin for ranch hands to use.
A blacksmith shop, a large goldfish pond, and
an Indian flower shrine were also constructed
on the site during those years. A three-story
barn was added to the property in 1926 to
house Pawnee Bill’s Scottish shorthorn cattle.
The 1910 mansion, costing $100,000 at the
time, stands furnished as it did when completed.
The living room features Oriental rugs
and occasional bear, buffalo, and lion skins. Its
furniture is leathered in red and brown to harmonize
with the dark mahogany interior. The
home also features a large fireplace with solid
bronze andirons and mantel, drop chandeliers
of diamond-cut glass, and a gold-stained
frieze creeping up to an Old Dutch ceiling.
The home has a total of 14 rooms, their walls
decorated with hangings and portraits.
24
RESULTS
Perhaps due to the recent interest in
Americana and the continuing fascination
with the Wild West both in this country and
abroad, the marketing cooperative and tour

have proven very successful. For example,
the cooperative printed and disseminated
some 20,000 brochures within nine months.
These brochures were funded by the Pawnee
County Economic Development Foundation
and the state. Based on this success, the
cooperative has managed to attract other
funding partners such as Conoco-Phillips Oil
Company and the Kaw Nation, which has
considerable gaming interests in the region.
In addition to the brochures, the cooperative
has fostered other favorable developments,
such as multiple media stories tailored to
the type of visitor most likely to visit the
region. In terms of partners, the organization
has been successful at minimizing the
member cost-share at $75, which should be
attractive to potential partners. The cooperative
has been successful attracting private
sponsors such as the Kaw Nation, which
prints advertisements in the brochure for its
casinos, and Conoco-Phillips, which assisted
in the printing of the brochures. Finally, the
state has increased its funding from $2,000
to $4,800. Conoco spent about $7,000 on
printing, and the Kaw Nation spent $5,000
on advertising. In addition, 13 businesses
bought coupon space in the brochure for $100
each to make a total budget of about $1,200.
The cooperative expects the private sector to
sponsor members’ attendance at more regional
and national travel shows in the future.
The modest amounts spent by and on the
cooperative appear to be a great investment
considering the overall impact of
tourism on the state’s economy. According
to the Travel Industry Association of
America’s (2004) report on the economic
impact of travel on Oklahoma counties:
5 Direct domestic travel in Oklahoma
reached nearly $4.5 billion during 2004,
a 5.9 percent increase over 2003
5 Travel-generated employees earned nearly
$1.5 billion in wage and salary income
during 2004
5 Domestic travel expenditures generated
70,000 jobs in Oklahoma in 2004, 4.8
percent of the state’s total non-agricultural
employment
5 On average, every $63,057 spent in
Oklahoma by domestic travelers generated
one job in 2004.
Viewed in this context, the value of Wild
West Territory tourism far outweighs its
total budget, not to mention the intangible
benefits typically missing in economic
impact models, such as historic preservation
and environmental protection, which
contribute to overall quality of life.
Developing the region’s cooperative marketing
strategy has not come without challenges.
For example, many of these communities
still endure rivalries that date back generations.
These rivalries were termed by one
state official as the “Friday Night Lights
Syndrome,” alluding to hotly contested high
school football battles between neighboring
Oklahoma communities on fall Friday nights.
This rivalry must be overcome for the “betterment,
improvement, and sustainability of
these communities,” according to the same
official, “with egos checked at the door.”
CONCLUSIONS
The cooperative’s communities have come together
to do what is in the best interest for the
region both economically and socially—a true
best practice case study in rural economic development
at the community scale. This spirit
has evolved from the recognition that, as one
cooperative official stated, it is “hard for any of
us [the communities] to stand alone as a destination—we
realized we needed each other.”
In the future, the cooperative expects to
expand tourism products and services through
more funding, resulting in even more privatesector
partnerships. This development is also
characteristic of most successful organizational
tourism ventures—the ability to expand
appeal through all potential partners in
service of the entire tourism industry, whether
it be public, private, or non-profit. For the
Wild West Territory, tourism is a team effort
much like those contested Friday night games.
REFERENCES
Travel and Tourism Industry Association
of America. 2004. U.S. Economy and Travel
Industry Overview. Washington, D.C.: Travel and
Tourism Industry Association of America.
WEB SITE: www.wildwesttour.com
25

WEST VIRGINIA
MID-ATLANTIC TOURISM
PUBLIC RELATIONS ALLIANCE
OVERVIEW
Regional collaboration is a proven approach
in many areas of tourism, and not the least in
marketing. Geographic and political borders
don’t stop U.S. travelers from venturing across
state lines to explore parks, visit attractions,
sample restaurants, or take in the view. To
overcome artificial borders and create brand
awareness of the region, tourism public
relations professionals in the Mid-Atlantic
States of Maryland, Pennsylvania, Delaware,
Virginia, and West Virginia, and in the District
of Columbia formed a volunteer group to
promote their region, focusing mainly on
helping travel journalists “get” the story.
Promoting common threads, coming up
with themes, cross-selling, and serving as a
single resource for a large and multi-faceted
area, Mid-Atlantic Tourism Public Relations
Alliance (MATPRA), has found a way to get
attention on virtually no budget and with no
governmental mandate. Despite the departure
of some founding members who’ve retired
or moved to other jobs, the alliance has stuck
together and continued to serve the news
media, which in effect means informing the
traveling public about the region’s myriad
things to see and do. Readers should note
that it was West Virginia that nominated
MATPRA for a best practice, although it is
just one of several participating states.
Effective voluntary cooperation on a broad
plane, one where competitors are actually
allies, makes MATPRA a best practice
worth studying and possibly adapting in
other locales farther South. On a basic level,
MATPRA is also a best-practice case study
of the type of partnership now recommended
for tourism marketing success.
However, the organization also accomplishes
another economic goal for tourism in the
region—keeping travelers in the area longer,
resulting in longer stays and more spending.
The organization emphasizes common themes
that help tell the story of the region to editors
and travel writers and thus to potential
visitors. In some cases, the same common
themes result in solidarity and cooperation
in an industry that is often known for its
competitiveness. With more competition
from other regions and abroad, now is the
time for all tourism organizations to explore
“common themes” and common goals with
neighboring states and organizations. In
more ways than one, regionalism is “in.”
CONTEXT AND HISTORY
MATPRA resulted from a conversation
among Mid-Atlantic public relations practitioners
at a travel and tourism conference in
Albuquerque, New Mexico, in April 2002. The
topic of sharing leads with colleagues across
state lines led to an informal agreement to
break down barriers and boundaries and work
together. According to one of the founders,
26

Mindy Bianca, who at the time represented
the state of Maryland, it wasn’t so much
a sense that they couldn’t share leads but
rather that they had allowed state and county
lines to prevent them from becoming strong
partners. This was shortly after the September
11 terrorist attacks on New York City and
the nation’s capitol, and many professionals,
Bianca recalls, were trying to figure out ways
to keep tourism flourishing. She remembers
asking her counterparts in Delaware, Virginia,
Pennsylvania, and D.C. if they and their
convention and visitors bureau PR reps might
be interested in forming an alliance. The
first meeting was held near Baltimore in July
2002, and 35 to 40 people attended. The group
decided to meet quarterly, and in July 2003,
West Virginia was invited to join the creative
mix. Matt Turner of West Virginia’s Division
of Tourism notes that his agency and groups
on the local level had previously worked with
out-of-state neighbors, so this was a reasonable
move. Also, he notes that his state is
considered the most Southern of the Northern
states and most Northern of the Southern
states; the eastern panhandle is a suburb of
D.C. and the northern panhandle is much
like Pittsburgh—so this regional approach
helps in the state’s struggle for identity.
The organization became more formal in
January 2004 with the election of officers.
In June of that year, the group held its first
media marketplace in Washington, drawing
some 50 travel journalists. A second
followed in Richmond in May 2005, and
similar event is scheduled for Pennsylvania
Dutch Country in September 2006.
BEST PRACTICE
As of April 2006, MATPRA had some active
members representing state, city, county,
and regional tourism offices in Delaware,
Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West
Virginia, and Washington, D.C. These organizations
range from state tourism agencies and
county tourism councils to chambers of commerce
and city CVBs. MATPRA is not sanctioned
by any particular body, but the above
organizations provide support by allowing
their employees to attend MATPRA meetings
and other activities, absorbing their travel expenses,
and permitting them to volunteer time
and supplies. Bianca notes she coordinated
press kits for the first media marketplace, the
state of Maryland’s PR budget paid for the
actual folders, and its staff assembled the kits.
The group meets in January, April, July, and
October to network, develop ways to assist
the travel press, undertake professional
development, and educate one another about
their respective destinations. They also vote
on such things as the next media marketplace
location or what the Web site address should
be. The meeting sites are rotated among
members’ locations, making it easier for
members to make at least one meeting in
person per year and allow them to familiarize
themselves with other Mid-Atlantic destinations.
Meeting hosts obtain professional
development speakers or arrange for local
travel media to network with the group.
The board of directors consists of the immediate
past chair, the current chair, a vice
chair, and one representative from each
of the five states and D.C. Members pay
no dues; rather, they contribute materials,
manpower, skills, connections, and of course,
ideas. There is no charter nor a budget, but
there is an expected level of volunteerism.
The May 2005 media marketplace in
Richmond illustrates the contributive approach.
For example, Richmond spearheaded
event organization and administration.
Virginia Beach, Virginia, helped pay for a
media breakfast. Maryland tourism offices
helped fund the luncheon and its speaker.
27

Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, put together
the media invitation list. West Virginia
developed the Web site and printed the
program brochure. Fredericksburg, Virginia,
provided name badges, and Alexandria,
Virginia, arranged for media panelists.
Early on, MATPRA members identified
several common themes. Some of the more
frequently mentioned ones included arts
and culture, bird-watching, Civil War, book
or movie settings, heritage tourism, music
and other festivals, and startlingly enough,
ghost stories. In fact, the group featured the
latter in “Hunting for Hauntings,” composing
a list of three reportedly haunted sites from
each state and D.C. and establishing a related
Web site—www.midatlanticghosts.com.
These places ranged from homes, ships, and
graveyards to Civil War forts, lighthouses,
and a 19th-century undertaker’s office. Other
regional themes have involved food—from
Chesapeake Bay crab to shoo-fly pie, from
microbreweries to historic inns—and scenic
and historic railways, such as the B&O,
the Harmony Line, the Reading Railroad,
and West Virginia’s Cass Scenic Railroad
with its antique Shay steam locomotives.
The goal, first and foremost, is to assist travel
journalists, rather than to relate directly to
consumers. According to Matt Turner, current
MATPRA chair and national media manager
with the West Virginia Division of Tourism,
members work with perhaps as many as 400
different journalists or media outlets that are
invited to the annual marketplace. All of them,
he says, are “juried.” In other words, members
have recommended them based on positive
experiences concerning previous work together,
visits, articles or broadcasts. The guiding
concept entails stimulating good coverage of
the entire region as a travel destination, with
the obvious follow-on that folks will read or
view the stories produced and decide to visit.
RESULTS
Since 2003, MATPRA has sponsored two
travel media marketplaces that attracted
some 50 journalists apiece, built two Web
sites promoting the region as a destination,
and distributed seven news releases offering
feature ideas embracing the entire region.
According to Turner, the group reportedly has
developed a solid reputation among travel
writers and the tourism industry as a resource.
The media marketplaces, reports Bianca, are
a way for MATPRA members to let regional
writers know they are valued, and that tourism
agencies want to work with them and
that they know about regional destinations.
At the first marketplace in 2004 even the
smallest destinations—which don’t have large
marketing budgets—had lines of journalists
waiting to talk to them. The atmosphere, she
recalls was friendly, cooperative, and open.
The greatest effort goes into the media
marketplace, which arguably is the biggest
benefit of MATPRA membership. Face-to-face
meetings and earned media resulting from
those are the most tangible items membership
provides, notes Turner. One feature article
alone could literally be worth $100,000 in
equivalent advertising space. MATPRA
newcomer Rachelina Bonacci, executive director
of the Howard County, Maryland, Tourism
Council, has hosted several press trips as a
direct result of meeting those journalists at
the 2005 MATPRA marketplace. Hers is one
of many examples of media relationships
established through MATPRA functions.
According to Bianca, MATPRA didn’t model itself
after any particular organization; instead,
members created the partnership they wanted
to be. “My understanding is that other states
have looked at MATPRA as a model, but to my
knowledge none has actually replicated what
we’ve done the way we’ve done it,” she says.
28

It wasn’t difficult to persuade members to
buy into the concept, she reports. “The key
was to get everyone to understand that we
were helping, not hurting, each other, that
your best friend is across the border, not
your worst enemy.” Some members may
have had trouble convincing their superiors
it was a good thing, she adds, “But I think
the positive results of the partnership
have erased anyone’s fears or concerns.”
As for West Virginia in particular, Matt Turner
notes his division is actively involved in
MATPRA and indicates that “the MATPRA
function is the direction in which our PR
efforts are heading.” Regional cooperation
is benefiting the West Virginia Division
of Tourism as well as the other member
states and regional visitor bureaus. Specific
plans include seeking partnerships with
Pennsylvania and Maryland to host an outdoor
writers’ conference. Aside from the low
cost, benefits include news clips and media
inquiries, although Turner says there has been
no formal tracking of the group’s results.
Other local West Virginia groups joined at
the urging of the tourism division, according
to Turner. “We plan to do more MATPRA
evangelism in West Virginia to get other CVBs
to join,” he says, adding, however, that few
of them are large enough to have a designated
media rep/PR person on staff, which
is a MATPRA requirement for membership.
They’ve commented about the peer networking
and making media contacts, which are
sometimes difficult for little-known CVBs.
In sum, perhaps the biggest result is that,
contrary to Shakespeare, something will come
from nothing—all of this has been accomplished
by an organization with essentially
no budget, no incorporation, no separate
offices, no dues, and participation on a strictly
volunteer basis. Further, each member takes
responsibility for all in-kind contributions.
they put into it—that makes it unique
among tourism organizations. You can’t
simply pay a membership fee and get the
quarterly newsletter with journalist leads in
it. Members must attend a meeting and share
media databases or discuss story ideas that
work or talk about the latest news clipping
service or changes in travel magazine staff.”
There have been a few obstacles. Lacking
an official designation and business license,
MATPRA must rely on members to do
such things as (1) buy a Web site domain
name, (2) host the Web site, (3) order media
marketplace “goodies bags,” (4) distribute
news releases on wire services, and (5) pay
for journalist transportation. And Turner
concedes that a boss may question paying for
a Web site or wire distribution fee if his organization’s
letterhead is not at the top. Also,
employee attrition turnover or budget cuts in
a member’s organization could conceivably
have an adverse effect on the group. At the
same time, he believes another member
would step up to the plate and make the necessary
contribution. Further, for any organization,
having no budget is tough. In addition,
while MATPRA emphasizes common themes
among states, it is sometimes a challenge to
compile the different stories in one media kit.
The best practice here is the cooperation of
the group and its members’ recognition that
a competitor can be a great ally. As Mindy
Bianca observes, “It’s a ‘Three Musketeers’ philosophy—all
for one and one for all. It works.”
REFERENCES
WEB SITE: www.matpra.org
CONCLUSIONS
A strong statement for regional collaboration
in media relations, MATPRA also illustrates
what volunteer spirit and shared
responsibility can do at little financial cost.
“The great thing about our group,” says
Turner, “is that we don’t rely on a controlled
budget to promote our destination. Our
members only get out of the group what
29

