Area entities earn awards for excellence at this year’s Iowa Tourism Conference
Northeast Iowa Tourism Association awarded at Iowa Tourism Conference ... Northeast Iowa Tourism Association, a seven-county regional marketing group with a mission of promoting tourism in northeast Iowa, was recognized with an award for Outstanding Social Media Execution (Rural) at the 2019 Iowa Tourism Conference hosted by the Iowa Tourism Office and the Travel Federation of Iowa in Altoona February 6-8. Pictured above at the award presentation are (left to right) Iowa Economic Development Authority Marketing & Communications Team Leader Kanan Kappelman, Howard County Business & Tourism Tourism Director Spiff Slifka, Allamakee County Economic Development & Tourism Executive Director Val Reinke, Gabriel Eide of Decorah Area Chamber of Commerce and Travel Federation of Iowa President Libbey Hohn. Submitted photo.
Northeast Iowa RC&D awarded at Iowa Tourism Conference ... Northeast Iowa Resource Conservation & Development (RC&D) received an award for Outstanding Niche Marketing Initiative (Rural) for its Northeast Iowa Trout Fishing Guides at the 2019 Iowa Tourism Conference hosted by the Iowa Tourism Office and the Travel Federation of Iowa in Altoona February 6-8. Pictured above receiving the award at the Conference are, left to right, Northeast Iowa RC&D staff members Jared Nielsen, Mallory Hanson and Austin Feuerhelm. Submitted photo.
A pair of area entities serving northeast Iowa received awards for their efforts in promoting tourism at the 2019 Iowa Tourism Conference hosted by the Iowa Tourism Office and the Travel Federation of Iowa in Altoona February 6-8. Northeast Iowa Tourism Association and Northeast Iowa Resource Conservation & Development (RC&D) each received awards in their respective rural divisions of promoting aspects of Iowa tourism.
Northeast Iowa Tourism Association, a seven-county regional marketing group with a mission of promoting tourism in northeast Iowa, was recognized with an award for Outstanding Social Media Execution (Rural). Northeast Iowa Tourism Association has members representing Allamakee, Buchanan, Chickasaw, Clayton, Fayette, Howard and Winneshiek Counties.
Northeast Iowa Resource Conservation & Development (RC&D) also received an award for Outstanding Niche Marketing Initiative (Rural) for its Northeast Iowa Trout Fishing Guides.
A total of 27 Iowa tourism organizations and individuals received awards at the conference in recognition of their excellence in the tourism industry. The annual Iowa Tourism Conference brings together nearly 250 industry representatives from across the state to network, attend educational sessions and discuss emerging industry trends.
The project for which Northeast Iowa Resource Conservation & Development (RC&D) was awarded is one of the first of its kind to highlight a specific activity in multiple complementary county guides. The RC&D has currently developed these comprehensive trout fishing guides for Allamakee, Fayette and Winneshiek Counties and is currently working to complete a Clayton County guide. The pocket-sized guides were created by RC&D staff members through on-foot GPS inventories of the streams to provide a wealth of information about each county’s fishable streams with detailed stream maps and descriptions to guide anglers to the most accessible trout streams in Iowa.
The publications address common misconceptions and provide valuable information about Iowa’s fishing regulations, stream classifications and laws pertaining to public and private land fishing. Information about guide services, trout stocking and common fly hatches are also featured in each guide.
Development and printing of these guides would not have been possible without funding from and partnership with local, county and state partners including Northeast Iowa scenic byway boards, county conservation boards, county economic development and tourism, local community foundations, Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR) Fisheries Bureau Staff, the Turkey River Recreational Corridor and the Iowa Tourism Office. The guides for Allamakee, Fayette or Winneshiek Counties can be found at https://northeastiowarcd.org/publications/.
Northeast Iowa RC&D works with partners from throughout the region to explore natural resource based economic development opportunities while at the same time protecting and enhancing natural resources. The RC&D’s mission is to recognize opportunities and provide leadership to make northeast Iowa a vibrant, place-based model for the nation. Learn more at www.northeastiowarcd.org.
