Governor’s Conference on
Tourism to be held February 1-4
at Grand Casino in Tunica
Cotton may not be king for long with tourism efforts gaining momentum in our history-rich region

BY Brad Riles
DBJ Contributing Writer

The Mississippi Delta has always had a unique appeal about it that other places have a tough time recreating.

That is why “Rhythms of the Delta … Where Tourism Meets the Soul” is the headline of this year’s 2005 Governor’s Conference on Tourism at the Grand Casino in Tunica.

The conference, which takes place February 1-4, is hosted by the Mississippi Tourism Association, in conjunction with the Mississippi Development Authority, division of tourism. It will also feature several keynote speakers from businessmen and women from around the southeast that have made a living in some form or fashion related to tourism.

Mollie Gregory, public relations manager of Mississippi Development Authority, Tourism Division, said the conference will feature educational sessions that will help build the already established tourism industry in Mississippi.

“Some of the sessions are about finding what kind of brand identity do you want to have. There is a session on attracting the European market,” Gregory said.

The 2004 Conference was held on the coast, one of Mississippi’s other big, tourism draws, and usually brings in hundreds of people, she added.

“The point of the Governor’s Conference on Tourism is to get the whole industry together at one time, one place and look at where we are as an industry and look at where we want to go,” she said. “It is a time for the tourism industry to plan for the future.”

Whether it is the history of the river bends and its early settlers, the “real” beginning of blues and jazz or the miniature Las Vegas-feel of the casinos, the Delta has a profound background that makes it one of the top travel locations in the southeast, providing a great feel and atmosphere to kick off the 2005 year.

“It is just a good time to launch the new year in tourism,” Gregory said.

While its importance is sometimes overlooked, tourism remains vital in a state’s success.

“Tourism plays a huge role in the state’s economy,” Gregory said. “In the fiscal year 2003, there were 91,500 direct jobs in the tourism industry. Total revenues for tourism were $5.7 million in visitor expenditures.

Gregory added that tourism is “truly an economic generator for the state,” and that it plays a huge role in the money that comes back into the state.

“It accounted for 10.2 percent of the state’s $3.4 billion general state fund, which is about $1 out of every $10,” she said.

Steps and improvements are being made by city officials all over the state in order to attract and keep people coming to their towns, according to Gregory.

In recent years, there has been more of a focus on communities, and not just on people from local levels, even from county officials and boards that see what a viable industry it is,” she said. “I believe that more and more as time has passed, more communities have realized tourism’s importance and are looking at their own community through the eyes of a visitor.”

While the gaming industry will always have its opponents, few can argue the economic benefits they have brought to the state by luring people inside Mississippi from all over the world.

The gaming industry is part of the tourism industry and the gaming revenues are extremely important, Gregory said.

“Tunica County is an example of that,” she said. “Because of the introduction of gaming in Tunica ten years ago, the county completely transformed from what it used to be to what it is now.”

As part of the casinos, Tunica has also brought in resorts that include championship golf courses and restaurants, which means more money for improved facilities.

“(Tunica County) has reinvested a lot of that money they received from that industry into better roads and schools, as well as attractions like the Tunica River Park that was recently built,” Gregory said. “Tunica now is a true destination.” DBJ