ADVOCACY
31

GEORGIA
TOURISM DEVELOPMENT
ALLIANCE OF GEORGIA
OVERVIEW
The Tourism Development Alliance of Georgia
(TDAG) was founded in 2002 to increase the
awareness of the importance of tourism to
the state’s economy. The alliance strives to
facilitate collaboration across the functional
and geographic lines of Georgia’s hospitality
and tourism industry, to foster hospitality and
tourism as an economic development tool,
to unify the industry’s voices, to strengthen
industry political clout, and to provide value
to its member organizations. TDAG achieves
this mission by creating awareness, at the
community level, of the importance of the
economic opportunities created by the
hospitality and tourism industries to local
and state economies. The alliance also fulfills
this mission by providing educational opportunities
to hospitality and tourism leaders
regarding industry issues and initiatives. It
also advocates for hospitality and tourism
policy issues at the local, state, and federal
levels. Finally, TDAG facilitates partnership
among the various stakeholder organizations
that benefit from
tourist expenditures
across Georgia’s
public, private, and
non-profit sectors.
The alliance is a
best practice case
study because it
represents a true
grassroots effort to
promote tourism as
an economic development
strategy.
It was born out of
the recognition that
the state had to
fully realize its tourism potential, and that it
needed an organization to advocate positive
change, in both policy and perception. As an
independent voice for Georgia tourism, the
Alliance can partner with key membership
organizations related to business, government,
hospitality, and tourism. This ability
to partner with organizations across the
spectrum optimally positions the Alliance to
act as a catalyst for generating support for and
understanding of the positive economic impact
that tourism provides all Georgia citizens.
CONTEXT AND HISTORY
As recounted on its Web site, www.tourismdevelopmentalliance.org,
the Tourism
Development Alliance of Georgia was
founded in 2002. Initially, a group of 175
tourism professionals, business leaders, and
elected officials met in Savannah in April of
that year to discuss opportunities and challenges
facing the tourism industry. Former
President Jimmy Carter gave the keynote
address, and the Alliance’s Agenda for Action
was created. A Steering Committee was
formed to host a tourism education summit,
the goal of which was to convene business
32

leaders from across the state to discuss
strategies for strengthening Georgia tourism.
The outcome of that summit was TDAG.
In March 2003, the Alliance coordinated
Tourism Day at the Georgia state
capitol, Atlanta. That September, TDAG,
the Georgia Convention and Visitors
Bureaus, the Georgia Economic Developers
Association, and the Georgia Chamber of
Commerce adopted a consistent legislative
agenda to support the Georgia Department
of Economic Development Board of
Directors’ Tourism Policy Initiatives.
By that September, the Alliance had
transformed from a loose coalition
into a membership organization. In
November 2004, it became an affiliate of
the Georgia Chamber of Commerce.
Over the last three years, the Alliance has
been acknowledged as a catalyst for change,
and has achieved 100 percent of its original
mandate. It continues to create support for
tourism by collaborating with traditional
tourism industry partners, as well as engaging
organizations that represent the business
community, economic developers, and
local governments. The Alliance continues
to maintain close ties with the Georgia
Department of Economic Development,
and former TDAG Director Dan Rowe was
appointed director of the state’s tourism
efforts through that department in July 2005.
BEST PRACTICE
As described by the Alliance, its best practices
include both organizational and strategic
approaches. As part of the process to increase
efficiency and to ensure that the Alliance
serves the needs of the industry, its Steering
Committee embraces several reputable organizational
strategies: finance structure, board
compensation, and the organization’s first
statewide membership campaign in fall 2005.
The Steering Committee served as the initial
board members. The Alliance originally had
two managing directors, Dan Rowe and Joy
Walstrum. In July 2005, Walstrum became the
sole director when Rowe moved to his current
position, leading the state’s tourism efforts.
The Alliance is primarily funded by its
general members, strategic partners, allied
organizations, and corporate members. Office
space in Atlanta and administrative services
are provided by the Georgia Chamber of
Commerce. Additional support comes from
grants, sponsorships, in-kind support, special
events, and other fund-raising activities.
The Alliance has maintained an active role in
planning committee meetings across the state
for the Georgia House and Senate Economic
Development and Tourism committees. This is
a best practice in itself because all tourism organizations
should become more involved in
the political arena to position themselves for
more funding and regulatory consideration.
On its Web site, TDAG provides information
and other resources to its advocates across
the state. This includes materials related to
issues facing the industry and tourism policy
in general. The organization also makes
use of e-mail, telephone communications,
and personal consultation in support of its
objectives. Additionally, Alliance representatives
regularly speak at state and national
events on tourism policy and issues.
The Alliance’s operational strategies include
the following:
5 Conduct awareness, education, and
advocacy programs to build support for
tourism and to provide value and benefits
to members
5 Facilitate collaboration among member
associations that are strategic partners
5 Develop and execute new-member
campaigns to build additional clout for the
organization and for the hospitality-andtourism
industry in Georgia
33

5 Counsel potential members on the benefits
of participating in the Alliance and of
working with its strategic partners
5 Actively participate in events sponsored
by member associations and other tourism
industry groups
5 Routinely speak
at meetings and
other industry
events concerning
the Alliance and its
strategic partners.
Communicating
effectively has been
a key component
of the TDAG’s
effectiveness in
generating awareness
and support for the
state’s hospitalityand-tourism
industry. The Alliance’s communications
strategy includes the following:
5
5
5
Internal communications with industry
partners—providing industry news
and alerts, issues of interest, upcoming
programs and events; identifying available
resources; making presentations and calls
to action
External communications, acting as the
voice of Georgia’s industry—providing
industry news, issues of interest, member
profiles, and briefs on the economic and
social impact of tourism
Reciprocal or two-way communication—
providing feedback solicitation through
issues forums, surveys and questionnaires,
Web blogs, listening sessions; participating
in member association events and one-onone
dialogue with members.
The Alliance’s program of work for 2005
included the following objectives:
5 Obtain legislative support on the issues
facing the state’s tourism industry, such as
taxation and labor laws
5 Develop additional grassroots support
for partners of the Alliance and industry
through statewide constituency-building
programs and expanding its communications
program
5
5
Develop and strengthen strategic partnerships
with the Association of County
Commissioners of Georgia, Georgia
Municipal Association, and other organizations
whose members can influence or
enact public policy that directly influences
the tourism community
Provide a roundtable environment for industry
partners to develop proactive policy
initiatives that enhance their members’
ability to conduct business in Georgia.
In addition to these activities, TDAG regularly
lobbies elected officials on the local, state, and
federal levels in pursuit of its stated mission
of enhancing Georgia’s tourism industry. The
Alliance also collaborates actively with public
affairs professionals from its partner organizations
to ensure that a cohesive message goes
forward to all levels of government. In addition,
the Alliance believes that one voice is
not the answer, and that a multitude of voices
speaking in harmony will effect real change
in Georgia and in the industry as a whole.
The Alliance advances a policy platform that
includes: (1) continued integration of hospitality
and tourism projects into the economic development
incentives offered by the state; (2)
assistance to the newly created State Tourism
Foundation, charged with enhancing the
state’s ability to leverage resources in order
to more effectively market Georgia tourism,
and (3) support for pro-tourism tax reform.
It is in the area of tax reform that TDAG’s
efforts have been particularly noteworthy.
In 2004, the Hotel and Motel Tax Code was
reformed to specify which monies are to
be used directly for tourism marketing and
development. Most recently, the Alliance
was working to finalize an educational
program that: (1) outlines the reforms of the
tax code, (2) explains the impact of these
reforms on the local communities, and (3)
demonstrates the positive impact that the
effective use of such taxes has in fostering
economic development through tourism.
RESULTS
In the short time since its inception in
2002, TDAG has successfully raised awareness
in Georgia that tourism can be an
effective economic development strategy,
especially since many traditional industries
have relocated elsewhere. According to TDAG,
34

tourism’s efficacy has been most evident in
the creation of tourism committees within
other economic development groups. For
example, the Georgia Chamber of Commerce
adopted a tourism platform and established
a standing tourism committee. The Georgia
Economic Developers Association also has a
tourism committee and has included tourism
in its legislative agenda. Similarly, in January
2003, then-Speaker of the House Terry
Coleman established the House Economic
Development and Tourism Committee. In
addition, the aforementioned Hotel and Motel
Tax Code has been reformed to establish
audit and enforcement mechanisms to ensure
that hotel and motel tax funds are used by
local governments for tourism marketing
and development. Finally, and perhaps most
important in the long-term, the Alliance has
been instrumental in the creation of the
Georgia Tourism Foundation, a public-private
partnership designed to collect additional
monies for the state’s tourism promotion.
The Alliance’s influence has been felt all the
way up to the governor’s office. Governor
Sonny Perdue acknowledged his support for
tourism by creating a Tourism Task Force
in the Commission for New Georgia, the
first task force to be created, and the only
economic development issue to have been
given its own task force. In addition, Governor
Perdue created the Georgia Tourism Council
to develop an implementation strategy for
the Commission’s recommendations. The
result was Senate Bill 125, the New Georgia
Foundation for Tourism Act, which was
signed into law by the governor in April 2005.
The Alliance itself was incorporated as a
non-profit and membership organization
in 2005. Previously, TDAG had been solely
funded through voluntary contributions from
its advocates across Georgia and through
the proceeds from conferences and events.
all economic development is not necessarily
“bricks-and-mortar,” but that it can be a
collection of strategies that include tourism’s
multiple sectors, such as travel, lodging, and
food-and-beverage, and entertainment. The
fact that TDAG has managed to accomplish
its objectives in such a relatively short time
demonstrates that the Alliance truly deserves
best-practice recognition. Its rapid ascent
can be partly attributed to the Alliance
having provided a forum for the exchange
of ideas and having served as a conduit
for building partnerships across the state.
The Alliance also has been successful in
bringing tourism issues to political forums,
where real change occurs, and this is the
hallmark of a best practice in advocacy.
In sum, TDAG is a best-practice case study
because it serves as a model for states with
emerging tourism industries that are trying
to gain legitimacy for tourism in general,
while helping to meet the immediate local
and state tourism needs. The Alliance has
shown that a relatively untapped tourism
resource—people—can be mobilized
as a powerful agent for political and
economic change, bringing the importance
of tourism to residents and public officials
through education, advocacy, and policy.
REFERENCES
WEB SITE: www.tourismdevelopmentalliance.org
CONCLUSIONS
The recent progress garnered from the establishment
of the Georgia Tourism Foundation,
from tax code reform, and renewed state
commitments to tourism all comes directly
from TDAG’s efforts. The Alliance continues
to teach long-time economic developers that
35

TEXAS
TEXAS TOURISM LEGISLATIVE
CAUCUS
OVERVIEW
The Texas Tourism Legislative Caucus, a
bipartisan group of state legislators interested
in the Lone Star State’s tourism industry,
seeks to create sound legislative policies to
support the industry. Established in 2003,
it also provides a forum for legislators and
industry leaders. In less than two years,
some six-dozen senators and representatives
have joined the caucus, reflecting
a growing awareness of tourism’s role
and impact at the state level, as well as a
growing presence of the industry there.
The Caucus is a best practice because it is
an innovative initiative that brings together
politics and business, while transcending
both of them to foster tourism in the interest
of benefiting its communities.
The Caucus is important because it is an attempt
at advancing tourism advocacy beyond
the grassroots level. Almost every tourism
organization and agency will acknowledge
that funding is a chronic problem. However,
few are successful at developing alternative
methods of funding, and fewer still become
skilled in negotiating within local, state,
and federal political arenas when searching
for support. The purpose in many cases is
not gaining access to political arenas as a
means of soliciting financial support, but
rather to identify tourism as an important
economic strategy, as an alternative to the
commonplace “bricks-and-mortar” approach
to economic development. Advocacy is one
of the most necessary, yet rarely well-undertaken,
functions of the tourism industry.
CONTEXT AND HISTORY
People have been traveling to Texas since the
early 1800s for gain and glory, adventure and
settlement, and new horizons, niches, and
beginnings. However, although some folks
still come seeking such things, many travelers
today want to experience the rich culture,
heritage, and history of the Lone Star State,
to sample its sites and sights, and to savor its
flavor. The number of visitors is as striking as
the size of the place. According to the Texas
Department of Economic Development, 190
million trips were made to Texas in 2002,
more than any previous year in its history,
and visitors reportedly spent $41.4 billion
that year. Leisure trips taken by non-Texans
increased by 10.8 percent over the previous
year. Considering all travel categories, Texas
experienced more trips in 2002 than any
other state that year, save California. In the
leisure category alone, Texas ranked third in
the nation behind California and Florida.
And why not? Texas offers quite an impressive
array of attractions. For those who love
36

nature, there are game preserves, beautiful
beaches on the Gulf Coast, lakes and rivers
inland, zoos and aquariums, gardens, and
several national parks. For those seeking
entertainment, there are rodeos, big-time
professional sports, and equally popular
college athletics. For the history buff, there
are 700 museums and ten heritage trails
and historic sites, ranging from the Alamo
to the Houston Space Center. And for those
who are looking for something different
altogether, there are unique draws such as the
LBJ Library and the Fort Worth Stockyards.
Finally, for those who want a classy evening
out, there is upscale dining and lodging in
Amarillo, where one can find accommodations
complete with deluxe horse stalls.
According to the November 2004 edition
of “Tourism Caucus News,” travel spending
directly supported 451,000 jobs in Texas, and
the Governor’s Texas Tourism program generated
a return-on-investment in state taxes of
$20.51 for each dollar budgeted in fiscal year
2003. As such, tourism is the state’s third
largest industry and fourth largest employer.
BEST PRACTICE
Established in 2003, the Texas Legislative
Tourism Caucus seeks to create sound legislative
policies to support the growth of tourism
employment, to provide incentives for the
development of the tourism industry, to
oppose any taxes that would negate industry
growth, and to sustain or increase funding for
encouraging travel to and within Texas. It also
gives legislators and tourism industry leaders
an opportunity to offer input concerning the
industry’s current and future membership.
Caucus membership is open to all in the
Texas House of Representatives and Senate,
including the lieutenant governor and Speaker
of the House. In less than two years, 78
legislators have joined the Caucus. Associate
membership is offered to executive officers
of statewide tourism associations, allowing
them to advise and assist the Caucus.
The Caucus employs various means to inform
members of its activities and of any important
legislative, business, and economic news
regarding the Texas tourism industry. These
include a quarterly newsletter, “Tourism
Caucus News;” regular meetings; sundry
receptions, dinners and related events; and an
annual summer Caucus Family Seminar. The
seminar is a special two-day educational event
for Caucus members and their families and is
held in a different part of the state each year.
In 2005, it was aptly hosted in San Antonio,
the state’s leading travel destination. Together,
these events enable Caucus members to
meet one-on-one with local tourism industry
officials and employees, which lets them learn
about relevant issues. The Caucus members
and their families also receive guided tours of
area attractions, and this enables them to personally
experience the local tourism product.
RESULTS
In 2004, the House Economic Development
Committee recommended that the state main-
37

tain current funding for tourism, and that it
should consider ways to increase funding. Last
year, lawmakers followed their advice and
passed legislation maintaining funding for
tourism, dubbing it an industry priority. Since
2003, the industry has enjoyed a significantly
improved relationship between Caucus member
representatives and their tourism industry
constituents, giving the industry better access.
Furthermore, Caucus members are more frequently
using information gleaned from the
group’s newsletters and events when developing
their positions on proposed legislation.
The Texas Legislative Tourism Caucus is
reportedly one of the largest and fastest
growing in the state, now comprised of 78 full
members. The professed goal of the caucus
is, “to have all 181 members of the legislature
actively participating in every aspect of the
caucus’s activities,” notes “Tourism Caucus
News.” Participation in the Summer Family
Seminar grew from 25 in 2004 to 56 in 2005.
Also, legislators’ attendance at the tourism
industry’s annual Tourism Unity Dinner
rose from 30 in 2004 to 50 the following
year. In less than two years, 78 legislators
joined the Caucus, and according to the
November 2004 “Tourism Caucus News,”
those employed in the tourism industry,
“now have a voice in the Texas Legislature,
empowering their legislators to focus on
the importance of growing the industry and
providing incentives and support needed.”
As would be expected with any such organization,
the Caucus has its challenges. While
participation is expected to grow, the rate of
new membership tends to wax and wane from
year to year, directly linked to the importance
given to tourism in legislative issues. In
addition, groups such as the Caucus can also
work against tourism if the organization’s
program of action is not regarded highly by
38

other legislators. Therefore, it is imperative
that the Caucus remain focused on the goals
and objectives that will enhance tourism as
an economic development tool in Texas.
CONCLUSIONS
Access to legislators is key for any group
trying to advance its agenda, and there is no
question that partnerships and good relations
between legislators and constituent segments
facilitate supportive laws and regulations.
Clearly, the Texas Legislative Tourism
Caucus has piqued the interest of numerous
lawmakers of different stripes, all who see
the significance of tourism for jobs and
tax dollars, to say nothing of its image and
appeal. The group may be new, but it is highly
effective, and it appears to be growing in its
influence and impact. In all likelihood, the
Texas tourism industry will soon follow suit.
The Caucus is a best practice because of
its success in bringing together two very
important sets of players—state legislators
and tourism industry representatives—and
because it enabled those players to better
work together to achieve a common goal,
namely fostering travel to and within Texas.
REFERENCES
WEB SITES: www.traveltex.com
www.travel.state.tx.us
Tourism Caucus News, Nov. 2004 and March 2005
Texas Travel Facts
39

