The Group Travel Leader November/December 2022

art, artifacts, and educational displays that depict the

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ON THE COVER

A bison walks through the grasslands of Theodore Roosevelt National Park, North Dakota.

Photo by Mike Cavaroc.

(859)

BY BRIAN JEWELL

Believe it or not, travel is getting better.

Don’t get me wrong — 2022 has had more than its share of chal lenges. And those challenges come after two years of unthinkable dis ruption in our industry. But when you stop and consider where we’ve been since 2020, the current state of travel in 2022 doesn’t look too bad. And the future looks even better.

Of course, it’s impossible to predict the future. But based on what I’ve been experiencing on the road recently, I’m feeling optimistic about where the travel experience is headed. Here are some reasons why.

COVID RESTRICTIONS ARE FINALLY GONE.

In all but the most risk-averse communities, mask mandates, testing requirements and vaccine passports have become a thing of the past. Travelers have the freedom to go where they want when they want, without thinking about COVID-19. People are still welcome to take any precautions they deem wise. But there are few governments or corporations forcing those precautions on people who don’t agree with them. After nearly three years, that’s a blessing.

LABOR ISSUES ARE SORTING THEMSELVES OUT.

Travel and hospitality companies — along with many other industries — had enormous difficulty retaining workers in 2020 and 2021. This led to severe limitations in the levels of service travelers could expect. And while the industry is still under staffed, companies have found ways to adjust, and consumers have tweaked their expectations. Your hotel room may not be cleaned on a daily basis, but you probably won’t have the same trouble finding a restaurant that you did last year.

EDITOR’S MARKS

TECHNOLOGY IS IMPROVING EXPERIENCES.

Travel companies have made great technical strides in recent years, and many used the downtime during the pandemic to invest in tech upgrades that make experiences better for their customers. Before the pandemic, many motorcoaches didn’t have Wi-Fi (or it didn’t work). Today, most coaches have broadband internet service, and it seems to work well. The same is true for airplanes, where you can now get highspeed internet for as little as $5 per flight. And airlines, hotel companies and other travel companies have continued improving their mobile apps, making it easier than ever to check in, change plans and take care of other issues that once required a call to customer service.

TRAVELERS HAVE BECOME MORE RESILIENT.

One of the downsides of the travel industry is it has often been very sensitive to economic, political and cultural forces. Traditionally, a recession, high gas prices and even political unrest abroad would make a significant impact on Americans’ travel plans. But today, that doesn’t seem to be happening. Despite very high fuel prices, inflation, a loom ing recession and the war in Ukraine, demand for travel remains high. Perhaps this is still a result of the pent-up demand experienced during the pandemic. Or maybe it means travelers have learned to seize the day.

MORE PEOPLE HAVE A SEAT AT THE TABLE.

Throughout culture in general and the travel industry in particular, leaders have done a lot of work recently to create access and opportunities for groups of people that have historically been marginalized and under represented. And travelers are showing an appetite for experiences that allow them to connect with other cultures in authentic and meaningful ways. More people than ever have seats at the table and moments in the spotlight, and that makes travel better for us all.

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PRESLEY SHARES THOUGHTS ON THE EVOLUTION OF GROUP TRAVEL

Following the Going On Faith Conference in Panama City Beach, we took the opportunity to speak with Charlie Presley, founder of the Group Travel Family, about faith-based travel’s resilience after COVID-19 and about challenges and opportunities for groups in general.

Does faith-based travel have any unique characteristics that either improve or ham per its ability to rebound after three years of pandemic-related difficulties?

“I’m pretty optimistic about the growth of this segment of the overall market for a couple of reasons. First, we’re seeing some newer, younger faces at this conference now who are getting involved in organizing trips for their churches. When I say younger, I mean people in their 40s and 50s. There seems to be a new generation of planners rising up in many churches.

CHARLIE PRESLEY

A group leader must prepare their group for differences in room cleaning, check-in times and food service times in restaurants. If you prepare your group properly, they’ll adjust. Planners are getting better at that every day.”

Are there any advantages to group travel that the industry can emphasize?

“Absolutely. Travel is harder than it used to be. There will be many new converts to group travel due to the ease of going with a group. Convenience is a huge motivator today in airports, cities and everywhere else. Having someone do all the heavy lift ing so you can go enjoy somewhere new plays well after making all those plans for yourself for years. The pandemic only increased those feelings.”

What trends would you encourage travel planners and des tinations to address?

“Secondly, our best estimate is that the pandemic may have caused 12% to 15% of older travel planners in general to retire, but I don’t think the faith-based market was affected to that degree. In many cases, churches were not as affected by some of the cautionary thinking that affected the overall public. That’s not to say they weren’t careful; it just means as people of faith, they felt differently.

“Many people begin to think about their faith as they get older, and there are a lot of baby boomers out there now who are doing that. That will only increase the likelihood of people traveling with friends they know well from their churches.”

What do you see as the biggest obstacles today to a robust group travel industry?

“We’ve moved beyond the initial obstacles of group size and social distancing. There is sticker shock out there over the cost of travel, but people will adjust. Good leaders will always have a following.

“Facilities are a problem. Hotels don’t have the staff they had.

“Sightseeing is no longer enough for most travelers. They want to participate, so plan those kinds of interactive options for them. More free time must be built into itineraries. You can’t just take the group everywhere on a bus anymore. For instance, one afternoon you offer four options and assist people with making their own plans. They’ll grab an Uber and go.

“Uber and other technologies are part of the group travel landscape now. Travelers use apps every day. The tour planner or operator still covers the basics of transportation, flights, hotels and a few special meals or experiences as highlights of the trip. And I’d encourage everyone involved to be able to process elec tronic payments of all types. That’s where payments are going.”

Winter is upon us. Can groups utilize winter trips more?

“Sure. Winter trips don’t all have to be to warm weather destinations. DMOs and CVBs in cold weather cities can plan great weekend jaunts for groups. Try one and plan for half your usual turnout and let it sell out. When 20 people come back and say they had a great time, the next trip will be larger.”

THANKS AND GOOD LUCK, KACIE

SALEM, Ohio — Members of the Group Travel Family of Brands have come to know a familiar voice over the past five years. Kacie Honeywell has literally spoken to every travel planner delegate at the 35 conferences operated by the organization since 2018.

“It is with mixed emotions that I am informing our members of Kacie’s moving on to bigger and better things,” said Charlie Presley of The Group Travel Family.

Honeywell will be entering the educa tion field following the Boomers In Groups Conference this November.

“Kacie will always be a part of The Group Travel Family, and while we will miss her, we fully support her growth as a professional edu cator,” Presley added.

Travel plan ners built a strong relationship with Honeywell, whose primary responsibil ity was to solve any problem that arose for travel and meeting planners attending Group Travel Family of Brands confer ences. It is estimated she spoke with tens of thousands of travel planners and built relationship with over 7,000 delegates of the organization’s travel conferences.

