Tourism Programs

Understanding Tourism for Michigan Communities (UTMC) – This interactive workshop highlights tourism industry statistics and exposes communities to trends and travelers’ interests, as well as a number of niche tourism markets. UTMC is specifically designed to promote regional synergies, leadership and tourism product development.

Planning for Tourism – This workshop walks communities through a planning process and uses life-cycle models to explore where communities may be in establishing themselves as tourism destinations. Additional tools will be employed to determine their readiness, identify next steps for action and explore engagement strategies for coalition building within the community.

First Impressions Tourism (FIT) Assessment – FIT is a comprehensive community assessment conducted by unannounced visitors in a host community positioned to lead development based on the program results. FIT involves developing community leadership, assessing the host community, sharing the results in a community forum open to all, and providing suggestions to drive community action. Overall, FIT helps communities learn about their strengths and weaknesses through the eyes of first-time visitors.

NEW: Rural Tourism Assessment - Michigan State University Extension's Rural Tourism Assessment (RTA) is a combination of well-documented, impactful tourism programs applied across various Michigan communities resulting in positive change. Roscommon County served as the inaugural RTA pilot, learn more in this article: "Initiative launches to strengthen small-town, rural tourism in Roscommon County, Michigan."

RTAs include 4 phases:

  1. Planning and Asset Identification Workshop
  2. Data Collection and Analysis using First Impressions Tourism (FIT) Assessments
  3. Results Dissemination and Community Engagement
  4. Implementation Strategy Development and Visioning (Optional)

Strengthening Tourism Leadership: Facilitation Tools to Move Community-driven Tourism Forward – This experiential workshop is designed to build and strengthen the skills necessary to lead and facilitate productive community groups. Participants will practice using a variety of facilitation tools and learn techniques and verbal skills necessary to lead group discussions, reach consensus, set outcome-based goals and generate ideas for action.

Custom Tourism Programs – MSU Extension tourism educators are equipped to meet the diverse needs and interests of Michigan communities. Specialized programs are available to communities with a specific interest in agri-tourism, eco-tourism and/or cultural/heritage tourism.

Tourism Programs

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