SUSTAINABLE TOURISM
41

LOUISIANA
A PLACE CALLED AMERICA’S
WETLAND
OVERVIEW
Coastal Louisiana covers 3.4 million acres
and includes up to 40 percent of the nation’s
wetlands. The state’s extensive mix of
marshes, swamps, islets and bayous provides
a protective buffer for natural habitats that
is vital to fisheries and waterfowl, as well as
to the port of New Orleans and the pipeline
infrastructures that move 25 percent of the
country’s oil and gas. The region reportedly
loses more than two-dozen square miles of
wetlands annually, the equivalent of about
three football fields, every 30 minutes.
In 2002, the state launched the largest public
education effort in its history, America’s
Wetland: Campaign to Save Coastal Louisiana.
As part of the promotion, the state implemented
A Place Called America’s Wetland
(APCAW), a national tourism initiative. It was
coordinated in part by Louisiana’s Department
of Culture, Recreation, and Tourism and
by the Office of the Governor, and its goal
was to create a new market for an emerging
type of tourist. Rather than honing in on
one traditional type of tourism, the program
aimed to cater to a combination: the upscale,
ecology-minded traveler who also wants to
add genuine experience to his or her broader
knowledge of environment, history, and culture.
Mitch Landrieu, the Lieutenant Governor
and overseer of the Department of Culture,
Recreation, and Tourism, described this new
blend of tourism by explaining that, “The
state’s remarkable beauty, abundant natural
resources, and diverse cultures come together
to offer an experience found nowhere else
[and] what people may not realize—and
what A Place Called America’s Wetland
demonstrates—is that these links between
people, culture, and land put Louisiana at
the heart of a new brand of tourism,” which
he went on to name “eco-cultural tourism.”
Eco-cultural tourism combines habitat
preservation with adventure and heritage
travel. The eco-cultural tourist seeks to
understand and to enjoy the relationship
that people and culture have to the land.
APCAW fosters this understanding and is a
best practice because it has proven successful
in coordinating its innovative approach
and sustainable theme with strong media
relations, multiple partnerships, and the
promotion of local venues and events to yield
impressive results. In the wake of Hurricanes
Katrina and Rita, it has also taken on a
larger significance in rebuilding Louisiana.
CONTEXT AND HISTORY
The mighty Mississippi River drains a huge
portion of the United States’ natural water
resources, with the Louisiana coast being
the world’s seventh largest delta. Efforts to
regulate the river date back many years, and
the extensive construction of levees prevents
42

the river from creating new land or marsh,
and from overflowing from its natural banks
to replenish existing wetlands with fresh
water and sediment. Storms, sea-level risings,
erosion, salt-water intrusion, and human
activities such as canal construction have
contributed to the problem. In any case, reduction
of this buffer zone threatens commercial
fisheries, energy production and transport,
agriculture, shipping, and tourism, and as the
last hurricane season demonstrated, excessive
completion of it can inundate society.
Often called the “Sportsman’s Paradise,”
coastal Louisiana draws a myriad of outdoor
enthusiasts, residents and visitors alike.
In 2002, more than 646,000 anglers took
more than 3 million saltwater fishing trips
in the state. The numbers of out-of-state
fishermen has reportedly been rising,
and millions of dollars are netted by this
activity alone. Hunting and fishing have
huge appeal here, and bird-watching has
become more popular every year. In 2001,
approximately 522,000 residents and 86,000
non-residents came to view birds in Louisiana,
spending $86 million in the process.
People looking for “a good time down
on the bayou” travel to the area to
sample Cajun foods and frolics. Scores of
festivals and fairs celebrate everything
from shrimp-boats to strawberries.
Overall, Americans who went to Louisiana
for leisure travel in 2001 spent more than
$8 billion while they were there, and that
sum supported 113,000 jobs. However, such
stimulating revenues are threatened by the
continuous depletion of coastal zones. In
addition to removing shelter and nourishment
for the birds, fish and other creatures,
habitat destruction also does damage to
tourism. One estimate for the bird-watching
industry alone held that, in a worst-case
scenario in which the migratory bird population
was reduced by half as a result of habitat
destruction, the tourism sector would suffer
an annual statewide loss of $84 million.
BEST PRACTICE
As part of America’s Wetland Campaign, the
Louisiana Department of Culture, Recreation
and Tourism partnered with various organizations,
including the Office of the Governor,
America’s Wetland, local tourism officials,
Shell Oil Company, and internationally
renowned marketing firm Marmillion and
Company, to launch APCAW in October 2004.
APCAW came as a strategic opportunity to
create well educated and engaged advocates
for America’s Wetland, the aforementioned
“eco-cultural tourists.”
To better understand
these tourists, picture
wildlife enthusiasts
visiting the swamps and
bayous, not only getting
up-close-and-personal
with nature, but also
savoring the food,
music, and folkways
of Cajun county. This
would create for them
an unforgettable
journey to a distinctive
place within American culture.
Since its inception, the effort has been seen
as a way to foster diversity, creativity, and
the state’s special assets. APCAW promotes
community activities, events, and attractions
centered on the niche market described above.
Boundaries run from Texas to Mississippi,
and signage appears on I-10 at the state
gateways of Lake Charles and New Orleans.
Billboards across the state welcome travelers
to America’s Wetland. Pages on the America’s
Wetland Web site are devoted to APCAW.
One aspect of the effort is America’s Wetland
Birding Trail, a chain of 12 loops that includes
115 wildlife-viewing venues through 22
coastal parishes, or counties. Integrated into
the Birding Trail is information on key tourist
destinations, such as historical sites, state
parks, and wildlife-refuge visitors-centers.
For example, on Loop Five, the “Atchafalaya
Loop,” visitors get the best view of the storied
Bayou Teche Waterway. This stop also features
Evangeline Oak Park in St. Martinville, site
of the tree made famous in Longfellow’s epic
poem “Evangeline,” as well as both Cajun and
Creole museums. Then, on Loop Eight, the
“Terrebonne Loop,” those interested in learning
more about the cultural, industrial and
ecological aspects of life on the water can visit
the Bayou Terrebonne Waterlife Museum in
Houma. Beside the Waterlife Museum, there
stands a 19th-century Southdown Plantation
House, which acts today as a local museum.
43

Within this loop structure there are 33
America Wetland Resource Centers with
ample displays of relevant information and
well-trained staff available to answer questions.
Each center is also outfitted with stateof-the-art
touch-screen kiosks, paid for with
an $800,000 grant from Shell Oil Company,
on which visitors can see a short introductory
film and view related maps, videos and other
graphics. There they also have access to facts
on the APCAW initiative, and guides for
the Birding Trails may be found exclusively
within the centers. The kiosks opened in
April 2005, but the subsequent barrage of
storms damaged three beyond repair. Plans
are underway to replace them and to work
with staff to restore full capabilities of the
resource centers themselves. To help spread
the word, Shell created
APCAW information-stations
in more than 300 of its retail
outlets in the region, where
they displayed brochures
with details on the program.
Among its successes, there
have been some challenges
along the way for the program.
One was to educate the
public about how wetlands
function ecologically. Many
citizens fail to recognize
that wetlands are valuable
at all, despite the fact that
ecological economists can
actually place a dollar value
on how wetlands act as a
“sponge,” saving communities
from flood and storm
damage. Most recently, the
destruction left in the wake of Hurricane
Katrina would have been much greater
without Louisiana’s wetlands. Surprisingly,
research conducted by the Marillion Group
found that some citizens were not even
aware that Louisiana had wetlands.
RESULTS
Due to APCAW’s persistence and progress,
coastal Louisiana has been re-branded and redesigned
to power the concept of “ eco-cultural
tourism.” The results of the re-branding efforts
are demonstrated through media coverage and
other statistics. Two large-scale media tours
were developed. Each involved politicians,
scientists, environmentalists, and citizens,
and the two together generated more than
2,295,000 media impressions in publications
ranging from National Geographic Traveler
and Audubon Magazine to Birder’s Digest and
the Associated Press. Reaching even more
deeply into the population, billboard impressions
by motorists totaled 64.8 million.
An informal qualitative phone survey of all
America’s Wetland Resource Centers showed
that, by percentage of all visitors to the
kiosks, the top seven centers were averaging
60 percent viewership. Visitation figures are
not available, but 500,000 copies of both the
APCAW brochure and the Birding Trail guide
were originally produced, and each document
is now underway with its second printing.
The initiative also built, as of mid-September
2005, a considerable grassroots network. Fifty
“partner attractions” throughout the region,
encompassing swamp tours, characters, festivals,
museums, parks, plantations, and more,
joined in APCAW’s effort. The group also
claimed 120 “cooperating organizations,” each
of which gets a featured place on the APCAW
Web site and receives America’s Wetland
Campaign materials to distribute, as well as
e-mail alerts regarding the campaign. Overall,
this had the broader effect of expanding
the state’s tourism potential. Ultimately, the
campaigns will continue to help Louisiana’s
wetlands from parochial to national concerns.
CONCLUSIONS
The America’s Wetland project shows that
corporate partnerships can affect change
over a wide geographic scope and reach
millions of people, including prospective
visitors. Illustrating its capacity to do so,
and especially in this post-Enron era, it is
laudable that Shell recognizes the benefit of
tourism as an industry with great capacity
for education as well as positive social and
economic change. In this way, Shell has
provided a model for corporate responsibility
to local communities and to the environment.
It is important to remember that boosting
tourism and habitat preservation need not
be mutually exclusive. APCAW aptly proves
this. The appeal to a particular niche can
actually generate more awareness and more
participation, and everyone stands to benefit.
44

The 2005 hurricanes, tragically enough,
underscored the point of preservation. The
rupture of residential and commercial society,
to say nothing of tourism, has been a painful
result of not heeding the call to preserve. The
APCAW initiative thus made solid strides
in defining and targeting its tourism niche,
and there is every indication that it will do
so again. Indeed, it can help to bring tourists
back to the storm-ravaged region, and it still
labors to do that. According to Marmillion’s
President Valsin A. Marmillion, APCAW is
currently working with the state Department
of Culture, Recreation and Tourism to expand
the American’s Wetland Birding Trail to north
and central Louisiana, as well to continue
promoting its newly accommodated tourism
niche. This niche, “eco-cultural tourism,” will
be “one strategy that leads to the rebirth of
Louisiana and a rebound for the region’s
tourism industry,” says Marmillion.
REFERENCES
WEB SITES: www.americaswetland.com
www.crt.state.la.us
www.louisanatravel.com
www.dnr.state.la.us
www.lacoast.gov
Economic Impact Assessment Louisiana Coastal Area
Ecosystem Restoration Study (summary report)
45

MISSOURI
STREAMS OF CONSCIOUSNESS
CAMPAIGN
OVERVIEW
Tourism ranks as one of the most important
revenue- and job-producing industries in
Missouri. According to the Missouri Division
of Tourism, the industry has had an economic
impact of about $4.8 billion dollars throughout
the last five years. For every $1 Missouri
spent on marketing tourism, $55 were
returned in tourism expenditures. In addition,
there were $8.5 billion in sales from 17 tourism-related
standard industrial classification
(SIC) codes in 2005, up more than 4.3 percent
from 2004. The state’s sales tax revenue derived
from those 17 tourism-related SIC codes
totaled $361 million
in 2005. Tourismrelated
industries
also employ 284,916
Missourians. Another
source of revenue
that is of significance
are the lodging
and entertainment
businesses, including
restaurants, which
brought in approximately
$176 million
in local property
taxes during 2004.
However, with the influx of visitors there
has been some concern about the impact of
tourism on the environment. Given these
concerns, the Missouri Division of Tourism
committed itself to preserving the environment
while it continues to attract tourism
dollars to the state for the benefit of all
residents. Outdoor recreation in and along
Missouri’s rivers is one of the state’s major
tourism assets, and has thus become an object
of environmental concern. In response, the
Missouri Division of Tourism in 2000 created
a campaign called Streams of Consciousness.
This public-private cooperation among the
Missouri Division of Tourism, the Missouri
Department of Conservation, various educators,
the Missouri Broadcasters Association,
and numerous Missouri canoe outfitters
and canoeists has dramatically reduced the
propensity for littering along Missouri’s
rivers and streams. Its most effective approach
has been to distribute 200,000 bags
to canoe liveries statewide. In addition,
the Division of Tourism produced a public
service announcement that draws positive
and productive attention to the project.
This project is a best practice because it
demonstrates the Missouri Division of
Tourism’s commitment to a relatively simple
and cost-effective program that supports
sustainable tourism development. Such a commitment
to sustainable resource use extends
beyond the Division to public-private partners,
and has garnered many interested participants
and contributions. As a result, the Streams
of Consciousness program won a 2003
Odyssey Award from the Travel and Tourism
Industry Association (TIA) of America.
CONTEXT AND HISTORY
Missouri began to recognize tourism as a
valuable economic development strategy
long before the recent emphasis on creating
a sustainable tourism product. Missouri’s
General Assembly had done so back in 1967
with the establishment of the Missouri
Tourism Commission. The tourism industry
itself then went on to create a series of
grassroots programs in the mid 1970s to
promote its business by engaging the people
of Missouri. Its goals were to unite the
state’s tourism industry, to build awareness
of tourism’s impact, and to market the state
as a tourism destination. In the mid-1980s,
46

the industry started Impact 1980s, a program
whose aim was to carry the message about
tourism’s impact on Missouri. It began by
addressing the state legislature, reminding
them of tourism’s importance by highlighting
its contributions to the state’s economy, in
addition to the myriad of indirect benefits that
the state enjoys as a result of tourist activities.
Gradually, Impact 1980s rose to become the
leading advocate for increasing funding for
the state tourism office, and it soon evolved
into broader outreach effort, Tourism T.E.A.M.
(Team Effort Advancing Missouri). Tourism
T.E.A.M. established a speakers’ bureau and an
assortment of special promotions to market
the state’s attractive features. Subsequently,
the government of Missouri created the
Marketing 2000 Committee to address
strategic planning and special issues, such as
sustainable resource use, that would affect
the future of Missouri’s tourism industry.
In 1997, the Missouri Division of Tourism
unveiled a new direction for the state’s
tourism industry by creating a new state
logo and slogan promoting Missouri’s river
heritage. The slogan, “Where the Rivers
Run,” now in its ninth year, continues as a
theme in television and print advertising
campaigns. The overall campaign works to
call attention to the experiences that the state
offers and to bolster tourists’ perception of
Missouri as a scenic destination with cultural,
historical, and family activities. The Streams
of Consciousness campaign illustrates the
state’s commitment to the proverbial golden
goose, while simultaneously promoting and
protecting Missouri’s river system from
the negative unintended consequences of
tourism and economic development.
In 2006, the division launched an advertising
campaign featuring Missouri celebrities, much
like Tennessee’s. The ads also focus on driving
consumer traffic to the VisitMO.com Web site.
5
5
5
Domestic marketing—advertising, trade
shows, sports, meetings and convention
marketing, sports marketing, and special
promotions and events
International efforts—targeting Canada
and the United Kingdom in the area of
trade relations, public relations, product
development, and advertising
Special marketing efforts—researching
niche audiences, such as African-American
tourists, cultural tourists, and tour travel,
including group tour and group leader familiarization
tours, advertising, and markets.
Most of the Division’s activities are in advertising
and promotion. Its promotional tools
include free brochures that are highlighted
by the annual Missouri Vacation Planner and
events calendar. News releases and a monthly
online newsletter, the Tourism Monitor, are
also prepared for news media and others
interested in Missouri tourism. In addition,
the Division has a Web site that includes
destination and attraction information, as
well as news and other promotional material.
Through a paid advertising campaign, the
Division promotes Missouri’s vacation opportunities.
The goal of the ads is to create a
positive image of Missouri and to generate
travel to the state. It also follows up on
requests for further information on the state.
THE STREAMS OF CONSCIOUSNESS CAMPAIGN
Missouri’s spring-fed Ozark Mountains
streams are among the cleanest and most
BEST PRACTICE
According to the Missouri Division of
Tourism, its activities focus on five researchbased
and strategically planned areas:
5 Communications—public and media
relations, photography, and publications
5 Cooperative marketing—matching state
funds with private-sector tourism dollars
for destination promotion
47

pristine in the nation. The Missouri Division
of Tourism recognizes the importance of
keeping these rivers healthy, as they are part
of the state’s sustainable tourism product,
grounded in nature-based and heritage
tourism. Therefore, the Division devised
a three-part plan under the Streams of
Consciousness Campaign, including: (1)
educating existing floaters about stream
preservation and encouraging clean stream
practices; (2) encouraging environmentally
conscious floaters to visit these streams; and
(3) working to educate Missouri’s youth about
the importance of preserving the rivers.
Taking an active approach, the Missouri
Department of Conservation produced and
distributed a special kind of trash bag to support
and encourage positive behavior while
on the river. The bags are open-weave to allow
for water drainage, and are dyed red and bear
the Missouri logo to distinguish them from
any stray trash bags left along the riverbank.
Each holds about eight gallons of trash. Canoe
outfitters hand them out to boaters at the
beginning of float trips, giving a quick reminder
about keeping rivers clean and about
the penalties associated with littering. Along
the river, trash and recycling receptacles are
also made readily accessible at pull out points.
The campaign was initiated in 2000 and it
continues today. The total allocated budget
for the program is $20,000. The Missouri
Division of Tourism provided $15,000 for
the Missouri Department of Conservation to
produce 200,000 bags in-house. At a rate of
only thirteen cents per bag, the Division was
able to pay only a fraction of what estimates
had been to procure the bags from a private
vender. Additional funds went toward the
making of a one-minute television media
schedule contract for a public service announcement
that promotes clean streams
and the use of trash bags. The contract
ensured that Missouri broadcasters would air
the spots at least four times for every spot
purchased, beginning with $5,000 for the
first spot and ultimately costing $20,000.
The following is a list from the Division of
its campaign partners and their contributions:
5
5
5
5
5
Missouri Division of Tourism—designed
bags and produced and scheduled ads
Missouri Department of Conservation—
produced and distributed bags to canoe
outfitters
Missouri canoe outfitters—distributed and
collected trash bags to and from canoeists
Missouri Broadcaster Association—donated
the 4-for-1 media schedule
Missouri educators—engaged elementary
and secondary teachers at Missouri’s firstever
Environmental Literacy Summit, incorporating
the Streams of Consciousness
idea as good practice for students.
With partners like these, Missouri has
developed a best-practice program designed
to keep the rivers’ environments healthy
while attracting visitors. The canoe outfitters
pride themselves on their work to
enhance the state’s environment, and the
Missouri Division of Tourism is proud of
the partnership and its numerous contributions
that collaborate to make a significant
difference in the state’s scenic waterways.
RESULTS
The division reports that more than two
million Missourians participate in canoe and
boating activities. Annually, the state hosts
approximately 3.8 million visitors for outdoor
activities. Thus, the traveling public seems to
have responded positively to Missouri’s image
campaign. The Tourism Division’s Michael
Kaylan estimated that domestic travelers
spent a record $6.2 billion while visiting the
48