While The Group Travel Family will miss Honeywell, they will not lose contact. Honeywell will be teaching in the Salem, Ohio, school district, the same town where The Group Travel Family is headquartered.

Congratulatory notes can be sent to Kacie at khoneywell@grouptravelfamily.com

The Group Travel Leader readers pose with an outdoor sculpture on the waterfront lawn at Spahr’s Seafood Restaurant.

“I enjoyed learning more about the surrounding areas in New Orleans. It’s more than just Bourbon Street.”

— ANDRAE MARABLE THE PACK ROADTRIP TRAVEL CLUB

LOUISIANA FAM

ONSITE IN LOUISIANA

AUTHENTIC FLAVORS SHINE THROUGH IN NEW ORLEANS AND BEYOND

AUTHENTIC ENCOUNTERS await travelers in Louisiana des tinations, large and small.

That’s what eight tour operator and travel planner readers of The Group Travel Leader discovered during a five-day familiarization tour of the state hosted by the Louisiana Office of Tourism. The tour took them to New Orleans, as well as smaller communities within a short drive of the Big Easy, where they got to know the local wildlife, admired the beautiful waterfront scenery and enjoyed the best of the area’s culture and cuisine.

Follow along on this itinerary to begin planning a Louisiana adventure for your group.

• ARRIVAL IN METAIRIE

• NOLA MOTORSPORTS

• SUNSET WALK ALONGSIDE LAKE PONTCHARTRAIN

• DINNER AT DRAGO’S

Travel planners began their trips by flying into New Orleans’ airport or driving to Metairie, a New Orleans suburb on the south shore of Lake Pontchartrain in Jefferson Parish. Once everyone arrived at the hotel there, the group departed to tour NOLA Motorsports Park, a high-adrenaline auto racing complex in nearby Avondale. The group toured the grounds, where squealing tires and revving engines are a regular part of the soundscape, and got to experience a race of their own on the park’s high-speed go-kart track. Next, the group made a quick stop at the Westwego Shrimp Lot to sample

ALL PHOTOS BY BRIAN JEWELL

Sazerac House

Sunset daiquiris on Lake Pontchartrain

Louisiana seafood products before returning to Metairie for a sunset stroll and daiquiris on the banks of Lake Ponchartrain. They finished the day with dinner at Drago’s — famous for its charbroiled oysters — before overnighting at the New Orleans Marriot Metairie at Lakeway.

Day

• BREAKFAST AT CAFÉ DU MONDE

DEPART FOR BAYOU LAFOURCHE

LAUREL VALLEY PLANTATION

LUNCH AT SPAHR’S

DEPART FOR HOUMA AREA

GREENWOOD GATOR FARM

HOUMA TRAVEL VISITOR CENTER

DEPART FOR JEFFERSON PARISH

DINNER AT MIDDENDORF’S MANCHAC

The second day of the FAM was a busy one, with experiences in three different parishes west of New Orleans. The first stop was at the Metairie location of Café du Monde for beignets and café au lait. Next, the group headed to Lafourche Parish, where they toured the historic Laurel Valley Plantation and enjoyed a delicious seafood lunch at Spahr’s. From there, they continued west to Terrebonne Parish, where they enjoyed a fascinating visit to Greenwood Gator Farm and a reception at the beautiful Houma Travel Visitor Center. Finally, they headed north to Jefferson Parish, where they enjoyed a deluxe catfish dinner with Oktoberfest brews at Middendorf’s in Manchac before overnighting at Hampton Inn in Hammond.

LAUREL VALLEY PLANTATION

Founded in the early 1800s, Laurel Valley Plantation is the area’s largest surviving historic sugarcane plantation. Visitors begin with a stop at a small museum and general store before proceeding to the plantation grounds, where dozens of 1840s slave cabins still remain amidst the sugarcane fields. During the tour, docents describe the way sugarcane was farmed and refined and share details about well-known movies that were filmed at the plantation, including scenes from the Ray Charles biopic “Ray.”

GREENWOOD GATOR FARM

Alligator farming is big business in Louisiana, and Greenwood Gator Farm gives visitors an inside look at these fascinating crea tures. The farm raises between 10,000 and 12,000 gators each year, and its visitor center walks guests through each step of the process. Along the way, visitors learn how gator eggs are harvested from the wild, how the animals are raised and how their meat and skin are used around the world. Guides share interesting facts about the

NOLA Motorsports

Oysters at Drago’s Metairie’s Café du Monde outpost

Beignets and café au lait at Café du Monde

Greenwood Gator Farms

Lakefront in Metairie

A classic Porsche at NOLA Motorsports

animals and introduce visitors to baby alligators. At the end of the tour, guests can feed marshmallows to adult gators from behind the safety of a chain-link fence.

HOUMA TRAVEL VISITOR CENTER

Less than an hour’s drive southwest of New Orleans, Houma is the epicenter of Louisiana’s Bayou Country. Opened in 2018, the Houma Travel Visitor Center is a beautiful facility with architectural accents made with locally harvested oyster shells. Inside, guests find interactive exhibits, streaming videos and other resources introducing them to the area’s ecology, history, culture and other points of interest.

Day

• GLOBAL WILDLIFE CENTER

• SHOPPING IN PONCHATOULA

• LUNCH AND WILDLIFE ENCOUNTER AT LA CARRETA

• DEPART FOR ST. TAMMANY PARISH

• LAKE PONTCHARTRAIN BASIN MARITIME MUSEUM

• COVINGTON TRAILHEAD MUSEUM

• TOUR AND DINNER AT THE SOUTHERN HOTEL

The group started their third day in Louisiana with thrilling ani mal experiences at the Global Wildlife Center in Folsom. Next, they traveled to nearby Ponchatoula, where they explored several shops in the charming downtown area, where they also had lunch and wildlife encounters hosted by local animal experts. After a photo stop with Ponchatoula’s iconic giant strawberry, they departed for St. Tammany Parish on the north shore of Lake Pontchartrain. There they explored the Lake Pontchartrain Basin Maritime Museum in Madisonville and learned more about the area’s history at the Covington Trailhead Museum. They finished the day with a reception, art tour and fabulous dinner at The Southern, a boutique hotel in Covington.

“I loved, loved, loved Laurel Valley plantation! History is so important. Our guide was very informative and interesting. He seemed to enjoy acquiring and sharing the information.”

— DEBBYE HARDIN

DISCOVERY TOURS AND CRUISES

Laurel Valley Plantation

Posing with the “Big Shrimp Boots” at the Houma Travel Visitor Center

Middendorf’s Waterfront Patio

An Oktoberfest plate at Middendorf’s

Exploring a slave cabin at Laurel Valley Plantation

Houma Travel Visitor Center

GLOBAL WILDLIFE CENTER

In Tangipahoa Parish, the Global Wildlife Center is an animal lover’s paradise. On open-air vehicle tours, travelers have up-close encounters with the 3,000-4,000 animals that live on the center’s 900 acres, including giraffes, deer, buffalo, llamas, alpaca and numerous varieties of birds. Groups can see the property via the tram tour, which stays on gravel paths, or book private excursions on World War II-era Pinzgauer vehicles that drive off-road throughout the property. Visitors should make sure to buy some animal feed at the park and have their cameras at the ready — many of the animals reach their heads right into the vehicles to eat out of people’s hands.

