America's Byways®
Bulletin

May 2005 / Vol. 2 No. 4

WHAT'S NEW

Conference registration now open!

Registration is open for the Rock and Road 2005, the National Scenic Byways Conference in Cleveland, Ohio this fall. You can access online registration at www.bywaysonline.org by clicking on the Rock and Road conference logo under "Resource Center Happenings." Register today and take advantage of the early bird savings!

CONGRATULATIONS to North Carolina's Department of Transportation

North Carolina's Scenic Byways Program was awarded the DOT FHWA 2005 Environmental Excellence Award. The Byways program is "well-managed and includes a strong educational component that increases awareness of North Carolina's scenic byways and their importance to the communities that support them. The DOT's Scenic Byways Teacher's Guide emphasizes the importance of teaching North Carolina's youth about the pristine natural environment and intrinsic cultural history along the State's roadways. The program's materials and hands-on lesson plans and activities help educators and students gain a greater knowledge of North Carolina's byways while providing a tremendous resource about geological, historical, and cultural significance." Learn more at www.fhwa.dot.gov/environment/eea2005.

TIA forecasts record-breaking summer travel season

Despite rising prices, Americans will be traveling in record numbers this summer with Florida, California, Nevada and New York the top preferred destinations. "Every sector of the travel industry will be up, up, up," according to Dr. Suzanne Cook, SVP of research for the Travel Industry Association of America. "The momentum in travel recovery that began in earnest last year is continuing into the summer with a 2.3 percent increase in leisure travel. That means that Americans will take 328 million leisure person-trips during June, July and August 2005." A person-trip is one person traveling 50+ miles, one-way, away from home. For more information, see www.tia.org.

Success of the America's Byways Team at TIA's International PowWow

This year's premier international tourism marketplace, TIA's PowWow, was held in New York City May 6-9. It was a great success! The America's Byways booth was staffed by Monte Hurley, Creole Nature Trail, LA; Suzanne Maye, Lakes-to-Locks Passage: The Great Northeast Journey, NY; Teresa Mitchell, Seaway Trail, NY; Sande Balch, Strait of Juan de Fuca Highway, WA, and Patricia McNally, FHWA, DC and there was never a slow moment. Media and international and domestic buyers booked pre-arranged appointments or stopped by the booth to learn more about our great Byways. The booth was decorated with a brand-new Honda Silver Shadow motorcycle that provided quite a bit of attention to our booth.

GREAT IDEA

Florida Scenic Highways Program staff "takes over" state welcome centers

On April 29, the Florida Scenic Highways Program hosted a "Welcome Center Day" event at three welcome centers located on the Florida state line. Information booths were set up and visitors received brochures and trinkets. The goal was to educate travelers coming into Florida about the many Scenic Highways throughout the state - including three America's Byways. Visit www.dot.state.fl.us to learn more.

New Mexico Tourism Department (NMTD) launches its most comprehensive in-state advertising program ever

The NMTD "In-State" campaign is entitled "By the Way" and encourages New Mexico travelers to explore New Mexico. The campaign includes event advertising, newspaper ads, on-air radio and television and individual Byways are encouraged to piggyback on the NMTD ad buy. Learn more at www.newmexico.org.

Explore Minnesota Tourism and the Byways

Explore Minnesota Tourism (EMT) has a partnership with the Star Tribune that includes periodic emails. Recently, an email was sent to 56,000 subscribers promoting Minnesota's Scenic Byways. As of May 20, there were 2,476 click-throughs to the www.exploreminnesota.com Scenic Byways page and 1,094 requests for the Scenic Byways Maps. As a comparison, for EMT previous Star Tribune emails, a very good click-through rate to a website is considered 1,000. For more info on this great partnership, contact Colleen Tollefson at Colleen.Tollefson@state.mn.us

ON THE WEB

Watch www.bywaysonline.org for a chance to reserve your time slot for a Byways Online One-on-One Meeting at the National Scenic Byways Conference in Cleveland. This is your chance to meet with the National Scenic Byways Online team to review your Byway's presence on this highly visible site. The best time slots will be the first to go, so don't wait!

NEWS BRIEFS

Lagoon House celebrates grand opening

The Marine Resources Council and the City of Palm Bay hosted a ribbon-cutting ceremony on April 2 to celebrate the grand opening of the Lagoon House, the welcome center for the Indian River Lagoon Scenic Highway, Florida. Festivities included a guided tour of the welcome center's exhibits, lunch, and a live animal presentation by Brevard Zoo.

AMERICAN ROAD Magazine to highlight Byways this fall

One of our partners, AMERICAN ROAD magazine, has featured a number of Byways in the past. Now, the Autumn 2005 issue will be dedicated solely to Byways. Their latest readership survey results show that over 52% of their readers take more than 7 road trips per year. And Borders bookstores will be stocking AMERICAN ROAD magazine this summer. So that means America's Byways will be getting lots of exposure thanks to this great partnership.

Honda's RedRider Magazine May/June 2005: All-American Roads Part 2

Honda Motorcycles RedRider magazine continues highlighting All-American Roads. "More traveler treasures from the DOT" features the Blue Ridge Parkway, NC; Selma-to-Montgomery March Byway, AL; Natchez Trace Parkway, AL, MS, TN; Lakes to Locks Passage: The Great Northeast Journey, NY; Acadia Byway, ME; Historic Columbia River Highway, OR; Hells Canyon Scenic Byway, OR, ID; Pacific Coast Scenic Byway, OR, WA; Volcanic Legacy Scenic Byway, OR, CA; and Highway 12: A Journey Through Time Scenic Byway, UT.

National Geographic's "Ultimate RV Drive" Vignettes now airing

Four RV destination vignettes began running on the National Geographic Channel in late March and will continue through the end of June. National Geographic produced the vignettes under the guidance of Go RVing. They end with the tagline, "For more ultimate RV drives along America's scenic byways visit GoRVing.com." The America's Byways featured in the vignettes include the Kaibab Plateau North Rim Parkway in AZ, the Pacific Coast Highway in CA, The Great River Road in IL, and the San Juan Skyway in CO.

OPPORTUNITIES

Tourism Cares for Tomorrow

Tourism Cares for Tomorrow is a nonprofit association created by the merging of the United States Tour Operator Association's Travelers Conservation Foundation and the National Tour Association's Tourism Foundation. On May 13, 400+ volunteers from the tourism community traveled to Mt. Vernon, Virginia to clean up the forest around George Washington's colonial home that was ravaged by Hurricane Isabel. Tourism Cares is looking for suggestions for future projects that will help maintain "the world's natural, cultural and historic treasures." Tourism Cares also awards grants to recipients in the fields of conservation, preservation, and education. For further information, go to www.tourismcaresfortomorrow.org.