state in 2004, up from $5.5 billion in 2003, a
13 percent increase. Furthermore, the perception
that the state is a clean place to visit, live,
and work, has inevitably spilled over into
other industries. The total industrial output
(the value of the goods produced by Missouri
industries) in relation to travel also reached
a record level during 2004, totaling $13.4
billion—up from 12.3 percent from $11.9
billion in 2003. Finally, total state revenues
(including state sales taxes, state income
taxes, and all other state taxes) due to travel
in Missouri totaled $627 million in 2004—up
10.2 percent from $569 million in 2003.
Also according to Kaylen, Missourians are
staying within the state more while on
vacation. Whereas the bulk of Missouri’s
travelers during 2004 were from out-of-state
(65 percent), the percentage of in-state
visitors grew to 35 percent. This was the
third year in a row that Missouri saw an
increase in the percentage of in-state travelers,
following six consecutive years of increases
in the percentage of out-of-state visitors.
CONCLUSIONS
Missouri’s Streams of Consciousness
campaign is regarded as a successful best
practice both inside and outside the state.
Visitors continually compliment the state for
the cleanliness of its rivers and streams. The
program has worked in spite of the challenge
of maintaining a degree of coordination
among multiple partners. Too frequently,
the time that is consumed by so much
synchronization hinders efforts at tourism
marketing and development. However, this
case study demonstrates that even complex
partnerships work well when communication
flows openly and freely among partners.
The Missouri Division of Tourism takes
pride in its role within the network it helped
to create, and it acknowledges that even
the smallest contributions from any of its
collaborators can result in benefits for the
state’s environment and tourism industry.
In sum, this relatively small-scale program is a
best practice because it emphasizes sustaining
statewide tourism assets and it is easily replicated.
The campaign is even more remarkable
when one considers that its success depends
on several players, both large and small, from
visitors and outfitters to state departments
and agencies. Partnership is crucial in the
marketing and development of tourism, and
sharing resources is necessary to make any
program with a limited budget be a success.
REFERENCES
WEB SITES: www.missouritourism.com
www.visitmo.com
Harrill, Rich. 2005. Missouri Division of Tourism. In
Guide to Best Practices in Tourism and Destination
Management. Lansing, MI: Educational Institute of
the American Hotel & Lodging Association.
Kaylen, Michael. 2004. Economic Impact of Missouri’s
Tourism and Travel Industry. Jefferson City: Missouri
Division of Tourism
Missouri Division of Tourism. 2003. Missouri Division
of Tourism Annual Report FY03. Jefferson City:
Missouri Division of Tourism.
Missouri Division of Tourism. 2004. Missouri Division
of Tourism Marketing Plan FY04. Jefferson City:
Missouri Division of Tourism.
Missouri Division of Tourism. 2004. Missouri’s
Funding for Tourism Promotion. Jefferson City:
Missouri Division of Tourism.
Missouri Division of Tourism. 2004. Tourism’s Little Book
2004. Jefferson City: Missouri Division of Tourism.
49

VIRGINIA
HERITAGE TOURISM TOOLKIT
AND SITE MAP
OVERVIEW
It is an understatement to say Virginia is
richly endowed with history and heritage.
Among its alluring features, the state contains
the site of the first English colony; the home
of the first, third, fourth, and fifth U.S. presidents;
the site of the conclusive and victorious
outcome of the American Revolution; the
capital of the Confederacy, and countless other
attractions. Thus, its potential in the tourism
industry is no novel idea to the state. More
surprisingly, the
state has long been
concerned with the
concept of preservation,
and has worked
to preventively and
pro-actively maintain
its terrain. This is
most particularly
the case in the heart
of the state around
Charlottesville.
The Thomas
Jefferson Planning
District Commission
(TJPDC), which
is comprised of
Charlottesville and
the counties of
Albemarle, Fluvanna,
Greene, Louisa and
Nelson, is one of
twenty-one such
composite regions
in Virginia. The
group decided to
formalize acts of
preservation in order
to stimulate further
growth in the industry of heritage tourism,
which can boost economic development
across the region by concurrently fostering
stewardship there. An important part of their
effort involves the Heritage Tourism Toolkit
and an online Site Map, which they created in
2004. The components within the Toolkit are
helpful to a variety of people, including those
less directly involved in tourism, and all who
seek to “use the past as a means of ensuring
the future.” These people include: property
owners potential owners; site operators and
potential operators; local convention and
visitor bureaus; educators; historical societies;
and elected officials. The tools themselves
are a best practice because of the specific,
targeted assistance that was undertaken to
craft them with particular attention to detail,
and because they were fashioned in a way
that makes them very easy to implement.
CONTEXT AND HISTORY
In 1999, eighty local leaders representing
politics, education and business developed
and approved the Thomas Jefferson Venture
Strategic Plan, with the goal of making the
five-county region more competitive. The
Plan identified natural beauty and historic
heritage as regional assets, and it succeeded at
securing a state grant to work to protect them.
In 2001, the TJPDC launched the heritage
tourism endeavor within the framework of
the Venture Plan after seeing the findings
published earlier that year by the Thomas
Jefferson Venture Tourism Project Summary
Report. The report showed that heritage
tourism in the late 1990s had grown at almost
twice the rate of other types of leisure travel.
One of the Venture Plan’s objectives was to
highlight area tourist attractions and lengthen
visitors’ stays. It was often the case that
tourists coming for conferences or to visit
Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello would leave
50

ight away, simply because they were unaware
that there are several other interesting sites
to visit nearby. Addressing a similar situation
of lacking information, the Venture Plan
also sought to inform local property owners
about lesser-known historical sites that they
could help to preserve in their surroundings.
BEST PRACTICE
The February 2002 regional economic development
plan of the TJPDC noted, “Studies
show that visitors to historic sites spend
more time and more dollars than other types
of tourists. Heritage travelers reportedly
account for 25 percent of all tourism dollars
spent by U.S. leisure travelers, even though
they number about 12 percent of leisure
person-trips. They tend to stay longer than
domestic leisure travelers, by a little over one
day longer, and on average spend 40 percent
more money per person than the typical
leisure traveler.” This region’s characteristics
were viewed as attractive to such tourists.
To get people “on the same page” and educate
them about preservation and exhibition,
available sites had to be documented and illustrated
in a user-friendly fashion, and materials
had to be compiled that would prove genuinely
helpful. The gathering and packaging of
materials in a convenient manner was seen
as an innovative way to present information
and to improve upon traditional practices.
The first step involved the identification of
potential sites and events for regional heritage
tourism. It was undertaken by the Institute
for Environmental Negotiation (IEN), at the
University of Virginia. The IEN identified
people in each of the five counties who were
familiar with their locale’s historical, natural,
or cultural heritage and who could act as
representatives of economic development,
tourism, preservation, and environmental concerns.
This resulted in the formation of five
teams that, in spring 2001, developed selection
criteria, held public meetings, and identified
possible themes. Throughout this process, the
teams stressed that the important criteria for
listing sites were that private property not be
included without owner permission and that
inclusion would not damage the historical
integrity of the site. This meant having to exclude
several places. In addition, some county
teams focused more on rural villages, while
others concentrated on outdoor opportunities.
It was agreed that people living in the particular
counties would be the best judges of
what would and would not work for heritage
tourism in the respective communities.
For the online Site Map, much time and
effort was spent on identifying sites, on
verifying site location, public access, and
contact information, and on getting permission
for inclusion. The result, a creation of
the Charlottesville-Albemarle Convention
and Visitors Bureau (CACVB), showcased
89 heritage sites and 87 lodging providers
throughout the five-county area. It also has
a link for www.soveryvirginia.com, which,
according to a TJPDC fact sheet, gets 700,000
visitors annually, and it indicates a place’s
location and gives a description of it, complete
with hours of operation and contact data.
In addition to being available online, the
Site Map appears in print form at many
tourist information areas. It is intended
that the Site Map be updated periodically
and modified otherwise as needed.
The Heritage Tourism Toolkit itself is a
black accordion folder with four removable
files: Heritage Tourism Basics, Legal Tools,
Physical Tools, and Management Tools. Each
file summarizes its contents on the outside
and notes relevant contact information. The
contents are not sketchy generalizations, nor
are they academic treatises or legal briefs;
rather, they comprise documents, fact sheets,
booklets, and other materials of suitable detail
and language for laymen and local officials.
For example, Legal Tools contains the 48-
page booklet, A Layperson’s Guide to Historic
Preservation Law, from the National Trust for
Historic Preservation, as well as a brochure by
the Piedmont Environmental Council titled
“Protecting Your Land with a Conservation
Easement.” Physical Tools, on the other hand,
offers several preservation documents from
the National Park Service covering landscapes,
old buildings, accessibility, and other topics.
The staff of the TJPDC did the writing,
research, and design work for the Toolkit,
and provided oversight for its production.
Challenges to production included expensive
silk-screening and printing, and the fact
that each Toolkit cost about $30 to produce.
Also, gathering all the data for the site
map proved a very time-consuming task.
Finally, there were very general questions
51

that needed to be addressed by the district
partners, such as: What is a historic site?
Should a site be included or not included?
And who decides? Nonetheless, the final
result rendered the effort feasible, manageable,
beneficial, and worthwhile. CACVB
staff and consultants produced the on-line
and print version Site Map. Guidance came
from an advisory committee comprised
of representatives from each locality.
RESULTS
The TJPDC produced 250 copies of the Toolkit
and distributed them to all sites identified
by the IEN process, some 200 total. Toolkits
also went to localities, agencies, and tourism-related
organizations, and the materials
in them were posted on the TJPDC’s Web
site, www.tjpdc.org. Additionally, PDCs in
Southern and Southwestern Virginia have
also been requesting Toolkits, according
to TJPDC executive director Harrison Rue.
These regions are also becoming more active
in developing heritage tourism programs.
Introduced in 2004, the Toolkit and Site Map
project was one of four recipients of the
Gabriella Page Historic Preservation Award
in January 2005. Given annually by the
Association for the Preservation of Virginia
(APVA), the state’s leading historic preservation
organization, the award recognizes
outstanding historic preservation efforts.
The project was cited as a model in partnership
and innovation for other communities
across the state, and for educating the public
about the need to protect these resources.
CONCLUSIONS
The primary indicator of any best practice is
its ability to be replicated. The Toolkit and
Site Map form a model for utility, organization
and design, and the two could easily be
adapted or modified by other regions or states.
They bring together, in a handy, accessible
format, diverse elements related to historic
preservation and heritage tourism, including
architecture, landscaping, location, history,
appeal, and significance, and have relevance
to sectors ranging from property owners to
tourism professionals to travelers themselves.
The case study also shows that heritage
tourism does not happen by accident.
Heritage tourism marketing and development
require careful planning that begins with the
preservation of threatened resources. Many of
the case studies in this book address tourism
marketing, but one must remember that supply-side
tourism planning is the crucial nexus
between historic preservation and attracting
potential visitors to the site or destination.
In the future, the district would like to receive
annual reports from the public to see if individuals
or organizations are using the Toolkit.
The TJPDC also would like to expand and
update the Toolkit, improving it by adding
new tools and technology where appropriate.
Since a central theme for the district and
the project is service, the district desires
also to ensure higher quality in that area as
well. In its own words, the district wants to,
“make everything available on the Web site
for others to use,” and to maximize use of
public dollars, “making it easy for people to
use.” Given these objectives, the TJPDC is a
best-practice organization not only for its
heritage planning Toolkit, but also for its
commitment to public-sector accountability.
REFERENCES
WEB SITE (map): www.soveryvirginia.org
WEB SITE (toolkit): www.tjpdc.org/workforce/tjVenture.asp
Thomas Jefferson Venture Heritage Tourism Project
summary report , July 2001
Thomas Jefferson Planning District Commission
proposed Regional Economic Development Plan,
February 2002
52

SOUTH CAROLINA
HERITAGE CORRIDOR
FARMERS ASSOCIATION
OVERVIEW
The South Carolina National Heritage
Corridor (SCNHC), established by Congress
in 1996, reaches 240 miles across the state,
from Charleston to the Blue Ridge. It covers
14 counties and yields a textured cross-section
of South Carolina’s history, culture,
and landscapes. In January 2003, a group
of farmers within the corridor founded the
Heritage Corridor Farmers Association to
implement a tourism strategy for developing
the agritourism niche market. Its goal was,
and remains to be, to develop the strongest
agritourism farms and partners within the
corridor and to provide enjoyable, familyoriented
educational experiences. From this,
they hoped the public would glean increased
awareness of agriculture and the vital role that
it plays in the state’s past, present, and future.
The organization’s advocacy has spawned
brochures, festivals, farm tours, conferences,
partnerships, and other approaches. From
this, the Farmers Association was able to
expand considerably in a short time. It is a
best practice because it can serve as a model
for others who are interested in participating
in South Carolina’s tourism industry.
CONTEXT AND HISTORY
Agriculture has long played a major role in
South Carolina’s culture and economy. The
cultivation of rice in the 1700s and the subsequent
emergence of cotton illustrate how the
plantation society arose and evolved, with ripple
effects on shipping and trade, finance and
fortunes, and, of course, slavery. Historically,
other important crops included indigo and tobacco.
Today, peaches, strawberries, and other
kinds of produce dominate the state’s agribusiness.
Agritourism, travel associated with
growing and processing plants and livestock,
has become a spin-off industry. It may account
for less than 10 percent of the state’s tourism
volume, but it is reported to be blooming.
As was the case elsewhere in the country,
agritourism in South Carolina originally arose
in an inconsistent, unplanned, mom-and-pop
fashion. It was linked mostly to mom-and-pop
type businesses and coincided with daily or
seasonal activities: residents and out-of-state
travelers occasionally bought produce from
roadside stands; school children visited a local
dairy; county fairs showcased agricultural
products and lifestyles; and so on. There was,
however, an incidence of relative fame for
South Carolina’s agritourism, in 1978. That
year, the people in Gaffney, the peach capital
of the state, tried to create the world’s biggest
peach pie, and the event was highly publicized.
This earned them their proverbial
“15 minutes of fame,” but the industry
itself remained stagnant because
farms were not cross-marketing or
promoting one another, and there
was no systematic way of linking
agritourism locations together.
The notion of promoting
agritourism at higher levels did
not come about until the early
1990s, when Congress created the
South Carolina National Heritage
Corridor (SCNHC) in 1996. It was
one of a select number of such
areas. The heritage area, encompassing
14 counties in four distinct
regions across the state, embraced
places from Charleston to Aiken, to
Greenwood, to Walhalla. The latter
lies in the northern part of the
state, where produce is a bit more
varietous. In addition to the usual
fruits and vegetables, products
there range from honey, berries,
53