DOWNTOWN PONCHATOULA

Known as Louisiana’s strawberry capital, Ponchatoula is a charm ing, walkable town with a creative side. Many groups enjoy free time browsing downtown for antiques, handmade artwork and local produce at shops such as Berry Town Produce, the Collinswood and the Louisiana Treasures Museum. The group made shopping stops at four local establishments — Ruth’s, Flowers By Linda, A Touch of Country and The Country Market — before paying a visit to the habitat of Old Hardhide, a live alligator mascot who makes his home in the center of town.

LA CARRETA

At La Carreta, visitors get fresh Mexican-inspired dishes in a fun and creative atmosphere. The restaurant features a great private din ing area with a stage. For the FAM, a musical duo performed during lunch. After the meal was served, a representative from Kliebert’s Gator Tours brought out turtles, snakes and juvenile alligators for the group to hold and pose with. Members also visited the selfie stations set up on the restaurant’s second floor before walking over to the Big Berry sculpture downtown for a group photo.

LAKE PONTCHARTRAIN BASIN MARITIME MUSEUM

Situated on the banks of the Tchefuncte River in Madisonville, the Lake Pontchartrain Basin Maritime Museum introduces visi tors to the maritime history of Lake Pontchartrain and Louisiana. Visitors see a variety of historic watercraft, from pirogues and canoes to re-creation steamboats and a Civil War-era submarine. There’s also a fascinating collection of handmade models of 24 lighthouses from around the state. Films, interpretive programs and other interactive touches round out the experience for groups.

COVINGTON TRAILHEAD MUSEUM

Spanning 31 miles in St. Tammany Parish, the Tammany Trace is a former railroad that has been converted to a paved path for walking, biking and other recreation activities. In Covington, the Covington Trailhead Museum is both a jumping-off point for adventures on the Tammany Trace and a museum giving visitors an overview of the area. An 11-minute film educates visitors on the history of Covington. There are also rotating exhibits showcasing the creativity of area artists.

Befriending the buffalo

Feeding animals from a Pinzgauer

A giraffe at the Global Wildlife Center

A wildlife encounter

A wildlife demonstration during lunch in Pontchatoula

Fun at La Carreta

4Day• BREAKFAST AT SWEET OLIVE MARKET AND BAKERY

• CAJUN ENCOUNTERS SWAMP TOUR

• DEPART FOR NEW ORLEANS

• LUNCH AT THE BOURBON HOUSE

• SAZERAC HOUSE

• HAPPY HOUR AT DRURY PLAZA

• NEW ORLEANS SCHOOL OF COOKING

Travel planners enjoyed a gourmet breakfast at Sweet Olive Market in Mandeville before heading for Slidell for a fascinating swamp tour with Cajun Encounters. Afterward, they made their way to New Orleans, where they ate lunch at the iconic Bourbon House before touring the new Sazerac House attraction to learn all about the Sazerac company and the cocktail named in its honor. They then checked into the Drury Plaza Hotel, where they enjoyed a hosted happy hour before heading to the New Orleans School of Cooking for a memorable evening of classic Cajun and Creole Cuisine.

CAJUN ENCOUNTERS SWAMP TOUR

In Slidell, the Honey Island Swamp is home to hundreds of spe cies of birds and wildlife and makes an ideal setting for a Louisiana swamp tour. Cajun Encounters takes groups on flat-bottom boat excursions through the swamp with native guides who teach them about the ancient bald cypress trees and the many creatures that live among them. Guests almost always see alligators on the tours and may also see turtles, wild pigs and birds such as great blue herons and great white egrets. The tours also showcase a “Cajun village” where locals live on homes only accessible via boat.

The Bourbon House

Admiring the art at The Southern

Hors d’oeuvres at The Southern

Ponchatoula’s Big Berry

A re-created paddle wheeler at the Lake Pontchartrain Basin Maritime Museum

Up close with a wild alligator

Wildlife in Honey Island Swamp Museum

A lighthouse model at the Lake Ponchartrain Basin Maritime Museum

An outboard motor exhibit

SAZERAC HOUSE

When it opened in 2019 at the corner of Canal and Magazine streets, Sazerac House became one of New Orleans’ most popular new attractions. The free interactive museum introduces visitors to the history of the city by way of its cocktail culture through a combination of inventive video exhibits and live experiences. Guests learn about the history of the Sazerac company and the cocktail that bears its name. They can sample three different cocktails and watch as whiskey is distilled in a small working still on site. There’s also an extensive gift shop and a photo-friendly wall installation with more than 1,000 bottles of Sazerac products.

NEW ORLEANS SCHOOL OF COOKING

In a city known for its legendary culinary institutions, the New Orleans School of Cooking offers a distinctive culinary experience. Here visitors can see behind the scenes as local chefs prepare iconic dishes or even participate in hands-on cooking classes. The FAM group was treated to a demonstration during which the instructor prepared a corn and crab bisque, crawfish etouffee, bread pudding and pralines. The group learned about the history of Cajun and Creole cuisine while watching them be prepared, then had their fill of each dish before browsing the gift shop for spices, cookbooks and other kitchen essentials.

• VUE ORLEANS

• DEPART FOR HOME

After breakfast at the Drury Plaza, the group wrapped up their time in Louisiana with a visit to Vue Orleans, one of the newest attractions in the city. At the foot of Canal Street on the banks of the Mississippi River, Vue Orleans is a multifaceted attraction. On the lower levels, a series of immersive and interactive video displays introduce visitors to the history of New Orleans and the cultural trends that developed there. Visitors then enter elevators and ascend 34 stories above street level to an indoor observation deck that uses high-tech viewfinders to help them identify and learn more about New Orleans landmarks. The final stop is an open-air observation deck one story higher, offering gorgeous 360-degree views of the city that remained in the travel planners’ minds as they began their journeys home.

BOCA EXPRESS TRAVEL

Sazerac House

The Vue Orleans observation deck

Crawfish etouffee at the New Orleans School of Cooking

A Mardi Gras exhibit at Vue Orleans

New Orleans hosts

Orleans

of Cooking

— CLAUDIA DUNNE

“The Southern Hotel is exactly what my clients demand — charming, unique, luxury and local flavor.”

SPOTLIGHT

NORTH DAKOTA

By Rachel Crick

Just one glance at its rolling, grass-covered plains or its rugged, majestic badlands makes it easy to understand why North Dakota is the state that in spired President Theodore Roosevelt throughout his life. Roosevelt, also known as America’s conser vationist president, fell in love with the wild and beauti ful terrain, and group travelers are sure to as well.

The same land that offers serene views of wildlife and the comfort of hearty cuisine also showcases an exciting blend of cultures and captures the essence of the adventurous American West. Here are the highlights of the state’s group attractions and experiences that best demonstrate the spirit of North Dakota.

