Governor’s 2015 Colorado Tourism Conference Wraps-Up in Crested Butte

 Governor’s 2015 Colorado Tourism Conference Wraps-Up in Crested Butte

Tourism award winners honored and Breckenridge named as host destination for 2016

• The Colorado Tourism Office Board Chairman’s Award is awarded to extraordinary individuals’ commitment to tourism in Colorado. This year’s award was presented to outgoing Colorado Tourism Office Director, Al White for his tireless promotion of Colorado throughout his careers operating ski-related businesses in Colorado’s mountains, serving eight years in the state House of Representatives and two years in the state Senate and most recently for his past four years serving as the director of the Colorado Tourism Office. Under Al’s leadership of the Colorado Tourism Office, visitation to Colorado increased nearly 26 percent, from 55.1 million visitors in 2010 to 71.3 million visitors in 2014. Total direct travel spending in Colorado in 2014 reached $18.6 billion and generated $1.1 billion in tax revenue, surpassing the billion dollar mark for the first time ever. Other tourism milestones achieved under White’s leadership include the major successes of Colorado's award-winning 'Come to Life' marketing campaign, legislation for the only directly-funded agritourism program in the U.S., expansion of the CTO's international program from 5 to 11 markets and much more. “A huge tip of the hat to Al for the impact that he has had on the state’s tourism industry,” said Governor Hickenlooper. “He will be greatly missed.”

• The Outstanding Community Tourism Initiative Award is presented to a community or region that has demonstrated excellence in a tourism event, promotion or project. This year’s award recipient was the Chimney Rock Interpretive Association, a Pagosa Springs-based non-profit focused on providing interpretive tours and educational opportunities for visitors at Chimney Rock National Monument. The Chimney Rock Interpretive Association’s programs attract much needed tourism dollars to the southwest region of Colorado, which includes Archuleta and La Plata counties. Its volunteers were instrumental in advocating for the area to receive its monument designation that President Obama granted in 2012. The Association has created marketing kits aimed at educating the local and regional communities on how to use the monument designation to increase visitation to the area and has developed solid partnerships with like-minded area businesses and non-profits to drive awareness of Chimney Rock, and to extend marketing dollars further. They have shown creativity through a multi-faceted approach to increasing the number of visitors to the area by working with partners at CDOT on road signage, advertising in the Durango Visitors Center and the Durango Airport, publishing weekly articles in local newspapers focused on its tours and special programs and more. The Association has seen increased visitation to Chimney Rock by nearly 35 percent, which has resulted in significant contributions to the local economy.

• The Governor’s Award for Outstanding Individual Contribution to Colorado Tourism is presented to an individual to recognize his/her tireless contributions to advancing the Colorado tourism industry. This year’s honoree, Carrie Whitley, is not only the face of one of Colorado’s most recognizable attractions, the Durango-Silverton train, but also the Director of Tour Colorado, an organization dedicated to promoting group tours and packaged travel within and throughout Colorado. Additionally, Whitley conceived, developed and organized the Southwestern Colorado Tourism Summit, a successful annual event aimed at furthering the tourism industry with small business owners in Southwestern Colorado.  The state is lucky to have an advocate of tourism as passionate, knowledgeable and well connected as Whitley.

• The Governor’s Award for Outstanding Marketing Program recognizes an event or project undertaken by a community or region to promote tourism in Colorado. This award went to Mesa Verde National Park for leveraging its Sunset Magazine Travel Awards “Best Cultural Attraction” designation to drive visitation to the Park and surrounding communities. As winner of the award, Mesa Verde and Southwestern Colorado were featured in a Sunset Travel Awards special feature, drawing attention to their 1.25 million readers. A multi-channel approach to announcing and promoting the award was created and executed to include banner ad placement, a sponsored Sunset e-newsletter, a press release announcement, social media efforts and an email blast to members of the Mesa Verde database. The email campaign announcing the designation alone is credited with booking 281 room nights at Far View Lodge inside Mesa Verde National Park, which equates to 6,874 incremental visits. Overall visitation to Mesa Verde National Park was up 7 percent in June, with anticipated increases throughout the summer and fall months.

• The Jack Snow Volunteer Award is presented to an individual who has selflessly dedicated time and energy to furthering tourism in Colorado. This year’s recipient was Dolores Schroeder, brochure coordinator at the Colorado Welcome Center at Fruita. A volunteer since 2009, Schroeder organizes, stocks and oversees the Center’s entire brochure inventory. A former professor at the University of Indiana, Schroeder relies on her educational and personal experience to deliver a wealth of knowledge to visitors and staff on many topics including hiking and geology. She is well liked and respected by each of her peers. In addition to her work at the Colorado Welcome Centers, Schroeder is also a master gardener and has worked at the Colorado National Monument Association.