and flowers to wine, goat’s milk, and tea. In
January 2003, five farmers in the heritage area
decided to implement a tourism strategy focused
on growing the agritourism niche market.
To them, it seemed a natural thing to do.
BEST PRACTICE
Upon formation, the Heritage Corridor
Farmers Association (HCFA) applied for
and received state grants totaling $40,000.
Its early efforts included developing a
brochure and securing a place on the
SCNHC’s Web site. The brochure they
designed was ultimately distributed to all
South Carolina welcome centers, farmers’
markets, member farms, and other venues.
To establish an identity for itself, the HCFA
produced a logo and product labels. Then, it
began working with state agencies and local
transportation departments to erect signage.
The organization may be characterized by
a variety of deeds. Its sponsored events
include the annual “Falling for Farms Fall
Tour” and the “Nothing Could Be Finer
Spring Tour,” and each member-farm hosts
its own tour on a single Saturday during fall
and spring months. Entrance fees are left to
each farmer’s discretion, and some charge
reduced rates, while some ask for nothing
at all. At these events, visitors can take
hayrides, feed animals, sample products, and
cut Christmas trees, among other activities.
Overall, those who come generally learn a
lot about farm life. The tours benefit the
farmers in that they earn additional revenues
and have an avenue to cross-promote each
other, as well as related events and sites.
In 2005, the HCFA also hosted the 2nd
Annual Farmers Association Conference,
which revealed the relationships that
had developed via the Association. The
South Carolina Agriculture Commissioner
was among the featured speakers at the
conference, and more than 150 farmers
were represented, many from outside the
fourteen-county corridor. Thus, networking
opportunities were bountiful.
The HCFA’s affairs are conducted by a
board of nine directors. The list of officers
includes a chair, vice chair, secretary, and
treasurer, all of which are elected by the
board. Plenary sessions are held once a year.
General membership is open to all agricultural
partners within the federally designated
area, and who meet all the qualifications
and requirements to participate in HCFA.
These qualifications are: farms must have
an educational component; markets must
be permanent; farms must have established
hours of operation; they must comply with all
sanitation codes and regulations applicable
to their operation; there must be adequate
parking; farms must be aesthetically pleasing;
farms involved in selling food commodities
must maintain at least half of the production
on their farm; and farms must comply with
all federal, state, and local guidelines applicable
to their farm. Annual dues are $35.
Perhaps the most innovative aspect of HCFA
is the alliance itself, and the mere fact that
some 40 traditionally independent and
self-sufficient individuals can convene for a
partnership in which all are encouraged to
“think outside the box,” as tourists. Members
come from a wide range of agricultural-related
sites: the Happy Cow Creamery in Pelzer,
the Happy Berry in Six Miles and Callahan
Orchards in Belton to Montmorenci Vineyards
in Aiken, Bee City in Cottageville, and the
nine-generation-old Legre Farm at Johns
Island. Non-agricultural partners include
cultural and historical places, such as the
Pendleton District Agricultural Museum and
the Elloree Heritage Museum and Cultural
Center. The networking, brainstorming,
and sharing among these collaborators can
build confidence among them and convince
them that they can engage neighbors and
visitors, “to experience agriculture as a
community, cultural, and natural way of life.”
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RESULTS
The Association’s marketing efforts helped
boost visitation to some sites, such as
Emerald Farms in Greenwood, which
doubled its attendance at its annual open
house following HCFA marketing. The
various tours generated additional on-site
revenues for members, with each receiving
between $500 and $2,000. Tour visitors came
from neighboring states Georgia and North
Carolina, as well as from throughout South
Carolina, and many of them were curious to
know more about upcoming HCFA events.
The cross-promotion among member-farms led
to them sharing ideas and carrying each other’s
products. For example, Emerald Farm soap is
now sold at Split Creek Farm, and Split Creek
cheese is available at Boone Hall Plantation.
This exchange has led to new and mutually
beneficial relationships. In addition, surrounding
restaurants, shops, and attractions profited
from the increased visitation to nearby farms,
and the general public became more aware of
agriculture’s socioeconomic role in the process.
In 2005, HCFA won the Governor’s Bundy
Award for Rural Tourism Initiatives. SCNHC
Assistant Director Elizabeth Harm reports that
the state Department of Agriculture is now
trying to form a statewide farmers association
in the wake of HCFA’s success. In addition,
other regions inside and outside the state
have requested information on how they too
can establish similar programs, Harm says.
A summer 2005 survey by the Department
of Parks, Recreation, and Tourism staff, in
conjunction with HCFA partners, showed an
average 50 percent increase in visitation to
HCFA member farms since the Association’s
inception. This “equates to an increase in
expenditures at the destinations.” The HCFA,
using data from the survey, intends to create
a schedule for developing marketing, funding
sources, and regulating management in the
coming years. The work plan is expected to be
in place by the end of the third quarter in 2006.
In sum, the Association’s success can
be measured in many ways, from event
and meeting attendance to media
coverage, to publications produced and
promotional activities undertaken.
For all of the Association’s early success, it has
had to overcome several obstacles. For example,
due to the distance between farms, the
Association finds it necessary to rotate meetings
around the state, and this has occasionally
meant that participants had to attend the
meetings via conference calls. Despite challenges
such as that, interest has been so strong
among members that no farm operation has
dropped out because of geographic distance.
Another obstacle was persuading farms to
participate in agritourism and convincing
them that it works. Harm notes that many
farms do not see the true potential of developing
this fast-growing market. “Maintaining
the motivation has been an obstacle, as well,”
she says, adding, “We have to continue to
be a leader in the state agritourism initiative
and be one step ahead at all times.”
CONCLUSIONS
The HCFA is enthusiastic about the efforts of
South Carolinians, both farmers and those in
related industries. By hosting and marketing
tours and festivals, the Association enables
participants to showcase their locales, and this
means increased overall visitation and sales
in those areas. Public appreciation transcends
revenues, touching the very rationale and role
of agriculture, which, despite profound social,
economic, and technological change, remains
a crucial part of our lives. After all, as one
fast-food commercial puts it, “You gotta eat!”
As is the case for any growing organization,
the future of HCFA holds expansion. The
Association would like to extend its membership
beyond the corridor’s 14 counties, and
get ever more farms involved. Agritourism is a
market segment that will continue to expand
in the Southeast in general because of the
region’s excellent agricultural base. However,
tourism marketers and developers must realize
the potential of agritourism as a method of
distinguishing the Southeast from other areas
of the country in which nature-based and
heritage tourism is also promoted. It is not
everywhere that adults and children alike can
learn about our agricultural heritage, select
and taste fresh produce, and sample these
products in the South’s finest restaurants.
REFERENCES
WEB SITE: www.sc-heritagecorridor.org
The Farms of the South Carolina National Heritage
Corridor notebook.
55

TRAILS, ROADS, AND PARKWAYS
57

ALABAMA
ROBERT TRENT JONES
GOLF TRAIL
OVERVIEW
In Alabama, famed golf architect Robert
Trent Jones designed an acclaimed 24-course
public golf trail. His goals were to help expand
tourism, to recruit industry, and to attract
retirees to the state, thereby strengthening
its economy and enhancing the quality of life
there. Funding for the effort came from the
Retirement System of Alabama (RSA), the
state’s public employee pension fund. The
three-year construction effort of the greens,
reportedly the largest golf construction project
in history, cost $165 million. It was also
recently expanded, and now averages 2 to 3
percent in cash returns, with a 115 percent increase
in appraisal value between the years of
1997 and 2005. Because of the trail, Alabama
was named one of the top 10 destinations
in the world for golf by the International
Association of Golf Tour Operators.
The golf trail draws in a mixture of visitors
that includes vacationers, businesspersons and
retirees. Many of them return, and some even
opt to relocate. In this way, the Robert Trent
Jones Golf Trail is a best-practice example of
how a state can use tourism as an economic
development tool to attract other industries.
Uniquely so, the business model here deviates
considerably from the traditional approach to
diversifying a state’s economy. The traditional
method employed focuses on bringing back
industries that are leaving the state in search
of cheaper resources and labor, while treating
tourism as an afterthought in the economic
mix. The golf trail, however, uses tourism as
its primary means of inviting such businesses
to return, and its chief vehicle for doing so
is the media. In fact, the golf trail excels so
brilliantly at positioning itself to utilize the
reach of the media that it was once found to
be the case that an international automaker
knew more about the golf trail than did the
RSA CEO Dr. David Bronner. The former had
never set foot in Alabama, but he knew about
the golf trail from a Microsoft program he
had used that simulates golf games. Clearly,
the trail’s “approach shot” has proven to be
a “hole-in-one” for economic development,
particularly in the area of tourism. Thus,
for its scope, objectives, execution, and
unusual funding mechanism, it is deserving
of its designation as a best practice.
CONTEXT AND HISTORY
In the past 20 years, the game of golf has
exploded in popularity, although the actual
number of golfers has remained the same.
Professional golf matches are a staple of
sports television, and its top stars are as
much household names as are the premier
baseball and football players. Across the
nation, metropolitan areas and their suburbs
boast courses for the expert and duffer, and
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for all skill ranges in between. Indeed, golf is
a $62 billion industry in this country, so some
states have begun to recognize it as part of
their tourism draw. In response, these states
have created “golf trails” that aficionados can
tread on when they are visiting for business
or pleasure. Not surprisingly, lauding the
local links has become par for the course.
About 13 years ago, RSA CEO David Bronner
conceived of golf as a means to diversify the
assets of the state’s public employee pension
fund. He was acting to make the state
stronger, figuring that that would in turn
make the RSA stronger. RSA is reportedly the
14th largest ($29 billion) internally managed
pension fund in the country. Bronner’s notion
was, “Build it and they will come.” However,
he envisioned links instead of diamonds, and
so he did not picture just one outstanding
course in a single location, but rather several
stellar courses from the Appalachian foothills
to the Gulf Coast. To implement this concept,
he oversaw the formation of the Sun Belt
Golf Corporation. For the design, Robert
Trent Jones was persuaded by municipalities,
corporations, private developers, and
the federal government (the Prattsville
course is on U.S. Army Corp of Engineers
property) to come out of semi-retirement.
BEST PRACTICE
An essential part of the plan was to make
these courses accessible. Accordingly, each
course now lies within 15 minutes of a major
highway, such as the I-85, I-65, and I-20.
Furthermore, each is within a two-hour drive
of the course closest to it. There are 24 courses
in total, and they are strategically located in
or near Alabama’s principal municipalities:
Anniston, Auburn, Birmingham, Dothan,
Greenville, Huntsville, Mobile, Muscle
Shoals, and Prattsville (near Montgomery).
Another essential part of the plan was affordability.
Green fees average $50, with the
highest being $67. This sum is reportedly
about half of what comparable courses charge.
The Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail is characterized
by tremendous variety in terms of its
topography and surroundings, number of
holes, and difficulty of courses. There are
even varying tee locations on each hole to
accommodate different skill levels. Each
course ranges in length from 4,500 to 7,700
yards (about 100 miles total), and some
sites have four 9-hole courses, while others
have three 18-hole courses. A few of them
are par-3, but they are designed to be more
challenging than the typical short course.
Uniform signage and clubhouse design help to
unify the concept. Amenities include instruction,
extensive practice areas, and restaurants.
Also, unlike many golf courses, non-playing
companions may ride along on a round.
An unusual aspect of the Alabama golf trail
is the initial funding source that it had: the
public employee retirement pension fund.
A sum of $145 million was paid from it to
allow for construction of the trail. As for
returns, the trail’s courses collectively realize
$3.2 million annual profit after salaries,
maintenance, marketing, and other costs.
Reportedly, the state spends $3 million-plus
per month advertising the trail, although this
cost is technically free advertising since it
is conducted through 57 corporation-owned
television stations and about 100 daily
newspaper media outlets in 22 states.
RESULTS
The network of superbly sculpted links
opened in 1992. Since that time, approximately
half a million golfers have hit the trail,
an estimated 300,000 of them having come
from out-of-state. According to a Business
Alabama article, tourism in the state was a
$1.8 billion industry in 1992. In the following
years, it has grown to $6.8 billion, “driven in
part by golf visitors.” In 2004, the trail reportedly
drew 230,000 visitors from out-of-state
that spent an average of $185 daily. Business
Alabama again noted that the Capitol Hill
course in Prattsville attracts 90,000 to 100,000
golfers annually, as many as 70 percent of
them from outside the state. The New York
Times noted, in September 2002, that the trail
pulled in a $6 million profit the preceding
year, also observing that the trail serves as,
“the centerpiece of a roundly successful effort
to bolster tourism and attract industry to
Alabama over the past decade.” Indeed some
observers feel that the trail helped draw major
automakers, such as Honda and Mercedes, to
set up shop in the state. According to Business
Alabama, the trail provided the RSA with a
return-on-investment in 2003 of 14 percent.
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60
There’s little doubt that Alabama’s reputation as
a golf paradise has boomed. Golf Magazine said
the state, “has the American golfer’s equivalent
to Disney World,” and The New York Times
called the trail, “some of the best public golf
on earth.” Over the years, the trail has hosted
several golfing events,
such as the Nike
Tour Championship
(1997–99) and the
LPGA Tournament of
Champions (2002–03).
In light of its
powerful appeal, the
trail has undergone
expansion. It
originally consisted
of 378 holes at eight
locations, and now
has 432 holes at 10
different sites. Also,
to serve the influx of
golfers, several hotels
have been built or restored.
These include
the Shoals and the
Grand Hotel, both
of which illustrate
the economic ripple
effect that the trail
has had on tourismrelated
industries.
CONCLUSIONS
While evaluating this case study as a best
practice, an immediate question that comes
to mind regards replication. Bronner himself
admits that his vision was very difficult
to achieve, and that any state or organization
even contemplating such a project
requires sufficient media firepower. In the
trail’s case, the Sun Belt Golf Corporation
owns these outlets, and they are paid for
out of the retirement system. At the very
least, Bronner says, one would need to
have $3 million or $4 million per month in
marketing funds to attract tourists before
a single course would be worth building.
In addition, other states do not have the
same rolling topography and climate that
Alabama has. These two particular factors
alone were what allowed the developers
to build courses that appeal to golfers of
varying degrees of skill for year-round use.
Taking a popular pastime and making it
even more trendy may seem like an obvious
strategy, but the tourism landscape is littered
with fads and fancies that have overworked
a trend or concept, or that did not meet
high enough standards to sustain the effort.
Alabama’s golf trail, however, now well into
its second decade, is clearly an example of
“doing it right.” But one might ask whether
there are any obstacles to overcome other than
bunkers, traps, and trees—and the answer to
that is yes. Destinations must have the right
climate, topography, and major transportation
corridors. More than anything though,
developers must have a vision in which the
pieces (individual courses) are greater than
the sum of their parts, and they must have the
dedication—and dollars—to follow through
with the implementation of such a vision.
The lesson to be learned from the golf trail,
in terms of both large and small economic
development, is that leisure and tourism
ought to be cultivated before one can expect
industry to flourish. By creating and sustaining
a sense of place and a quality of life, one
can then use leisure and tourism as assets to
attract industries—particularly those that
are fleeing in search of greener financial
pastures. It is in large part due to the golf
trail that Alabama has become more than a
destination; it is now seen worldwide as a
desirable place to live and work. It may not be
suitable for every state in the country, but the
Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail certainly leads
the way in tourism as an economic development
strategy among the Southern states.
The golf trail made bold strokes in obtaining
its initial funding, and it employed a true
master for design. Its risks were subsequently
justified though, when it reached target
markets and enjoyed great success. As for
its future, prospects seem excellent, as
golfing shows no signs of diminishing and
new generations keep teeing up—fore!
REFERENCES
WEB SITE: www.rftjgolf.com
Business Alabama, Feb. 2005, pgs. 21–23
The New York Times, Sept. 13, 2002 (article photocopy
provided by RTJGT)