The International Peace Garden spans the border between the U.S. and Canada in North Dakota.

BY TRIPP DOUGLAS, COURTESY WALNUT HILLS

ALL PHOTOS COURTESY ND TOURISM

ARTWORK BY DONIA SIMMONS

POPULAR DEMAND

THEODORE ROOSEVELT NATIONAL PARK

The wide-open plains meet brilliantly colored rock formations in this North Dakota territory that awed and inspired its namesake. The Theodore Roosevelt National Park, divided into distinct units, offers visitors the oppor tunity to explore over 70,000 acres full of protected wildlife like wild horses, bison and elk. In the North Unit, groups can take a 14-mile scenic drive up to its famous overlooks for sweeping views of the park. The South Unit’s biggest claim to fame is the Badlands. Groups can experience these rocky and colorfully banded buttes and ridges with a 48-mile scenic drive or with ranger-led programs.

INTERNATIONAL PEACE GARDEN

Designed to represent the peace and friendship among nations, the International Peace Garden is a tran quil conservatory and garden in the Turtle Mountains. With land on both sides of the U.S. and Canadian border, this must-see attraction also counts as an international travel destination, so visitors should be sure to bring their passports. Groups can take guided tours of the 2,300 acres of flowers, lakes, trails and water features. Some of the most popular attractions among visitors are the Floral Clock, gifted by Bulova, and the Sunken Gardens, full of water features, sculptures and flowers.

SCANDINAVIAN HERITAGE PARK

To honor the Scandinavian heritage of many North Dakota residents, the Scandinavian Heritage Association created a tribute in the heart of Minot. At the Scandinavian Heritage Park, Finland, Iceland, Denmark, Norway and Sweden are represented through architecture and sculp tures. Groups can take self-guided tours to visit the park’s landmarks, such as the Gol Stave Church Museum, a replica of the intricately crafted, towering medieval Stave churches in Norway. Some of the park’s other famous Nordic struc tures include a Danish windmill and a 240-year-old log cabin from Norway. The Scandinavian architecture and history can be enjoyed from the park’s walking trail.

Discovering the Dala horse at the Scandinavian Heritage Park

Exploring the rock formations at Theodore Roosevelt National Park

Scandinavian Heritage Park

Sunrise at Theodore Roosevelt National Park

UP AND COMING

POINT TO POINT PARK

Named for the game Theodore Roosevelt loved to play with his children, Point to Point Park aims to give each visitor a thrilling experience. Just like the rules of the former president’s favorite game, groups must go over, under or through every obstacle they encounter in the park. However, the so-called obstacles at this new attraction include fun activities like mini golf, a lazy river and a zip line, which are open during the warmer seasons. Point to Point Trails, open year-round, offer visitors a fantastic view of Medora and the surrounding North Dakota bluffs.

SUNFLOWER SUPERBLOOM

As one of the biggest producers of sunflowers in the U.S., North Dakota lights up with a “Sunflower Superbloom” annually in August and September. Each year, North Dakota Tourism puts out an updated map of farms across the state where vis itors can see the fields. In 2022, there was a bit of a delay in the planting season, meaning the bright yellow flowers bloomed even longer in many fields. Over the past couple years, more farms have added sunflowers to their collection of crops. A QR code is now available in every field to take you straight to the online sunflower map. Groups can take their pick of farms across the state where they can stroll through the flowers, pose for photos and get seeds for planting their own sunflowers, free of charge.

MHA INTERPRETIVE CENTER

Opened in 2021, the MHA Interpretive Center is a multipurpose cultural site designed to honor the Three Affiliated Tribes. Located in the heart of the Fort Berthold Reservation, the center contains a museum that details the history of the Mandan, Hidatsa and Arikara people through interactive exhibits and tribal artifacts. The center also contains a large kitchen for preparing traditional meals, a 500-seat amphitheater for ceremonies and per formances, and a classroom for demonstrations of MHA traditions. Groups can tour the expansive museum, participate in cultural demonstrations and grab a hot drink and souvenir in the museum’s coffee and gift shops.

OVERNIGHT SENSATIONS

JASPER HOTEL

Founded by the Father of Fargo, Jasper B. Chapin, this boutique hotel in downtown Fargo aims to combine the conveniences of modern life with the comforts of North Dakota traditions. Sweeping views of the city and the contemporary, minimalist décor create a tasteful backdrop for a group’s travels, while the amenities, including a fitness center and Nordic sauna, add an element of luxury. At Rosewild, the hotel’s restaurant, Nordic plains culinary traditions and local ingredients col lide to create exciting cuisine for every meal, from Norwegian salmon to hearth-roasted chicken to an aged ribeye. Groups can enjoy a classic cocktail and a family-style meal of seasonal chef picks for dinner.

Sunflower Superbloom

MHA Interpretive Center

Point to Point Park

OVERNIGHT SENSATIONS

ROUGH RIDERS HOTEL

The rustic charm of the historic Rough Riders Hotel comes from its long history. President Roosevelt once stayed in this 76-room inn located in downtown Medora, so history buffs will feel right at home. Historic rooms full of antique wooden furniture invoke all the nostalgia of the West, while the hotel’s modern amenities make today’s travel ers comfortable. Theodore’s Dining Room offers a selection of Western favorites, like braised buffalo shanks, a dry-aged bone-in pork chop and prime rib. Travelers can grab a craft cocktail or local beer from TR’s Tavern to accompany their meal.

MEMORABLE MEALS

PITCHFORK STEAK FONDUE

For a dining experience groups won’t soon for get, Pitchfork Steak Fondue offers a Western-style cookout with the Badlands as a backdrop. During the summer, groups can dine outdoors while cow boys cook up their choice of sirloin, chicken, trout and vegetables, skewered on the tines of a pitchfork and roasted over a wood fire. A wide selection of homemade fondue sauces and fresh sides served buffet-style accompany each visitor’s meal, and to round out the evening, a choice of lemon bars and brownies await. The restaurant is right next door to the Burning Hills Amphitheatre, where groups can head to catch a performance of the “Medora Musical,” also known as the “Greatest Show in the West.“

HUCKLEBERRY HOUSE

A brand-new addition to Bismarck, Huckleberry House brings both Nordic fare and a unique culi nary flare to the table. The elegant restaurant over looking the Missouri River is decorated through out with chic, minimalist furniture and warm wood tones. On the menu, groups will find food and beverages uncommon to North Dakota; the menu features creative cocktails to sip on and entrees with rich and flavorful Scandinavian and German ingredients, including lingonberries, sauerkraut and Danish blue cheese. To surprise and delight their tastebuds, guests can try international culinary classics like smoked salmon rillettes, cheese but tons, Hasselback potatoes and buttermilk chicken schnitzel.

NDTOURISM.COM

Pitchfork Steak Fondue

Rough Riders Hotel

Jasper Hotel

DistillingDIVERSITY

Rock Town Distillery in Little Rock uses Arkansas materials and ingredients to

spirits.

