In honor of National Travel and Tourism Week, Louisiana’s Cajun Bayou Tourism (LCBT) honored two local tourism partners with the “Spirit of the Bayou Tourism Award.” The award honors Lafourche Parish tourism partners who deliver the Louisiana’s Cajun Bayou brand and provide visitors with outstanding customer service.
The 2017 recipients of the award are Airboat Tours by Arthur Matherne and Herbert Adams of E.D. White Historic Site. The awards were presented by LCBT President & CEO, Timothy P. Bush and Lt. Governor Billy Nungesser, who is traveling around the state to celebrate a fifth consecutive record breaking year for tourism in Louisiana. The event was hosted the Jean Lafitte National Park Wetlands Acadian Cultural Center in Thibodaux.
“Here in Louisiana’s Cajun Bayou, we have wonderful and supportive partners who work really hard and are great ambassadors for our community and the experiences this area offers,” said LCBT President & CEO Timothy P. Bush. “I say often that as the destination marketing organization, we don’t deliver the experiences to visitors, that role is what our partners do. I am extremely thankful that this area has so many wonderful partners who deliver the Louisiana’s Cajun Bayou brand through their work. We are very proud to honor Airboat Tours by Arthur Matherne and Herbert Adams for their contributions to tourism. They are shining examples of the 560 people who work in our local tourism industry every single day and provide value to our industry through their continuous hard work.”
Other highlights from the event include:
LCBT Launches New Destination Website
On Monday, LCBT launched a new website built to support the Louisiana’s Cajun Bayou brand, launched earlier this year. Designed by Tomahawk Tourism, the website features a new design that focuses on strong visual images of the area, simplistic navigation, and a storytelling element that showcases the natural, unapologetic culture found up and down the Bayou in Lafourche Parish.
“This new website will be a great extension to showcase the Louisiana’s Cajun Bayou story to visitors,” said Bush. “So many visitors plan their travel online today. We felt it was important to create a website that will inspire and assist visitors in planning their visit to the area.”
“We are beyond proud to have worked with Louisiana’s Cajun Bayou Tourism on this project, said Tomahawk Tourism USA CEO Marica Mackenroth Brewster. “They knew exactly how they wanted to portray Louisiana's Cajun Bayou online and the demographic to reach. The background research, strategy, content planning, and artistic direction were developed throughout a series of brain bouncing sessions which resulted in a stunning end product. From the navigation structure to the robust functionality, this website is positioned to engage and inspire visitors to experience Louisiana's Cajun Bayou.”
Wetlands Cultural Byway Videos
Louisiana’s Cajun Bayou Tourism and Houma Area Convention & Visitors Bureau have partnered together to produce a series of videos to promote the Wetlands Cultural Byway, which stretches over 250 miles between the two parishes. The three videos focus on a multigenerational family, a group of millennials, and a couple looking to enjoy a romantic weekend getaway, all experiences that can be found along the byway.
Lt. Governor Touts State Tourism Numbers and Bass Trail Launch
Lt. Gov. Nungesser shared highlights about the positive growth of tourism for Louisiana. He also talked about the roll out of Louisiana Bass Trail, designed to get more fishing enthusiast traveling through some of Louisiana’s best state parks. The initiative highlights seven lakes at eight state parks throughout north Louisiana. To learn more about the Louisiana Bass Trail, visit LouisianaBassTrail.com.
National Speaker to Talk Online Reputation Management
LBCT will wrap up its National Travel and Tourism Week activities by hosting a tourism workshop on Sense of Place and Reputation Management, presented by Jim Brody. Brody is the president and CDN (Chief DMO Nerd) for Sense of Place, a company dedicated to helping destination marketing organizations and their partners navigate the digital landscape. He has a keen understand of digital marketing and reputation management.