KENTUCKY
THE BOURBON TRAIL
OVERVIEW
The Kentucky Distillers Association,
established in 1880, is a trade association
charged with many responsibilities. It exists
to keep the distillery community informed
on matters of interest to the industry, to act
on behalf of the distillery industry, to engage
in press relations and external communications,
to promote the sales of Kentucky
bourbon whiskey, to maintain the distilling
industry’s compliance with the best traditions
of the industry, and to foster industry
compliance with all state and federal laws.
A major function of the Association is
the marketing and development of the
Kentucky Bourbon Trail, a name first used
on May 25, 1999, and in continuous use
since that date. Seven distilleries were the
original participants. Currently, the six
participating trail members are Buffalo
Trace, Four Roses, Heaven Hill, Jim Beam,
Maker’s Mark, and Wild Turkey. The trail
is composed of tours of these distillery
sites for the economic benefit of not only
the individual distilleries, but also nearby
communities and the state of Kentucky.
The trail is a best practice because it taps
into trails, routes and byways as a popular
and efficient way of linking destinations.
However, the Bourbon Trail is unique in
that it offers something that nature and
heritage do not. Bourbon is America’s only
native spirit, and over 95 percent of the
world’s bourbon is distilled in Kentucky.
The Bourbon Trail is an experience deeply
rooted in the American beverage tradition
sought by travelers around the world. The
trail intersects visitor preoccupations with
food and travel, American history and
geography, and celebration and adventure.
CONTEXT AND HISTORY
Kentucky bourbon and Tennessee whiskey
are often called the original American spirits,
their origins dating back to the first European
settlements in the 17th century. According
to the Association, bourbon was, at one time,
routinely shipped in a barrel, and one bottle
was included for refilling. Frequently, this
bottle was diluted or replaced with inferior
brands. Because of this inconsistency, doctors
prescribing bourbon for medicinal purposes
could not rely on the quality and therefore
could not prescribe it with confidence. To
remedy this problem, a Louisville druggist,
George Garvin Brown, became the
first to sell whiskey in sealed bottles.
In 1897, Congress established national
standards for making and aging bourbon
with the Bottled in Bond
Act. Today, much of the
method of making bourbon
is mandated by federal law
to ensure proper product
labeling. Bourbon must be
made with a minimum of
51 percent corn extracts and
be aged in new, white oak
barrels that are charred from
the inside. Aging must take
place for a minimum of two
years (a rarity, according
to the Association, as most
bourbon is aged four to
eight years). Furthermore,
if Kentucky Bourbon is
aged for any amount of
time less than four years,
the labeling on the bottle
must include the age.
Until a decade ago, state
liquor laws prohibited
distilleries from engaging
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in tourist-friendly activities, such as selling
bourbon to visitors or even offering them
samples. The Association and its members
convinced the Kentucky General Assembly
that the historic distilleries, nestled among the
state’s rolling countryside, could attract thousands
of new visitors
each year. Once they
did so, it was agreed
that changes in the
law were needed.
In 1996, the General
Assembly enacted
legislation authorizing
any licensed
Kentucky distiller
with a gift shop or
other retail outlet on
its premises to obtain
a special liquor
license for souvenir
retailers. Prior to
establishing that law,
distillers had been
permitted to sell
their products exclusively
to wholesalers,
and only licensed
liquor stores could
sell directly to the
consumers. However,
once it was argued
that selling distillery
goods was quintessential
to attracting
tourists to the
Bourbon Trail, modifications
in the existing liquor code became
feasible. The sale of souvenir packages, however,
was still limited, to one liter per visitor
per day. That quantity was then increased, in
1998 by the General Assembly, to three liters.
Another milestone in enhancing the trail’s
tourist appeal came about in 2000, when the
General Assembly relaxed the liquor code
further to allow distillers with a souvenir
retail liquor license to obtain a sampling
license. This enactment resulted in Kentucky
visitors being able to enjoy Kentucky bourbon
on-site at the end of a distillery tour. Together,
the two landmark laws were what enabled
the Kentucky Bourbon Trail to become the
major tourism attraction that it is today.
BEST PRACTICE
In visiting the distilleries along the
trail, visitors can watch the art of
bourbon-making being practiced much
as it was 200 years ago. Components
of the Bourbon Trail are as follows:
5 Free guided tours that are offered almost
daily
5 Group and motor coach parking are available
at most locations
5 Gift shops that offer items related to the
Kentucky Bourbon Trail
5 Tours of Historic Central Kentucky, including
Frankfort, the site of the Kentucky
state capitol, and many well known horse
farms of Bluegrass Country. The Bardstown
route features My Old Kentucky Home
State Park and the Oscar Getz Museum
of Whiskey History. Both of these small,
early Kentucky cities have preserved many
historic homes and buildings, in addition
to nearby distilleries, on the Kentucky
Bourbon Trail
5 The Kentucky Bourbon Festival, organized
in Bardstown, is an annual celebration held
the third weekend of September. A grand
gala caps a week of special bourbon events
and tastings.
The individual distilleries are described
in detail on the Association’s Web site,
www.kybourbon.com.
HEAVEN HILL DISTILLERIES BOURBON
HERITAGE CENTER
The traditions of making fine bourbon
and whiskey can be seen first-hand at the
Heaven Hill Distillery. Founded in Bardstown
by the five Shapira brothers shortly after
Prohibition, Heaven Hill has become the
largest family-owned producer and marketer
of distilled spirits. It is famous for being a
distiller of bourbons such as Evan Williams,
Elijah Craig, and Old Fitzgerald. It is also
home to the world’s second largest holdings
of aged Kentucky whiskey, and possesses
more than 16 percent of the world’s supply.
Heaven Hill’s new state-of-the-art Bourbon
Heritage Center was designed to provide
visitors with an educational and entertaining
experience with the history of what was designated
“America’s Native Spirit” in a 1964 act of
Congress. The Bourbon Heritage Center features
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high-tech interactive exhibits on the history
and process of making bourbon. It also has
an orientation theater, a barrel-shaped tasting
room, and a gift shop. At the Bourbon Heritage
Center, visitors can enjoy the “Portrait of Heaven
Hill” movie and learn about the romance and
lore of bourbon. Official Bourbon Hosts lead
visitors on a guided tasting of Heaven Hill’s
fine bourbons, and visitors can create their own
personalized bottle to take home as a keepsake.
JIM BEAM
Jim Beam is the world’s largest bourbon
distiller. On its tour, visitors start out at the
Outpost Theater, where they view the film
“First Family of Bourbon” to learn more about
the Beam family’s rise and influence as top
producer in the world. This short picture’s
highlight is a feature on the legendary Booker
Noe, and his son Fred, a seventh-generation
Beam family member. Visitors to the
distillery can also stroll around the grounds
and visit the T. Jeremiah Beam home, where
they may sample a selection of hand-crafted,
small-batch bourbons. Out on his porch,
guests can gaze at a life-sized memorial to
Booker and his beloved Jack Russell Terrier.
MAKER’S MARK DISTILLERY
The distinctive brown paint and red shutters
of this distillery’s historic wood-framed
buildings greet visitors as they arrive on the
banks of Hardin’s Creek near the town of
Loretto. Established in 1805 as a gristmill
and distillery, it operates on its original site
as the nation’s oldest working distillery. As
such, it has aptly been named a National
Historic Landmark. Visitors can step back in
time as they stroll through the buildings and
across the grounds on a guided tour. Since
Maker’s Mark is one of Kentucky’s smallest
distilleries, it crafts bourbon in batches of
less than 19 barrels. The polished copper
still adds a bright contrast to the aging rustic
wood of the still house. Maker’s Mark proudly
proclaims that its bourbon is one hundred
percent handmade. Every step receives
personal attention, from selecting grains to
hand-dipping the bottles in red wax. Visitors
themselves even get to hand-dip their very
own bottle of Maker’s Mark in warm red wax
when they make a purchase in the gift shop.
FOUR ROSES
This distillery is noted for its Spanish mission-style
architecture. Its visitors are greeted
at a welcome center, where they may begin
a tour of the facility. On this tour, they are
told in precious detail about the history of
Kentucky bourbon and Four Roses, which
date back to the 1860s. Each year, the distillery
makes about ten bourbon flavors, which are
featured in a gift shop on the premises.
BUFFALO TRACE
Legendary explorers, pioneers, and early
settlers followed ancient paths left by buffalo
herds to lead them westward through rugged
wilderness toward new lands and adventures.
Today, the heritage of the buffalo and the
pioneering spirit of early Americans are found
at the Buffalo Trace Distillery. Located north
of Frankfort, Buffalo Trace is positioned on a
site that was settled by surveyors. It lies at the
point of the Kentucky River that intersects
another trail, this one known throughout
history as the Great Buffalo Trace. Distillery
visitors can see the warehouses that are used
for aging whiskey, and can observe the original
procedure for producing single-barrel bourbon.
They can also walk along Kentucky’s rolling
hills, while enjoying a taste of Buffalo Trace
bourbon, and take a trip to the gift shop.
WILD TURKEY
This distillery features bourbon that has been
distilled on Wild Turkey Hill for generations.
On a site situated on the crest of a hill that
overlooks the Kentucky River, the Wild
Turkey Distillery possesses an outward
appearance that is as simple and unadorned
as the traditional distilling methods that are
used inside. The legendary “Master Distiller”
Jimmy Russell watches carefully over this
time-honored process, and visitors can too.
They follow the production process all the
way from grain delivery to bottling. As they
pass the unique 40-foot-high column still,
they can watch new bourbon being poured
into hand-crafted oak barrels, and then stroll
through the distillery’s timber warehouses.
RESULTS
Public information about the Kentucky
Bourbon Trail is disseminated through a
brochure that is available at travel centers, local
visitor bureaus, hotels, and other lodgings.
Information may also be found online at the
website, www.kybourbon.com. One further
source is the state of Kentucky highway
signage program, which also makes mention
of the trail.
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64
According to the Kentucky Distillers
Association, Bourbon Trail tourism has grown
to welcome 450,000 visitors annually since its
inception in 1999. The trail attracts convention
attendees, families, bus tour groups, and
other travelers interested in the six distilleries
that punctuate the trail. It is fair to say that
some, maybe many, Kentucky tourists come to
visit the trail, but that other business enterprises
in the state reap the benefits as well.
The Association also touts a wide-ranging profile
of visitors. According to their statistics, 30
percent of visitors are Kentuckians, 65 percent
are from other states, and five percent are
international tourists. Last year, the Kentucky
Bourbon Festival, an activity hosted by the
Association, recorded visitors coming from
36 states and 15 countries. The next step in
analyzing this data is for the group to measure
the economic impact of these visitors.
For the Kentucky Distillers Association, the
trail has been its most prominent project
and achievement to date. As its new venture,
the Association is considering having the
distilleries’ sites work together as a metadestination
that celebrates the history of
bourbon as a significant achievement itself.
The Association is also particularly proud of
having influenced state tourism policy by
working with such groups as the Kentucky
Transportation Cabinet and the Tourism
Cabinet. In its partnerships with those organizations,
a great deal of publicity was generated for
all of the major roads that lead to the Bourbon
Trail. Extensive coordination of media exposure
further resulted in the publication of articles
that introduced even more travelers to the lure
of the trail. Ultimately, the Association was
successful at leading the entire state of Kentucky
to acknowledge the value of the Bourbon Trail in
regard to its significance as a major contributor
to the state’s economic well being. Even better,
however, it also gained national recognition
through mentions of the trail in news outlets
ranging from The New York Times to Southwest
Airlines’ in-flight magazine, and through feature
spots in various state and regional publications.
Developing the trail has not been without
its challenges. For example, the first step for
the Association was to foster a cooperative
spirit among the distilleries. This meant having
to devise an alluring enough incentive to
present to each distillery owner that would
convince him or her to set aside the desire to
compete with—rather than work with—other
bourbon retailers. However, once the distilleries
understood the importance of the trail
concept, they saw the value of teaming up to
boost revenues for the entire industry, and to
benefit the greater state economy. Ed O’Daniel,
the director of the Association, quipped, “In
our case, the ‘spirit’ part comes natural!”
After the cooperative spirit had taken hold,
the Association busied itself with sustaining
it, and this too was a daunting task.
The evidence of its success, however, bears
testimony to the possibility of getting local
players to work together. Such a lesson can
be helpful to any organization of community
that is investing in a trail, route or byway. The
same may also be said for the outcome of the
Association’s efforts to lobby consistently for
state funding, while faced with competition
for state dollars from countless other tourism
attractions. In the end, the Association won
the steadfast support of the trail from both
state and local officials, and it now has a much
easier time requesting financial support.
CONCLUSIONS
The Kentucky Bourbon Trail is not only a best
practice example of both cooperation and coordination,
but also of tourism policy. In its struggle
to come into existence, it even accomplished
legislative reform by convincing the General
Assembly to reconsider laws governing the sale,
consumption, and distribution of bourbon in the
modern era. As a result of such thorough efforts,
a once fledgling tourist attraction grew into
a prosperous industry, and it brought several
other industries along with it in its ascent.
In the future, the Association will be planning
several new programs for the trail, creating
new brochures and establishing information
centers in other states. Ohio and Indiana are
ideal places for branching out marketing efforts
since both have major highway routes that pass
through bourbon country. The Association also
expects to create a stand-alone Web site for
the Bourbon Trail, since it currently may only
be found on the Web site of the Association.
This, they anticipate, will create even more
marketing and sales opportunities for the trail.
REFERENCES
WEB SITE: www.kybourbon.com

FLORIDA
CUBAN HERITAGE TRAIL
OVERVIEW
Cuban-Americans have played a significant
role in Florida’s development since the
days of Spanish exploration. Their impact
on the state is reflected in all sorts of ways,
ranging from influences in architecture
and the arts to politics and social movements.
In 1994, the Florida legislature
funded the Cuban Heritage Trail to increase
awareness of the connections between
Florida and Cuba in the state’s history.
The Cuban Heritage Trail is a best practice
case study because it literally represents
“the best” of several trends in travel and
tourism. Among its praiseworthy features,
it spreads economic benefits to many communities
across Florida by using existing
trails, routes and byways to boost tourism
in the state. These routes appeal to retired
baby-boomers in particular, who have more
leisure time—and often more discretionary
income—to just hit the road. Their newly
found free-time enables and encourages
them to reflect on their cultural ancestry,
and for many Floridians, this includes Cuban
roots. For others, there is ample opportunity
to learn about a culture that shaped the
communities in which they live or travel,
regardless of their individual ethnic heritage.
CONTEXT AND HISTORY
Florida formally launched its historic preservation
program in 1967, with the passage
of the Florida Archives and History Act,
to be implemented and overseen by the
Florida Department of State. In 2000,
when the Secretary of State ceased to be
a cabinet-level position, the program was
reassigned to the Office of Cultural and
Historic Programs (OCHP). To this day, that
bureau remains responsible for promoting
the history, archaeology, museums, arts, and
folk culture of Florida, which includes the
Cuban Heritage Trail. Within the OCHP, there
is a director of the Division of Historical
Resources. This functionary serves both as
Florida State’s Historic Preservation Officer
and as a liaison between the state office and
the national preservation program that is
conducted by the National Park Service. The
Division itself is headquartered in the state
capital of Tallahassee, and there are three
regional branch offices in Fort Lauderdale,
St. Augustine, and Tampa. Its Bureau of
Historic Preservation (BHP) conducts
research to identify, evaluate, and interpret
Florida’s historic and cultural resources.
In fall 2005, the BHP was divided into three
sections. These were: (1) Compliance and
Review, including the Florida Master Site
File; (2) Preservation Services, including
the Architectural Preservation Services, the
Florida Main Street Program, the Grantsin-Aid
Program, and the National Register/
National Historic Landmark Program (many
of the landmarks are included along Cuban
Heritage Trail); and (3) Statewide Education,
including publications,
historical
markers, heritage
tourism, the Great
Floridians program,
and the Florida
Folklife Program.
The staff of the
Statewide Education
office coordinates
the production,
marketing, and
distribution of the
Division of Historic
Resources publications.
Examples
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of these include: Florida History & the Arts
Magazine; Florida Preservation News; Florida
Black, Cuban, Women’s, Jewish, and World War
II Heritage Trails; and the federally-mandated
statewide historic preservation plan, Planning
for the Past: Preserving Florida’s Heritage. The
last one is a source
of information for
the administration
and management
of many of Florida’s
historical and
cultural resources.
BEST PRACTICE
The statewide plan
goes into detail about
the state’s division of
labor regarding trails
and other historical
assets. In 2001, the
Florida Legislature
established the
Florida Historical
Commission to advise and assist the Division
of Historical Resources in carrying out the
latter’s programs and responsibilities. Seven
members of the commission are appointed by
the governor, in consultation with the secretary
of state, two are chosen by the president
of the Florida Senate, and two by the speaker
of the Florida House of Representatives.
While the Office of Cultural and Historic
Preservation manages the assets, attractions
such as the Cuban Heritage Trail are marketed
as heritage tourism assets by VISIT FLORIDA.
This non-profit, public-private partnership is
responsible for the state’s tourism marketing
efforts. In accordance with the state plan,
VISIT FLORIDA, together with the Florida
Department of State, launched “Culturally
Florida” in 2001. This was a statewide
campaign to showcase the state’s historic
and cultural travel options. Three years later,
VISIT FLORIDA, again in partnership with
the Department of State, created and launched
the next installment of the generation of
highly successful “Culturally Florida” campaign.
Dubbed “Florida’s Downtowns & Small
Towns,” this program highlighted Florida’s historic
district and commented on not only its
“Main Street,” but also on many other towns
that one encounters along the Cuban Heritage
Trail. These locales provide the authenticity
and uniqueness that visitors increasingly
are seeking in their vacation experiences.
The state’s plan also provides instructions
for Visit Florida’s Cultural Heritage Tourism
Committee of the New Product Development
Council. Its task is to continue to guide new
and existing heritage tourism programs.
Ongoing marketing initiatives, such as
expanded history and cultural sections of
VISIT FLORIDA’s Web site, along with
targeted electronic magazines and print
publications, will also work to deepen the
Florida vacation experience so that it includes
the state’s history and diverse heritage.
THE CUBAN HERITAGE TRAIL
The Cuban Heritage trail begins in Tampa.
As Florida Cuban Heritage Trail tells it, (in
both English and Spanish versions), Cuba
Governor Hernando de Soto sailed into Tampa
Bay in 1539 and established a connection
between Cuba and Florida. Then, during the
late 1800s, Vincente Martinez Ybor brought
thousands of cigar workers to the area.
Tampa was linked to the rest of Florida when
Henry B. Plant built a new railroad. Today,
descendents of these early settlers are secondand
third-generation Cuban-Americans.
Visitors embarking on the heritage trail start
their trip in Ybor City, a National Historic
Landmark District in Tampa. Ybor City bears
the name of its founder, and dates back to
1886, when it was created as a company town
for those who worked in Ybor’s cigar factory.
By the turn of the century, it already had
a population of 10,000 Cubans, Spaniards,
Germans, and Italians and was renowned as
the “Cigar Capital of the World.” In addition
to Ybor’s, it was also home to numerous other
cigar factories, and had many restaurants,
social clubs, stores, homes, and hotels.
Today, Ybor contains nearly 1,000 historic
sites in all that span across a 60-acre area.
The trail sites and sights are described in
detail in the Division of Historical Resource’s
publication Florida Cuban Heritage Trail and on
VISIT FLORIDA’s Web site, www.visitflorida.
com/experience/tours/theme/cuban.php.
THE YBOR CITY STATE MUSEUM (TAMPA)
This museum is located in the historic
Ferlita Bakery. Between 1923 and 1973, the
Italian bread shop used to supply Ybor
66