COURTESY ROCK TOWN DISTILLERY

COURTESY WHISKEY ACRES

Harvesting grain at Whiskey Acres

An aging barrel at Nearest Green

A Copper and Kings cocktail

COURTESY COPPER AND KINGS BY TOM ADKINSON

Aviation American Gin

COURTESY AVIATION AMERICAN GIN

FOR EVERY SPIRIT, THERE IS A PLACE

BY TOM ADKINSON

Americans have been a spirited bunch ever since Colonial times, as in distilling spirits and consum ing the products of their labor.

Today, many distillers have added an extra step in the process — showing off how they make those products to visitors who drop in to see them.

Distillery tours are a major ingredient for many brands’ business recipes, and tour experiences vary considerably. Some are huge in scale, and some are practically artisan encounters. Some have truly intriguing backstories, and at least one offers a movie star’s humor and an escape room at the end of the tour.

The Kentucky Bourbon Trail and the Jack Daniel’s Distillery in Tennessee were pioneers in marketing tours, so much so that many people equate distillery tours only with whiskey. That’s not valid anymore because your groups can learn about brandy, vodka, gin and other taste treats, too.

Here are some distinctive distillery experiences to incorporate into your group trips.

Copper and Kings

LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY

Copper and Kings in the Butchertown neighbor hood of Louisville, Kentucky, stands out in a state where a bourbon distillery seems to be around every curve in the road. That’s because Copper and Kings makes brandy — darn good brandy, if you go by the organizations that rate such things.

Even before you partake of a tour and a taste, you see that Copper and Kings has modern sensibilities. Oceanic shipping containers accent its architectural look, solar panels stand out, and the monarch but terfly garden is a special touch.

Kentucky’s primary distilling industry actually does play a role here because Copper and Kings uses the state’s abundance of used bourbon barrels for maturing its brandies. It adds extra touches with

staff-curated music that brightens every tour.

One music connection is that its three pot-stills, which were manufactured in Louisville at Vendome Copper and Brass Works, are named for women on Bob Dylan’s “Desire” album. They are Isis (1,000 gallons), Magdalena (750 gallons) and Sara (50 gallons).

Another music angle is “sonic aging,” the ampli fied music that bathes the aging barrels in the matu ration cellar. You can’t say the brandy is serenaded because the sound system is quite serious. As Copper and Kings likes to say, “Aged in Kentucky bourbon barrels. Matured with rock ’n’ roll.”

Even though tours include a tasting, the Alexander’s rooftop bar and restaurant is the place to end a visit. Try a brandy Old Fashioned or the Copper and Kings version of a Sazerac while enjoy ing views of Louisville’s skyline.

COPPERANDKINGS.COM

Whiskey Acres

DEKALB, ILLINOIS

You’ve heard of farm-to-table dining, but Whiskey Acres in DeKalb, Illinois, offers farm-tobottle drinking.

This “seed to spirit” experience just 60 miles west of Chicago offers a solid education in agriculture, distilling, tasting and sometimes music appreciation. Co-founder Nick Nagele calls this region “the Napa Valley of corn.”

“Tours begin at the edge of a cornfield. At the right time of year, we show you various varieties in the field,” Nagele said, explaining that Whiskey Acres’ distillers can, over the course of seasons, tease out flavor profiles based on what corn is used. The farm spreads across 2,000 acres, and about 10% of that is dedicated to corn for distilling.

“We were taught to make whiskey,” Nagele said, recalling the impact of master distiller Dave Pickerell.

Pickerell, who was vital to the international

Whiskey acres, a “seed to spirit” distillery

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growth of Maker’s Mark bourbon, later in his career was called the Johnny Appleseed of American whis key for helping various small distilleries get started and for advocating for premium products. Whiskey Acres was one of his seed-scattering stops.

Nagele, who sees himself as farmer more than a distiller, tips his hat to master distiller Robb Wallace. Wallace started his whiskey education from scratch and eventually earned a master’s degree in the craft from Heriot-Watt University in Scotland.

Tours at Whiskey Acres (Friday, Saturday and Sunday) include three tastings and often feature food trucks and live bands. Afterward, you can taste more beverages in the barn-inspired visitor center, where you can order cocktails such as a Barn Door, a Back 40 and a Roll in the Hay. Farm references run deep here.

WHISKEYACRES.COM

Nearest Green Distillery SHELBYVILLE, TENNESSEE

One of America’s newest distilleries comes with one of distilling history’s greatest stories. It’s the tale of Nathan “Nearest” Green, the man who taught a fellow Tennessean how to make great whiskey.

Nearest Green, often called Uncle Nearest, was a respected mid-1800s distiller in the hills and hollows of southern middle Tennessee. He never learned to read or write, and no photo of him is known to exist. However, he had worldwide impact because a young fellow named Jack Daniel was his student.

In case you haven’t guessed already, Nearest Green was enslaved when Jack Daniel, himself a young farmhand, started learning the special touch of the Lincoln County Process that involves filtering spirits through hardwood charcoal. (The result is Tennessee Whiskey, which is distinct from bourbon.)

Jack Daniel sold Nearest Green’s whiskey to Civil War soldiers, and after the war, bought the distillery Nearest Green had operated. The two continued to work together, but Nearest Green retired when Jack Daniel moved the distillery. Although Nearest Green didn’t work in Jack Daniel’s Lynchburg oper ation, his sons and grandsons did.

Nearest Green’s story got overwhelmed in the eventual international fame of the Jack Daniel’s brand, but his life, role and impact became the heart of a new business.

Entrepreneur Fawn Weaver brought Nearest Green back into the spotlight, creat ing the Nearest Green Distillery and intro ducing Uncle Nearest Premium Whiskey in 2017. You can’t miss the distillery on U.S. 231 west of Shelbyville because its primary building originally was a massive Tennessee Walking Horse auction barn.

It’s the centerpiece of a 323-acre, $50 mil lion project led by an all-female executive team that includes a descendant of Nearest Green. That’s Victoria Eady Butler, Nearest Green’s great-great-granddaughter, who is the distillery’s master blender and the first known Black woman master whiskey blender anywhere.

NEARESTGREEN.COM

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Rock Town Distillery LITTLE ROCK, ARKANSAS

There certainly were Arkansas distilleries between Prohibition’s end in 1933 and the early 2000s, but that era’s under-the-radar distillers wouldn’t give a stranger a tour.

That changed in 2010 when Rock Town Distillery opened in downtown Little Rock as the first legal distillery in the state since the great temperance experiment ended. It was the dream of Little Rock native Phil Brandon, whose electrical engineering college education was worlds apart from making award-winning spirits.

Rock Town’s product range is extensive, and vodka is its biggest seller. It has won double gold awards at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition for Rock Town Vodka, Single Barrel Arkansas Bourbon, Brandon’s Gin and Elderflower Liqueur.

