Cascade Loop North Heritage Audio Tour

Deepen your experiences traveling in the Pacific Northwest though Heritage Audio Tours, created by the non-profit Northwest Heritage Resources. In these dynamic audio guides, you’ll hear directly from local residents–artisans, tradition-bearers, musicians and more–in their own words and music. The rich cultural heritage of towns and regions across the Pacific Northwest come to life for […]

Got a Payroll Tax Cut? Take a Local Trip.

While Congress squabbles over the merits and pitfalls of extending the middle-class payroll tax cut worth about $1000 per family for another year, I am already spending mine. In my head, anyway. One thousand dollars will buy us a couple of nice local family getaways next year, and help stimulate the local tourism economy in the […]

Will Tourism Be Privatized?

I have to hand it to them for stepping up right away and offering real solutions. After all, the stakes are high. A collection of tourism industry folks, from Red Lion Hotels to the Port of Seattle, convened a summit in SeaTac last week attended by about 450 people tied to travel and tourism. The […]

The Economics of Cheap Sleeps

“The last year has been painful,” a Seattle B&B owner recently told me. “I need more business.” I don’t doubt it. I’m traveling less, and I’m guessing a lot of others are, too. It’s too soon to tell if the Northwest’s travel slump will start to turn around this summer, but plenty of people are […]

Why Tourism Matters

In my state of Washington, the economic recession has hit state budgets extremely hard.  Our state legislature is currently grappling with fixes to fill a $2.6 billion budget gap; this is on top of a $7 billion budget shortfall they dealt with last year. These are big numbers, and they’re resulting in big, deep cuts […]

Geotourism Arrives in the Central Cascades

Have you heard of “geotourism?” I first heard the term directly from Sheila Buckmaster, senior editor at National Geographic Traveler magazine, when I served on a panel alongside her in 2007. I remember scribbling the term in my notebook and thinking – that’s what we need in Washington! Geotourism is defined as a form of […]

New Website for Washington Tourism

Remember “Say WA,” the Washington state tourism slogan unveiled a few years back? I know, I know… who could forget? Those two jazzy words strung together were going to drive vacationers by the tens of thousands to visit the state. Brilliant, wasn’t it? Actually, it was a big FAIL. So, what’s the latest marketing move […]