City with its fresh bread each day. Today, it
contains a collection of cigar makers’ tools,
and a series of historical exhibits that are
related to Jose Marti, the Cuban Revolutionary
Party and the Spanish-American War.
THE CIGAR MAKER’S HOUSE MUSEUM (TAMPA)
This museum is comprised of six wooden
houses, called “casitas.” The original neighborhood
was built in the early 1890s, and was
moved to Tampa in the mid-1980s. Only one
of the casitas serves as an actual museum.
THE COLUMBIA RESTAURANT (TAMPA)
This world-renowned Columbian restaurant
is the state’s oldest, and the nation’s largest,
Spanish restaurant. In 1905, Cuban immigrant
Casimiro Hernandez, Sr. opened the place
as a small corner café; today, the restaurant
can seat more than 1,600. The restaurant
is famous for its Spanish cuisine, dinner
shows, and Old-World architectural charm.
HENRY B. PLANT MUSEUM (TAMPA)
This museum houses the historic Tampa Bay
Hotel, with its Moorish Revival architecture
capped by minarets. It was built in 1891 by
railroad magnate Henry B. Plant, the man responsible
for connecting Tampa with the rest
of the state. The museum contains a Spanish-
American War room that features many artifacts
from the Cuban War for Independence.
HISTORICAL MUSEUM OF SOUTHERN FLORIDA
(MIAMI)
This museum has year-round exhibits relating to
Cuban history and culture. One of the museum’s
exhibits, “Tropical Dreams,” contains a Cuban
raft, a model of the treasure galleon Nuestra
Señora de Atocha, and a life-sized reproduction
of a sentry tower from Cuba’s Castillo de San
Marcos in St. Augustine. The museum also
schedules two-to-three hour biking and walking
tours through the Little Havana neighborhood
and other parts of the city, year round.
LITTLE HAVANA (MIAMI)
Little Havana covers a 3.3-square-mile area,
west of downtown Miami. The heart of Little
Havana is Calle Ocho, a world-renowned
stretch of Latin shops and restaurants lining
8th Street, the English translation of “Calle
Ocho.” Here, tourists find exotic fruit stands,
Cuban bakeries, and casual sidewalk cafes
where they can sample Cuban cuisine. They
also can watch craftsmen making traditional
hand-rolled cigars. Each March, this area is
the site of a massive weeklong street festival
known as Calle Ocho Carnival Miami.
CUBAN MEMORIAL BOULEVARD (MIAMI)
This boulevard is lined with monuments
that commemorate the heroes who fought in
the 1890s struggle for Cuban independence.
Memorials here include: the Eternal Torch,
which honors the 2506th Brigade; statues of
Nestor Izquierdo, General Antonio Maceo,
and the Virgin Mary; and a bronze map
of Cuba. The map was dedicated to the
“Ideals of people who will never forget the
pledge of making their fatherland free.”
EVANGELIZATION PLAZA (MIAMI)
This Spanish-style plaza commemorates
the early Jesuit missionaries and Spanish
explorers who came to evangelize and
convert the native Tesquestas Indians to
Christianity in the 16th century. Many of
the priests and explorers lived in Cuba
before coming to Florida. In the plaza are
five monuments that memorialize the
martyrs and heroes of those early missions.
OUR LADY OF CHARITY SHRINE (MIAMI)
The shrine, funded and built by Cuban
refugees in 1966, honors Cuba’s patroness.
Inside it is a breathtaking mural by Teok
Carrasco that portrays the history of the
Catholic Church in Cuba. The statue of the
Virgin Mary is also there, brought from
Cuba in 1961. Behind the shrine, facing
Biscayne Bay, there are busts of the Cuban
patriots Jose Marti and Father Felix Varela.
67

WOODLAWN CEMETERY (MIAMI)
This cemetery features a tribute to the
“Unknown Cuban Freedom Fighter” who
died in the 1963 Bay of Pigs invasion.
Exiled Cuban presidents Gerardo Machado
and Carlos Prio Socarras are among
those buried in Woodlawn Cemetery.
RESULTS
Although it would be financially unfeasible
to measure the economic impact of all of
the state’s routes, trails, and scenic byways,
the state has attempted to assess the overall
impact of heritage tourism, under which
these important assets fall. According to a
recent report issued jointly by the University
of Florida’s Levine College of Law, the Center
for Governmental Responsibility, and Rutgers
University’s Center for Urban Policy Research
(2003), heritage tourism contributed an
estimated $3.721 billion in expenditures in
Florida in 2000. For the state, this meant:
5 107,607 jobs
5 $2.314 billion in income
5 $4.552 billion in state gross product
5 $1.003 billion in taxes, including,
0$583 million in state and local taxes
0$4.042 billion in in-state wealth creation.
It is important to remember that these
contributions are separate from other possible
financial input from the trail and similar assets.
The dollars accounted for may come from the
historic restoration of structures along heritage
trails, from main street programs through
which many trails pass, or from attractions
built to take advantage of trail traffic. Also,
property values are sometimes
higher in proximity
to protected areas.
that yields substantial economic proceeds.
Moreover, such a trail is forward-looking in
that it builds a bridge between the Cuban-
Americans in this country and those Cubans
who still live under a communist regime back
home. In summary, the trail celebrates the
promise of freedom and the future rebuilding
of an island nation through economic development
as embodied in travel and tourism.
REFERENCES
WEB SITES: www.dhr.dos.state.fl.us
www.flausa.com
Center for Governmental Responsibility, University
of Florida Levin College of Law and Center for Urban
Policy, Rutgers University. 2003. Economic Impacts
of Historic Preservation in Florida. Tallahassee, FL:
Division of Historic Resources.
Florida Department of State, Division of Historical
Resources. 2005. Draft. Planning for the Past:
Preserving Florida’s Heritage: Comprehensive Historic
Preservation Plan for Florida. Tallahassee, FL: Division
of Historical Resources.
Florida Department of State, Florida Division of
Historical Resources. Undated. Florida Cuban Heritage
Trail. Tallahassee, FL: Division of Historical Resources.
CONCLUSIONS
The Cuban Heritage
Trail celebrates the
best in Cuban society
and displays Cubans’
cultural contributions
for tourists to enjoy
and appreciate. The
Cuban Heritage Trail
is but one small part
of a much larger state
heritage tourism product
68

MARYLAND
THE HISTORIC NATIONAL ROAD
OVERVIEW
The Historic National Road is often referred
to as the “Road that Built the Nation.” It
is Maryland’s only federally designated
All-American Road Byway. It spans 170
miles into Maryland, from Baltimore’s Inner
Harbor, across the Piedmont, and through
the Allegheny Mountains to the Mason and
Dixon Line. Because of impending threats
from urban overdevelopment and sprawl,
the Maryland Office of Tourism sought to
advocate for the protection, preservation,
enhancement, promotion, and sustainability
of the Historic National Road. It was joined
in its call by many other organizations, a
45-member citizens’ advocacy group, and
countless local officials This was done
to ensure that the first federally funded
road in America, along with its story and
its reputation as America’s Main Street,
could be shared for generations to come.
The Historic National Road is a best practice
case study because it represents a grassroots
effort to develop a scenic byway route not
only for protection and preservation, but also
for the purposes of tourism development.
The Historic National Road Association
and the local preservation community have
succeeded in tapping into many factors that
contribute to a renewed interest in America’s
“blue highways” and historic routes. These
include: (1) global economics favoring
tourism as a form of economic development
as traditional industries locate elsewhere;
(2) the affluence of the baby-boomers,
purchasing land and building homes beyond
the suburbs; and (3) the maturing of the
environmental movement and of multiple
historic preservation movements, emphasizing
both sense of place and quality of life.
The effort to revitalize the road was undertaken
for several reasons. First, economic
developers perceived of the opportunities to
bring more revenues into the state without
incurring substantial capital costs. Second,
tourism professionals saw it as an opportunity
to market an existing asset that could bring
immediate benefits to numerous communities.
Finally, urban planners viewed it as
a natural barrier that would stint urban
sprawl. However, without local citizens
being interested in preserving the past while
improving their own quality of life, it would
have been difficult to restore the road to its
current status as the “All-American Road.”
CONTEXT AND HISTORY
Scenic byways are becoming a major form of
tourism development, especially given their
popularity among travelers and communities
alike. For travelers, byways are preferable for
a number of reasons. One reason is that they
offer an alternative to the nation’s monotonous
and dangerous highways. In a post-9/11
era, Americans have a heightened sense of
69

vulnerability, and travelers are particularly appreciative
of the perceived safety and familyoriented
nature that comes in taking byways.
Another reason travelers opt to take byways
is that they see them as a way of extending
their vacation experience. While en route
between target destinations, tourists delight
in stopping at local attractions, which are
also more easily accessible from byways.
Another draw is the byway’s value as an
instrument of history. This can mean using
them to rediscover one’s roots by paying a
visit to long-lost hometowns or ancestral
grounds, or it can be a way of retracting
historic routes and visiting historic places.
Whether travelers are in search of reliving
their own nostalgic memories or they desire
to simply immerse themselves in the rural
landscapes of yesteryear, byways grant them
the privilege of unbridled indulgence. Along
that same line of thinking, there are those
travelers whose motive is pure wanderlust.
These are the people who derive pleasure
from just hitting the open road, with no set
destination in mind, armed only with curious
minds and adventurous spirits. Byways, it
appears, cater to many kinds of travelers.
According to a 2001 report commissioned by
the National Scenic Byways Program, most
American travelers (76 percent) prefer the
more interesting route to the quickest. Fiftyseven
percent of all travelers in the nation are
very likely to take a scenic or historic drive
to their destination,
and 14 percent often
take off driving with
no set destination.
Overall, 14 percent
of U.S. travelers
are heavy users of
byways, and only 16
percent are non-users.
With this potential
market, many communities
have begun
to promote their
surrounding byways
and routes, differing
only on the amount
they choose to invest
in their respective
economic development
strategies.
According to the Maryland Office of Tourism
Development, the collaboration for the
preservation, protection, and heritage tourism
development of the Historic National Road
began with a highly creative partnership
among five Maryland state agencies. These
were: the Office of Tourism Development, the
Department of Planning, Maryland Historic
Trust, the Department of Natural Resources,
and the State Highway Administration.
Collectively, these five agencies applied for
and received $351,000 for corridor management
planning from the Federal Highway
Administration’s National Scenic Byway
Program. Then, each agency individually
matched the grant award with $20,000. The
agencies’ next step was to turn to Maryland’s
historic road constituency to solicit help in
developing the plan. After that, the plan development
process lasted 18 months, involving
public meetings with stakeholders along the
byway. Upon completion of the plan, the
non-profit organization Maryland National
Road Association was established, and subcommittees
were formed to focus on preservation,
development, marketing and product
development. They went to work immediately,
nominating the byway for All-American
Road status, which it received in 2002.
BEST PRACTICE
According to the Office of Tourism
Development, the road is managed by the
Maryland National Road Association, which
in turn is supported by Maryland’s byway and
historic preservation community at large. The
Association solicits and organizes contributions
from several organizations. Among them are:
the Maryland Office of Tourism, Maryland
State Highway Administration, Maryland
Historic Trust, Maryland Department of
Natural Resources and State Parks, and the
Maryland Department of Planning. It also
petitions local establishments for funds, calling
on county destination marketing organizations,
state highway district offices, local preservation
organizations, and local planning offices.
In 1998, the advocacy process formally began
when the Association brought together
prospective partners and individuals to form
a coalition. Their objective was to develop
a long-term corridor management plan. To
finance it, the group applied for funds to
the National Scenic Byways Program. Once
70

awarded the money, they expediently developed
a proposal and set forth to implement
it. Then, the coalition broadened its base to
stakeholders so that it could achieve even
more. Its primary aims were: (1) to build
local support, which at this time was crucial
to future execution of the plan, and (2) to
reach the ultimate goal of federal designation.
It accomplished the latter in June of 2002.
The state tourism office selected eight sites
throughout the corridor to be case studies
that would illustrate how management strategies
could be put into practice. During the 18
months in which the plan had been developed,
it became clear that some sort of administrative
structure would be necessary for its
success. Without management staff, the goals
and recommendations within the plan could
easily be relegated to the shelf, neglected indefinitely.
Furthermore, the plan required that
a reliable team be in place to see it through
to completion. The sustainability of a historic
transportation corridor rested, it was decided,
on a non-profit organization. This organization
would be charged with carrying out the
recommendations outlined in the Historic
National Road Corridor Management Plan.
Thus, the five state agencies and the citizen
advisory committee formed a volunteer
sub-committee that would research and
implement the formation of such a non-profit
group. The sub-committee began its task
by seeking the expertise of the Community
Law Clinic at the University of Baltimore
to draft bylaws for the Maryland National
Road Association. Then, it selected members
from the citizen advisory committee to be
included in the budding non-profit’s board
of directors and associates. Many of those
early volunteers are still board members to
this day, including the sitting president.
Currently, the organization meets regularly
at various locations along the corridor. It
maintains a tradition of mobility with
regard to its meeting places to ensure
that the diverse interests on whose behalf
it acts continue to be fairly and equally
represented. New members are recruited by
the byways manager, and individual who
also serves as the project manager for the
Corridor Management Plan in the Maryland
Department of Planning. The Maryland
National Road Association hires the manager,
and a seed grant from the National Scenic
Byways Program is what originally brought
the management position into existence.
RESULTS
Since its designation in 2002, the original
coalition that was built to launch the corridor
plan evolved into what is now the
Maryland National Road Association. It
appointed a board of directors and three
working committees, including Development,
Preservation, and Product Development
and Marketing. The Association achieved a
great deal in executing strategies from the
plan. To date, it has completed a historiccontext
study that qualified for 100 National
Register Historic Place nominations, and has
drafted context-sensitive design guidelines,
installed 70 interpretative waysides, installed
trail-blazing sign systems, developed a travelrelated
Web site, published a map guide, and
implemented a print advertising campaign.
The state tourism office also found that the
corridor management planning process for the
road was extremely successful in sustaining the
interest of its volunteers. A Citizen Advisory
Group (CAG) was launched with the five agencies’
provision of a contact list with individuals
representing organizations that had either an
interest in or a responsibility for managing the
byway as a touring route. Typical attendance
for each meeting was 40 to 50 participants.
The meeting locations varied among several
spots along the corridor, including Hagerstown,
Cumberland, Frostburg, and Frederick, which
lessened the travel burden for volunteer
members at either end of the corridor.
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72
Individual projects closely follow the general
corridor-wide implementation of the plan.
After several of these projects have been completed,
the Maryland National Road Association
expects to start approaching the private sector
for development funds. Justification for its
requests may lie in the
road’s economic impact.
In a 2001 report issued by
Petraglia and Koth, it was
demonstrated that scenic
byways have substantial
economic clout. Their
study revealed that byways
brought in $104 per trip
in visitor group spending,
while generating a one
percent rise in total vehicle
miles traveled. Also, for
every $1 million in visitor
spending, 19 to 31 jobs were supported, and
business overall garnered between $740,000
and $1,450,000 in total new sales. A new
study of the road’s economic impact will soon
be underway, as the National Scenic Byway
Program announced an award of $144,000
in 2006 for a study that both analyzes the
economic outcome of Maryland’s scenic
byways and explores target markets within
the areas through which they pass.
CONCLUSIONS
Economic developers view scenic byways as
an easy way to entice visitors without making
tremendous infrastructure investments. The
route is both the way by which one arrives at
a tourist destination, and it is itself a destination.
Typically, byway programs require additional
facilities and attractions development,
but marketing efforts—if chosen correctly,
based on research—can begin immediately.
Communities also recognize the advantages
for sharing scarce assets and resources. As
a collective effort, byways can be treated as
a method for building up regional tourism.
In some cases, groups and associations have
been formed to develop and market byways
as they evolve, and to cooperatively address
other regional economic development
issues. Additionally, byways provide an
opportunity to celebrate a common heritage
and culture among regional communities.
The Historic National Road has been successful
because it has truly been a grassroots effort,
one that shrewdly capitalized on social and
economic changes that favor scenic byway
development. Each grassroots organization
involved in the effort put aside its immediate
individual needs for the purpose of achieving
a greater good, having realized that such a collective
effort would help the initiative weather
the frequent changes that occur in local
political leadership. Consequently, there was
greater communication between urban and
rural residents, and this extended to important
growth management and quality-of-life issues
that supersede tourism. In developing the
road as a tourist attraction, individuals with
different backgrounds and diverse lifestyles
united for the greater regional good, and
the Historic National Road embodies their
benevolence. Their actions are much like those
taken by the road’s original builders, who came
together to forge a new life in the wilderness.
The road’s partners and supporters expect
to be challenged by further suburban and
urban development, especially sprawl along
the historic corridor. In this way, the scenic
byway’s mission of preserving environmental
quality and historic preservation serves as a
method of controlling growth and instilling a
sense of quality of life for local communities.
Meanwhile, heritage tourism is expected to
continue to grow as the baby boomer generation
begins to examine itself, striving to discover
the historic origins of America, while also
learning of its own roots and contributions.
REFERENCES
WEB SITES: Maryland Department of Business
and Economic Development, Office of Tourism
Development, www.visitmaryland.org.
www.scenicbyways.org
Maryland State Highway Administration, Office of
Environmental Design. Undated. Maryland Scenic
Byways. Baltimore, Md: Maryland State Highway
Administration, Office of Environmental Design.
Maryland Office of Planning. 1995. National Freeway
(I-68) Scenic Corridor Study: Visual Analysis, Historic
Resources, and Development and Environmental Design
Guidelines. Baltimore, Md: Maryland Office of Planning.
Petraglia, Lisa, and Barbara Koth. 2001. Economic
Impacts of Scenic Byways. Conference on
Transportation and Economic Development, Sept, 2001.
Strategic Marketing & Research, Inc. 2001. National
Scenic Byways: Image and Advertising Positioning
Research Findings. Washington, DC: National Scenic
Byways Program.