Brandon keeps the focus on Arkansas. All of the corn, wheat and rye he uses come from within 125 miles of Little Rock, aging barrels are from a Hot Springs cooperage, and even the packaging boxes are made in state.

In addition to basic tours, which show off the entire production process, there are cocktail classes

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A tasting flight at Uncle Nearest

and an in-depth bourbon and whiskey history tour. Tours include tastings of several products. A spe cial one is a coffee liqueur using beans from Leivas Coffee, a shop owned by a Guatemalan immigrant who sources the beans from his family’s farm back in Guatemala.

Along with the distillery, Rock Town operates a traditional cocktail lounge that features Rock Town products, plus local craft beers and wines.

In a few short years, Rock Town has developed a significant profile. In fact, a recent Tripadvisor ranking of Little Rock attractions included it with big-name attractions such as the Little Rock Central High School National Historic Site, the Clinton Presidential Library and the Arkansas State Capitol. ROCKTOWNDISTILLERY.COM

Aviation American Gin Distillery PORTLAND, OREGON

While “Keep Portland Weird” is a popular slo gan, “Keep Portland Laughing” may gain popularity along with the brand-new Aviation American Gin Distillery and Visitor Center. The attraction comes with a splash of laughter — and a taste of superior gin.

That’s because the spirit of actor and distillery co-owner Ryan Reynolds permeates the nearly 33,000-square-foot facility — sort of like the essence of juniper and other botanicals permeates a good gin.

“If a grown-up theme park and a bartender fell in love and produced offspring, it would be this gin factory,” was Reynolds’ droll assessment when the distillery opened in September 2022.

Tours are intimate (group maximum is 12 people) and show off the distillation process and the bottling line. Tours highlight Aviation American’s blend of botanicals — cardamom, coriander, French laven der, anise seed, sarsaparilla, juniper and two kinds of orange peels — and how the distillers determine where the “heart of the spirit” exists in the cutting process. That “heart cut” is at 142 proof before it is blended with pure water to reach the desired 84 proof for bottling.

Of course, tours include tastings, but there’s a bonus experience — visiting Reynolds’ office, which doubles as an escape room. There is more than one Reynolds puzzle to solve.

The distillery’s bar offers more tastings. Its menu includes six draft cocktails that rotate seasonally, plus traditional cocktails such as an Aviation and (in keeping with the flying theme) an Amelia Earhart.

AVIATIONGIN.COM

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The tasting room at Rock Town Distillery

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Inside the distillery at Aviation American Gin The Aviation visitor center

A history exhibit featuring Ryan Reynolds at Aviation American Gin

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AMERICAN

AFRICAN AMERICAN HERITAGE GUIDE

BRING IT TO

tour groups, reunions and more, nothing beats Myrtle Beach. We proudly offer top-flight accommodations and endless activities, along with 2,000+ restaurants to enjoy. It’s time to gather your crew – then bring them to The Beach.

started

COLLECTING

CULTURE

BLACK ARTISTS AND ARTISANS OFFER INTERPRETIVE STOPS FOR GROUPS

BY KIM JACK-RILEY

Travelers can learn about the rich cultural history of the blues at 100 Men Hall in Bay St. Louis..

THE ARTS PROVIDE A WINDOW INTO THE SOUL OF BLACK AMERICA.

For travelers looking for more meaningful experiences, arts and culture encounters can provide unique insight into the past and present of the Black community.

From Philadelphia to Mississippi, here are some arts and culture institutions that will help bring Black culture to life for your travelers.

YMI CULTURAL CENTER Asheville, North Carolina

Nestled within the southern Appalachian Mountains, the city of Asheville, North Carolina, radiates scenic beauty. The YMI Cultural Center (initially branded the Young Men’s Institute), provides a central hub supporting Black arts and culture busi nesses in the area, generating a ripple effect of growth and support for Black entrepreneurs.

BY EDDIE ROBINSON, COURTESY COASTAL MS

“While most incubator programs assist with business plans and financ ing, our design is deliberate in providing leadership for scaling up small businesses and advising on some of the pitfalls that often lead to premature closures,” said Alexandria Monque Ravenel, the center’s managing director.

The center features retail spaces for small Black-owned businesses. Among participating businesses are the Penny Cup coffeehouse and a boutique and art gallery, Noir Collective AVL.

The gallery features work by local artists of color, some of whom don’t have much following in the community. The center staff matches them with experienced and well-resourced artists of color who act as curators or coaches and consult on executing an exhibition.

The historic building also features displays of artifacts that are rotated out from the organization’s archives. The artifacts range from masks and instruments to advertising posters from events like Goombay (a festival celebrating Black life in Asheville), as well as sculptures, historical maps and original paintings.

Visitors can view the work of the resident artists, meet with staff, enjoy a YMI specialty beverage and pick up souvenirs at the boutique next door. www.ymiculturalcenter.org

HOUSTON MUSEUM OF AFRICAN AMERICAN CULTURE Houston

Groups looking for an affordable way to experience Black culture will find it in the Houston Museum of African American Culture. It is the most visited African American cultural asset in Houston, and it attracts visitors with thought-provoking exhibits, films and engaging programs.

“The current economic times do not adversely impact the museum’s commitment to free admission,” said John Guess Jr., the museum’s CEO. “We are supported by the income we receive from our museum store, the Culture Shoppe. When visitors buy from the store, they, in effect, subsidize free admission.”

The Stairwell of Memory is the museum’s permanent exhibition. It provides a clear message to younger generations while also confirming memories for older visitors.

“It is the museum’s way of making sure that everyone feels them selves a part of American issues and hopefully elicits thoughtful possi ble solutions,” Guess said. “Our lobby sets the tone with its portrait of HMAAC founder and former Mayor Lee P. Brown. Immediately one understands that history is an important part of our culture and that we are not simply a visual arts museum but rather a museum dedicated to the broader impact and importance of culture.”

Exhibitions, films and programs tend to be contemporary and thought provoking, dealing with issues of race, gender and ethnicity — reflect ing the culture of its surrounding communities. There is also a strong commitment to community involvement.

“The museum is known as ‘Houston’s Black Film House,’” Guess said, “and our decades-old film series captures a dedicated film audience with films that are both topical and historical.” hmaac.org

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YMI CULTURAL CENTER

Artwork at the Houston Museum of African American Culture

A Houston Museum of African American Culture gallery

A historic image of the Asheville building that now houses the YMI Cultural Center

The experience is unforgettable . Because the lessons should never be forgotten

Mississippi Civil Rights Museum | Jackson, Mississippi

MISSISSIPPI BLUES TRAIL

Coastal Mississippi

When it comes to African American arts and culture, the Mississippi Blues Trail’s sites run the gamut from city streets to cotton fields, train depots to cemeteries, and clubs to churches. The trail encompasses sites all over the state. Groups will find two noteworthy sites in the towns along the Mississippi Gulf Coast Jazz and blues fans shouldn’t miss the Ground Zero Blues Club. Both the original location in Clarksdale and the newly opened location in Biloxi are co-owned by Oscar-winning actor Morgan Freeman and feature live performances from local, regional and national musicians almost every night of the week. The clubs are fashioned in the style of a juke joint. The extensive lineup of live music, Southern dining and an afternoon happy hour make this a great stop for groups craving authenticity.

