Welcome to another freshly brewed edition of Tourism Heads & Their Tales, brought to you by the award-winning agency, Eddy Alexander. Today’s podcast features Peter Pantuso, President and CEO of the American Bus Association (ABA). He also serves as President of the National Bus Traffic Association, and the ABA Foundation. ABA is North America’s leading and largest motorcoach, tour, and travel association, representing over 70 percent of all motorcoaches on the road and also includes a $10 million foundation that provides research to the industry and has awarded over $1 million in scholarships since its inception. Hear how Pete became President and CEO of the American Bus Association, a role he has held for 27 years. Listen as he talks about ABA’s 97-year history (which started as a motorcoach division of AAA back in 1926), and the importance of group travel in the travel and tourism industry.

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It’s time for another freshly brewed edition of Tourism Heads & Their Tales brought to you by the multi-award-winning agency Eddy Alexander. For the first time, we head to the Caribbean. Tune in and listen to Leah Chandler, CDME, Chief Marketing Officer for the Puerto Rico Destination Marketing Organization, Discover Puerto Rico, and how they transitioned from a government-run bureau to become a successful DMO. This is a “must listen” podcast. Learn about creative campaigns and initiatives Discover Puerto Rico has uses to promote tourism. Listen to how Discover Puerto Rico identifies and manages marketing to key target markets and what KPI’s are in place to measure results, and what actionable insights drive their consumer engagement. All this and more!

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Today’s freshly brewed Tourism Heads & Their Tales podcast is a first. I have the pleasure to interview Julie Gilbert CDME, President & CEO of Destination Door County. You will notice the same last name, and yes, Julie is my wife. Door County has a population of 30,000 and gets about 2 million visitors each year. Listen as Julie discusses the significance of transparency with stakeholders and residents while also working with complex tourism organizations within 19 distinct municipalities. Hear how she is overseeing the transition from “heads in beds” to destination stewardship, and sustainable tourism in a shared values environment. Discover how Door County communicates the value of a Visitor Economy with residents, business owners, and stakeholders. Listen to new initiatives introduced that benefit both visitors and local residents. And hear about Barbie’s appearance at ESTO! All this and a lot more.

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Welcome to another freshly brewed episode of your favorite podcast, Tourism Heads & Their Tales. Today’s guest is no stranger to the industry. We welcome Jake Steinman, founder and CEO of TravelAbility, a platform that aims to make travel easier and more accessible for people with disabilities. From travel and tourism conferences to events globally, Jake has been involved in the travel sector for over 30 years as a journalist, publisher, consultant, and entrepreneur. In fact, he produced his own event under the brand eTourism Summit, a digital marketing conference for the travel industry. In today’s episode, we define what a “disability” is and hear his passion for promoting inclusion and diversity in travel and tourism. We learn how destinations and the tourism industry at large can improve accessibility for this important market using a variety of tools, such as an accessibility assessment. Jake is an expert in this field and offers invaluable insights. Don’t miss this impactful episode, part one of two.

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Welcome to another freshly brewed podcast edition of Tourism Heads & Their Tales. Today’s guest needs no introduction to those of us in the tourism industry. When we search for insights into traveler sentiment and behavior, one of the resources we often look to is Destination Analysts. Erin Francis-Cummings is co-founder, President, and CEO of Destination Analysts and we often see her presenting at industry conferences. Tune in and learn about Erin’s career journey and listen as we dive in to some meaningful insights about trends you need to know to help frame up your tourism business plans; hear about the types of destinations travelers want to visit post pandemic and the experiences they’re are looking for – even take a little “trip” into Psychedelic Travel…so much more for you to discover in part one of a two part interview. 

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Today’s guest on Tourism Heads & Their Tales is an acknowledged and universally recognized industry leader. We welcome Todd Davidson, CEO of Travel Oregon. Tune in as Todd and I discuss change management and Oregon’s Covid challenges, how successful growth can be achieved by reinvesting in local communities, and how Oregon’s 10-year strategic vision was developed and its plans to redesign tourism with a destination stewardship mindset. Todd’s wisdom, leadership, and passion for our industry shines through on this podcast.

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