MISSISSIPPI
NATCHEZ TRACE PARKWAY
AND COMPACT
OVERVIEW
The Natchez Trace Compact was established
in 1999 to promote the Natchez Trace Parkway
and its neighboring communities. Originally,
signatory partners included only the
Mississippi communities of Natchez, Jackson,
Ridgeland, Kosciusko, and Tupelo. Today, however,
the Compact involves an additional eight
cities in Mississippi, four in Alabama, and four
in Tennessee. Based in Kosciusko, it operates
under the auspices of a memo-of-understanding
with the National Park Service (NPS),
working primarily to develop and distribute
materials. It is through this combined marketing
effort that the member communities of
the Compact enjoy higher rates of visitation.
At the same time, NPS benefits from the
marketing as well, using it as a way to inform
the public of the route’s beauty and resources
and the Park Service’s preservation efforts.
The Compact is a best practice because
its cooperative character encourages the
participation of multiple partners in what
has proven to be a successful campaign
to foster greater visitation to the area and
greater appreciation of the region’s myriad
resources. Its advocacy efforts, which extend
from small, local communities to the federal
government, combine traditional methods
of brochures and trade shows with newer
techniques like the World Wide Web. Finally,
like Alabama’s Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail,
Florida’s Cuban Heritage Trail, and Kentucky’s
Bourbon Trail, the parkway is yet another
example of “linear tourism” in action—states
and communities turning pre-existing routes,
trails, and byways into tourism assets. In this
context, the trail was developed as a tourism
attraction for the purposes of both economic
development and environmental preservation.
CONTEXT AND HISTORY
A paved and picturesque highway today, the
Natchez Trace Parkway historically was a
series of paths used by Native Americans for
thousands of years prior to European colonization.
Following the American Revolution, the
Trace experienced its heaviest use and fastest
change. In 1800, it was designated a national
post road, and in the War of 1812 Andrew
Jackson moved his troops along the Trace to
meet the British at New Orleans. From the
1780s to the 1820s, flatboats and keelboats
carried agricultural goods, livestock, coal, and
other products down the Ohio and Mississippi
rivers to Natchez and New Orleans. The
boatman often sold the empty vessels for
lumber and returned home overland via
the Natchez Trace. Men that were fortunate
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74
enough to ride horseback reportedly made
the trip in three to four weeks; those going
by shanks mare took twice as long. Small,
rough-hewn inns, called stands, emerged to
provide food and shelter. During this period,
the risky route was also called the Choctaw
Trace, the Chickasaw Trace,
and Nashville Road. Outlaws,
hostile Indians and flooded
waterways took their toll on
travelers over the Trace. Notable
users of the route included
Davey Crockett, Aaron Burr,
Henry Clay, James Audubon,
and Meriwether Lewis.
The young nation’s rapid
development impacted the
Trace. By the 1820s, steamboats
offered faster, safer passage
north, and other federal roads
in the region siphoned traffic
off the Trace. By 1825, only
90 miles of the old route were
still used as a national post
road. In the 1830s, with the
forced removal of Southeastern
Indians to Oklahoma, the
Trace was all but abandoned.
In the early 20th century,
private individuals and groups
began advocating commemoration
of the route, and in 1909 the Daughters
of the American Revolution placed its first
commemorative marker. In the 1930s,
Congress commissioned the National Park
Service (NPS) to survey the old Trace, with
the idea of constructing a national road
over the historic trail, and the Parkway was
established in 1938 for recreational travel
and preservation/display of natural, cultural
and historic resources. The Parkway’s nearly
52,300 acres encompass Indian mounds,
Civil War battle sites, old cemeteries, iron-ore
mines, diverse habitats housing threatened
and endangered species, numerous rivers
and creeks, and some 87 miles of trails.
Historic structures include the John Gordon
House and the Mount Locust Plantation.
Travelers will also find scores of antique
shops, museums, campgrounds, and venues
related to blues, rock, and country-western
music. The Parkway, hailed by William Least
Heat Moon in his American travel opus,
Blue Highways (1982), has won many awards
for engineering and landscape architecture.
Devoid of billboards, strip malls, and power
lines, it follows the lush and lovely lay of the
land. The country’s second-largest national
parkway, it is the only federal motorway commemorating
an earlier transportation route.
BEST PRACTICE
The Natchez Trace Compact was initially
comprised of five Mississippi communities
that met monthly during the organization’s
first three to four years. Inclusion of
Tennessee and Alabama changed the meeting
frequency to being quarterly, but the
mission of cooperative marketing remained
the same. Some members, such as Nashville,
were deliberately selected; others have
acted on their own behalf and requested
to join. Membership could well increase as
the Compact identifies additional resources
to promote travel on the Natchez Trace.
The Compact’s target markets are situated
primarily within a 500-mile radius. Marketing
tools used to attract potential consumers
there include: promotional items, tradeshow
representation, an evolving Web site,
brochures, and other literature. According
to its 2005 annual report, the Compact
continued to implement a three-state strategy
to market tourism activities. Its plan included
media placement and collaterals, public
relations, research, a special project Web site,
production, and administrative functions.
It provided press kits to Southern Living,
Travel America, USA Today, American Road,
Better Homes & Gardens, and numerous other
prominent publications. It also produced an
image brochure, letterhead/business card
package, and trade show sales binders and
banners reflecting all three states. In addition,
the compact worked with the Natchez Trace
Parkway Association, the parkway’s marketing
and development organization, and Parkway
officials in publicizing the May 2005 ceremonies
to mark the completion of the Parkway.
RESULTS
The Compact’s strategy is to encourage
visitation to the Parkway and its communities.
Actual visitation and economic impact data
will be determined at the conclusion of ongoing
research. What is known is that, in fiscal
year 2005, print media generated more than
56,900 inquiries through mail, phone, and the

Web site. The 2003 and 2004 data showed that
the top five states inquiring about the Parkway
were Illinois, Ohio, Michigan, Missouri, and
Kentucky. The return-on-investment ratio of
visitor spending to marketing cost for those
two years was 9.3 to 1, or for every dollar expended
by the Compact, visitors spent $9.30.
That ratio was a powerful selling-point for
Tennessee when it was considering joining.
Follow-up studies have shown that the
average travel-party size coming to the Trace
equaled 2.3 persons, with an average stay of
3.1 nights. Average travel-party expenditures
equaled $470. Also, 24 percent of inquiries
about the Trace were converted to actual
visitation. According to the data, visitation
declined from 2001 through 2003 due to
terrorism, war, high gas prices and other
factors, but began to climb again in 2004.
Other successes cited by Parkway partners
are the creation of a group tour itinerary for
motor-coach groups and a welcome center.
The center collects data and develops statistics
that are specifically related to visitor conversion.
With this information, it measures how
many people actually came to the Parkway
after having been exposed to its advertising.
The Compact’s goals for 2006 include: (1)
developing an overview Power Point for distribution
to member communities and states; (2)
coordinating a photo shoot of key points along
the route; (3) obtaining a U.S. Department of
Commerce International Marketing Grant for
the purpose of translating the Web site and
brochures into targeted foreign languages;
(4) conducting inquiry conversion studies of
key publications to determine visitor profiles,
travel patterns, and economic impact of the
marketing programs; (5) updating press
releases and promotional materials to include
new things to see and do, and to reflect and
expanded list of sights, location and activities
along the Trace; and (6) seeking funding from
the U.S. Department of Commerce grants
program. According to Natchez CVB director
Walter Tipton, “In terms of programs, we are
looking forward to developing Trace-wide
events by linking various communities
events. The traveler can plan a month-long
excursion and visit multiple events or
even visit a single community.” Tipton also
indicated that there is still a lot to be done
in terms of informing the public about the
various sites and history of the parkway.
CONCLUSIONS
As is the case with any attraction that is
444-miles long, the logistics of such a project
can be daunting. To ensure that all communities
are represented, meetings must
be held in different communities along the
trail, and on a rotating basis. Even taking
that into consideration, however, it remains
difficult for leaders and representatives to
travel to these meetings. In addition, most
communities are more concerned about
funding tourism marketing and development
in their own communities, and thus it is
difficult to find dollars that can be devoted to
the everyday management of the Parkway.
The Compact’s proactive and successful
partnering with the National Park Service,
state tourism departments, and local communities
to enhance marketing efforts and
benefit all parties involved illustrates a
best practice at work. Since its inception,
the Compact has helped spur interest in its
specific corridor and in the surrounding area.
Early successes have brought more members
into the organization, simultaneously
expanding its mutual appeal and benefits.
Clearly, the cooperative effort is working,
and from it comes a richer experience for the
traveler of the Trace—more information about
the areas and the country-sides, both past and
present, as well as more recreational activities,
more flavor and more to savor, more potential
for passing the word and more reason to
return. Due to the Compact, the Natchez Trace
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likely will bear more traffic than it ever did
in its 19th-century heyday, and contemporary
visitors will find the going a lot more pleasant,
and a lot more fun, and much easier!
The parkway also illustrates the evolving
relationship between historic preservation and
tourism, often seen as hand-in-hand in the
form of heritage tourism. What once was preserved
purely for historical or cultural reasons
is now becoming a top tourism draw. It is now
time to look around the South to review its
inventory and to assess the historic and cultural
resources there. From this, it will become
clear about what these assets need to become
true heritage tourism sites and attractions.
Similarly, the Trace demonstrates that federal
involvement in tourism can be a supportive
and mutually beneficial relationship for
communities. Federal agencies can do much to
contribute human and financial resources to
local tourism projects. Conversely, if successful,
these projects go a long way in educating
state and federal officials that tourism can
be an effective economic development tool
in communities, instead of fronting the cash
for traditionally pursued bricks-and-mortar
projects. This is because, in many cases,
multiple partners are needed to create and
sustain a tourism project over a long period
of time. This was true of the Parkway, and
so these officials no longer feel that they are
“throwing money” at a short-term, one-shot
project with little measurable results.
According to Parkway officials, the future
holds even better and bigger things than
what has already been realized. They hope
to reach an international audience, especially
the European touring public. To do this,
the Web that is still in the development
stage will need to use up to six languages.
Also, the Parkway will strive for more tourist-friendly
programming, as all trails,
routes, and byways must strive to do.
REFERENCES
WEB SITES: www.nps.gov/natr
www.scenictrace.com
Natchez Trace Parkway fact sheets
Natchez Trace Compact 2005 annual report
Interview with Walter Tipton, director of the Natchez
Convention and Visitors Bureau.
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CONCLUSIONS
77

CONCLUSIONS
These case studies are the most recent of some
50 researched by the author since 2002. As
the first Guide to Best Practices in Tourism and
Destination Management reflected organizations
thriving in a healthy pre-9/11 economy,
Volume 2 showed organizations coping with
post-9/11 shortages in funding and support.
Comparatively, this book, Best Practices
in Southern Tourism and Destination
Management, illustrates a region’s successful
attempt to overcome these challenges. This
guide provides many models of agencies and
organizations doing less with more by acting
collectively and cooperatively, a trend noticed
in previous volumes. This book also shows
organizations exerting greater influence
over destination management, in addition
to marketing. Many of these organizations
have become the primary agents of economic
development, and with that new role, they
have seen the need to develop sustainability.
New research by these organizations will follow,
particularly in the areas of evaluating the
economic impact, the visitor conversion rate,
the return-on-investment, and the marketing
efficiency. New attractions will follow as old
trails and routes are revitalized, and new
attractions will be built under the guise of
sustainable tourism. New commitments will
be made, such as educating residents and local
officials about the power of tourism as an
economic development tool. Finally, new strategies
will be implemented, most likely having
to do with locating new sources of funding
and operating under a business model that
concentrates on growth and accountability.
Once nearly synonymous with tourism
organizations, marketing remains an industry
cornerstone. Most tourism professionals
can recite tourism marketing missteps, or
instances where marketing funds were cut
and it took many years to regain regional
market share. Some destinations have overinvested
in Web marketing to the exclusion
of all other media, while others have used
multiple media to share their message. The
marketing practices profiled here illustrate
the innovation in brand marketing and
advertising (North Carolina’s Integrated
Brand Marketing and Tennessee’s Heritage
and Music Marketing), the commitment to
local marketing efforts (Arkansas’ Community
Tourism Partnership Marketing program),
and a variety of regional marketing approaches
(Oklahoma’s Wild West Cooperative
Marketing and West Virginia’s MATPRA).
Although advocacy is not currently emphasized
by many tourism organizations, it has
certainly become one of the most important
functions for any destination management
organization. Advocacy is required not only to
educate residents and leaders about tourism
as an economic development tool, but is also
crucial for individual organizations in search
of funding dollars. An advocate’s message
can start at the grassroots level and reach
to the highest government levels (Georgia’s
Tourism Development Alliance), or it can
begin among well-placed political leaders,
and then reach down to other leaders with
great influence over local tourism products
(Texas’ Legislative Tourism Caucus).
Sustainable tourism continues to become an
industry standard, not only from an ethical
perspective, but from an economic perspective
too. Once narrowly defined by some around
environmental issues, sustainable tourism
now encompasses ecotourism (Louisiana’s
A Place Called America’s Wetlands
campaign), the protection of ecotourism
assets (Missouri’s Streams of Consciousness
campaign), heritage tourism (Virginia’s
Heritage Toolkit and Map), and agritourism
(South Carolina’s Heritage Tourism Corridor
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Farmers Cooperative). With little doubt,
examples of sustainable tourism in the
South will multiply, and will create new and
interesting attractions for potential visitors.
Trails, roads, and parkways will only
increase as popular tourism attractions for
many cultural and demographic reasons.
Economically, these routes are touted as
good investments by tourism professionals,
planners, and economic developers. Some
of these trails will be used to enhance the
overall quality of an area, in turn luring other
types of economic development (Alabama’s
Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail). Other trails will
create new markets with traditional products
(Kentucky’s Bourbon Trail). Some will appeal
to culture (Florida’s Cuban Heritage Trail),
some to history and preservation (Maryland’s
Historic National Road), and others to nature
and scenery (Mississippi’s
Natchez Trace Parkway), or
combinations of all three.
Effective and efficient regional
tourism is the holy grail of
tourism marketers and developers.
Tourism at this scale
allows states to share scarce
human and financial resources.
Regional tourism also allows
states to offer tourism packages,
combining the strength
of one state with the strengths
of another, resulting in enhanced
economic benefits for
the region and an enhanced
experience for visitors. Finally,
residents also benefit from
regional tourism, as visitors
are spread over many locales,
with, hopefully, no particular
community receiving overwhelming
visitor numbers.
Because of the coordination and cooperation
already present among Southern states, this
grail is within reach. The entire region can be
regarded as a best practice itself, serving as a
model for other U.S. states and regions. It is
hoped that all communities will benefit from
the models presented here, especially those
facing the challenges of industrial restructuring
that the South continues to face and overcome
on a daily basis. It is hoped, too, that
any adaptation of these models will undertake
tourism and destination management with
the same spirit of cooperation as the South,
aiming not only to create better tourism, but
to create a better country in the process.
–Rich Harrill
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SPECIAL THANKS
Southern Governors’ Association gratefully acknowledges the many contributors who made this
book possible. While not inclusive, SGA wishes to specifically acknowledge the contributions of:
Alabama: Alabama Bureau of Tourism and Travel
Arkansas: Arkansas Department of Parks and Tourism
Florida: Visit Florida
Georgia: Georgia Department of Industry, Trade and Tourism
Kentucky: Kentucky Department of Tourism, and Kentucky Distillers Association
Louisiana: Louisiana Department of Culture, Recreation and Tourism, and Gerard Minvielle,
Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Maryland: Maryland Office of Tourism
Mississippi: Mississippi Division of Tourism and Natchez Trace Parkway
Missouri: Missouri Division of Tourism
North Carolina: North Carolina Division of Tourism, Film and Sports Development
Oklahoma: Oklahoma Tourism and Recreation Department and Harvey Payne, Pawhuska,
Oklahoma
South Carolina: South Carolina Department of Parks, Recreation & Tourism and
South Carolina National Heritage Corridor
Tennessee: Tennessee Department of Tourist Development
Texas: Office of the Governor, Economic Development and Tourism
Virginia: Virginia Tourism Corporation
West Virginia: West Virginia Division of Tourism
COPIES OF THIS BOOK
Copies of this publication may be purchased from the Southern Governors’ Association.
Please contact the Publications Manager at 202-624-5897 or sga@sso.org.
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Hall of the States 5 444 North Capitol Street, NW, Suite 200 5 Washington, DC 20001
202-624-5897 5 www.southerngovernors.org 5 sga@sso.org