The 100 Men Hall in Bay St. Louis is another jewel among the out standing sites on the Mississippi Blues Trail. Legendary musicians such as Ray Charles, Etta James, James Brown, BB King, James Booker and more played there.

“The hall tells a more nuanced story than the ones you hear about Mississippi outside of this state,” said Rachel Dangermond, director of the 100 Men Hall. “It tells of Black self-reliance and self-directness. The music that evolved inside this hall is purely Black American music, ranging from blues to bounce.”

Visitors love the 100 Men Hall People Project, a series of 274 portraits of locals who have a history with the hall. Also, there is a giant mural scaling one side of the building that tells a visual story of the hall’s history. msbluestrail.org

THE COLORED GIRLS MUSEUM

Philadelphia

In Philadelphia, the Colored Girls Museum, founded in 2015 in a historic Germantown home, is the only museum that shares the stories and perspectives of “ordinary” girls and women of the African diaspora. Each room of this exquisite three-story Victorian home features art and artifacts significant to ordinary Black girls. Each year exhibitions shift to consider another aspect, concern or story impacting the well-being of ordinary girls and women of the African diaspora.

The museum features art and cultural experiences including exhi bitions, performances and other programming.

“We are the first and only institution of our kind distinct for collect ing, exhibiting, honoring and decoding artifacts rooted in the experiences and herstory of Black girlhood,” said associate director Ian Friday. “One of the museum’s great strengths is that while we nurture many Black femme artists and are proud to be part of the ecosystem that helps early and midcareer artists build their careers, our primary goals are not focused on success within the art world. We exist to help communities unlock the latent power that we already possess.”

The museum is a community institution that carries out its mission in a collaborative way.

“We museum differently,” Friday said, “and are open to all who are ready for a conscious revolution. The experience is multi-layered and multi-sensory, so one can expect to explore sights, sounds and smells in what you see and what you imagine.” thecoloredgirlsmuseum.com

MAKING THEIR MARK

Brandy Evans VISIT WICHITA

Brandy Evans joined Visit Wichita in 2021 as the vice president of marketing, oversee ing advertising, public relations and social media. She is also working on projects to amplify diverse voices in the community and ultimately make Wichita feel more inclusive.

The 21-year marketing and tourism veter an graduated from Louisiana State Universi ty in Shreveport with an English degree and landed a job with a local newspaper. A year and a half later, in 2001, she decided to help the travel media craft their stories as a public relations specialist for the Shreveport-Bossi er Convention and Tourist Bureau. Evans was promoted to vice president of communica tions in 2004.

Evans has aided the community by devel oping programs to promote small businesses through her work. In Shreveport-Bossier, she introduced Restaurant Week and later Black Restaurant Week as a board member at the African American Chamber of Commerce. In Wichita, Evans hosts professional devel opment seminars for industry partners to provide them with the skills and strategies to elevate their businesses. Off the clock, Evans is a committed volunteer with organizations like Step Forward Literacy Project, Highland Friendship House Kid’s Club and Junior Achievement Spark Workshop.

Over the years, she has mentored sever al young professionals who enjoy thriving careers as executives in tourism, advertising, marketing and academia.

Wichita, Kansas

Ground Zero Blues Club in Biloxi

NIAGARA FALLS UNDERGROUND RAILROAD HERITAGE CENTER

Niagara Falls, New York

The Niagara Falls Underground Railroad Heritage Center is an experiential and public art museum that presents the stories of Black freedom seekers and abolitionists at the forefront of Underground Railroad interpretation.

“The Heritage Center’s approach to Underground Railroad inter pretation is not to ask how communities of African descent survived,” said interim director Ally Spongr, “but rather to demonstrate how these communities thrived.”

Visitors leave with an expanded understanding of the value of Niagara Falls and their own role in a movement for social justice that continues today. Traditional history lessons about the Underground Railroad focus on white abolitionists and Harriet Tubman, but the museum seeks to highlight the contributions of others.

“The reality is that the Underground Railroad existed because count less ordinary Black individuals took extraordinary risks to advance the freedom of themselves and others,” Spongr said. “The stories of resistance and resilience that occurred in Niagara Falls before the Civil War are as inspiring as they are astonishing.”

niagarafallsundergroundrailroad.org

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BY ZAMANI FEELINGS, COURTESY THE COLORED GIRLS MUSEUM

The Colored Girls Museum

Niagara Falls Underground Railroad Heritage Center

CONTENT

Little Rock made important strides for civil rights

BY VICKIE MITCHELL

In early September 1957, every student at Little Rock Central High School was white. Today, a majority of its students are minority, and most are Black. They owe their presence there to the nine brave Black students who desegregated the school 65 years ago.

Central High’s significance in the bat tle for civil rights makes it a logical start to civil rights tours in the Arkansas capital. The school is a top 10 site on the U.S. Civil Rights Trail.

Central High School is a National Historic Site

As students study inside the yellow brick walls of Little Rock Central High School National Historic Site, visitors pour into the visitors center to learn about the events of September 1957. They are reminded that the situation was so volatile that President Eisenhower called in the military to protect the Little Rock Nine as they faced verbal, psychological and physical assaults.

Although the school interior is not open to tours, groups can visit the visitors cen ter and its bookstore, walk the grounds and if they have reservations, take the

once-daily outdoor tour guided by the National Park Service. There are also selfguided walking tours.

Locals fight for civil rights

From there, tours can drive by, or with planning, tour the home of Daisy Bates. She was president of the Arkansas chapter of the NAACP in 1957 and served as liai son for the Little Rock Nine. The students and their families gathered at her house during the three weeks that desegregation efforts were thwarted. Her role put Bates in danger, as her home was firebombed and crosses were burned on its lawn.

Bates is one of many Little Rock residents who championed civil rights. The Ar kansas Civil Rights Heritage Trail is helping tell their story. It is a series of bronze plaques that detail contributions residents have made to ensure equal rights. Plaques are added each year. The trail will eventually reach the William J. Clinton Library and Museum, also a U.S. Civil Rights trail site.

The Civil Rights Heritage trail begins at the Little Rock Nine memorial at the Arkansas Capitol. The bronze sculptures capture the looks of worried determination as the students prepared to integrate the school.

Mosaic Templars preserves African American culture

Like the heritage trail, the Mosaic Templars Cultural Center is an Arkansas Civil Rights Trail site that keeps expanding the stories it tells. Starting soon, the center will begin a $2.5 million project to upgrade exhibits and make them more interactive and vibrant. Built on the site of the Mosaic Templars of America, a Black frater nal organization in the early to mid-1900s, the center preserves the history of Little Rock’s Black community. It is situated on a prominent corner in the West Ninth Street district, Little Rock’s once-thriving Black business district. During Jim Crow, when Blacks weren’t allowed in many white-owned businesses, the district provided services they needed — from barbershops and hotels to restaurants and pharmacies — and built community among Blacks as they were treated unfairly elsewhere.

BUSINESS

BUILDERS

BLACK ENTREPRENEURS CAPITALIZE ON TOURISM

BY BRIONA LAMBACK

AFRICAN AMERICANS HAVE LONG BEEN A PART OF THE TRAVEL AND TOURISM INDUSTRY.

Since the days of the Negro Motorist Green Book, Black entrepreneurs have been helping guide, host and educate one another and travelers in the most innovative ways.

The following six Black entrepreneurs are continuing that legacy, building and operating businesses in the tourism industry.

TIA CLARK

CASUAL CRABBING WITH TIA Charleston, South Carolina

The name Casual Crabbing with Tia began as a joke. Tia Clark, the company’s owner, didn’t come up with the business name — a friend did. But Clark’s entrepreneurial journey has been no laughing matter.

In the Geechee culture of South Carolina, where Clark grew up, seafood was a big part of the local diet. Crabbing was always happening in Charleston, but Clark didn’t take the trip that would make her an entrepreneur until six years ago.

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Clarence Goodman showcases the rich Black history of the Windy City with his company C Chicago Tours.

As a decades-long food-and-beverage veteran, Clark always had an entrepreneurial spirit and even had plans to open a cocktail bar before finding crabbing.

“This was never a thing in my head,” she said. “It took me doing this, physically being in it, living it, taking a chance and quitting my other job to really even start to feel like it was real.”

From behind the bar, she learned about Airbnb Experiences, the platform where she hosts “Let’s Go Crabbing.” Now she spends six days a week on the city’s docks hosting groups of 12 on shared experiences, as well as private experiences for groups of up to 50. Travelers learn the art of throwing a cast net, how to properly clean crabs and other methods used in crabbing.

For Clark, it’s important to use her growing business to connect more people, especially children and women, to the water. After being selected as one of 50 women from the fishing industry to attend a cli mate change conference in Seattle, she realized the role inaccessibility plays in our environment.

“I would like to create the space for women and kids, specifically, to go to and feel comfortable and build their bond with the water in any way they can,” Clark said.

casualcrabbingwithtia.com

MONIQUE GREENWOOD AKWAABA INNS Brooklyn, New York

Monique Greenwood always knew she’d be an entrepreneur. Her grandfather started one of Washington D.C.’s oldest Black-owned businesses, a moving and storage company, in the 1970s, and now she is continuing her family’s entrepreneurial heirloom and the African American legacy of operating bed and breakfasts.

Akwaaba Inns began down the street from Greenwood’s home in the Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood of Brooklyn, which she has called home for decades, when in 1995, she purchased a rundown 1860s mansion. She fixed it up and opened its doors to travelers in hopes of showing the world a different side of the community she loves.

“Owning the B&Bs was a way to marry my life plan with a business plan,” Greenwood said. “I aspire to have a home I love in a city that I love for each season of the year.”

Operating B&Bs is not easy work. Nearly 30 years ago, when Greenwood began, her loved ones joked about how surprised they were she was an innkeeper. Greenwood couldn’t cook or clean when she started but had a knack for interior design and loved the idea of creating community and experiences for travelers in her favorite cities. Her love of people and understanding of real estate investment motivated her.

With locations in Philadelphia, Brooklyn and the Pennsylvania Poconos, Akwaaba, the Ghanaian word for welcome, creates an inti mate experience that large hotel brands can’t duplicate. The Mansion on Noble Lane in the Poconos is a great option that can accommodate 34 people in14 guestrooms.

In Philadelphia, swanky suites named after Philly-bred music leg ends like Patti LaBelle and Teddy Pendergrass can sleep 20 people. Akwaaba Brooklyn, the smallest property, has just four guest rooms

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BY BRANDON BURNS, COURTESY HOTEL DRYCE

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Casual Crabbing with Tia

A guestroom at Akwaaba Philadelphia

Hotel Dryce in Fort Worth

David Peters leading a Black Liberation Walking Tours group

that sleep eight guests. There are also two glamping tents and an event space for intimate gatherings.

Greenwood incorporates Black culture into every location.

“We know that so many people of color aren’t treated like the kings and queens they are,” Greenwood said. “So when they come into our space, it’s a safe space.” akwaaba.com

JONATHAN MORRIS HOTEL DRYCE

Fort Worth, Texas

Jonathan Morris, co-owner of Hotel Dryce, Fort Worth’s newest boutique hotel, was meant to be an entrepreneur. In grade school, he ran a business making homemade bookmarks, and in high school, rhinestone bandannas. As an adult, Morris spent years working in digital marketing before it was time to scratch his entrepreneurial itch again. It came to fruition in the form of the Fort Worth Barber Shop in 2014 — a staple in Funkytown’s community.

Now he’s curating the same beloved experience at Hotel Dryce. As a traveler, Morris enjoys staying at boutique hotels and is always searching for experiences like the one he’s building: authentic, locally inspired and with a sense of place. He said he felt there wasn’t yet an independent hotel space in Fort Worth that met the criteria, so he created one.

“If I can connect people who are coming through the city with people who are in and of the city and live and breathe the city, that to me is where there’s some magic that can happen,” Morris said.

Hotel Dryce is a 21-room hotel with a cozy lobby bar and an out door courtyard. For Morris, it’s essential to create a place locals and travelers want to be. He’s intentional about taking things beyond what typical hotels can offer by fostering a space that also serves as a community hub.

As an entrepreneur new to the tourism industry, Morris’ most significant challenge has been learning the ins and outs of the hotel business, mainly because it’s a 24/7 operation, something he wasn’t accustomed to with the barbershop. It’s a different sort of rhythm. hoteldryce.com

DAVID PETERS

BLACK LIBERATION WALKING TOURS Oakland, California

A born hustler and a third-generation native of Oakland, California, David Peters has long been an entrepreneur. But the work he feels most called to do is preserving the history of West Oakland’s Hoover-Foster neighborhood, where he grew up. It’s a legendary neighborhood known for its role in the Black Liberation movement, where the Black Panther Party launched its free breakfast program.

After 20 years away, Peters moved back next door to the home he was born in, but he wasn’t about to let this history slip away as gentrification moved in. The community he grew up in was a warm place where folks looked out for each other and cared about their neighbors’ well-being. Today, he says, the neighborhood doesn’t feel quite the same, but he’s made it his business to wave down neighbors passing through to revive that true sense of community.

“It became something not that I was doing but something inside of me that had to come out some kind of way,” Peters said.

Black Liberation Walking Tours started as a self-guided tour using an app and audio collected from elders and historians in the community. After witnessing people around the neighborhood doing the tour online, he decided to upgrade his offering. Now, it’s also a walking tour with essential stops at places including St. Augustine’s Episcopal Church, where Earl Neil was the spiritual advisor of the Black Panther Party, and the California hotel, one of the region’s first to allow Black people stay. blwt.org

COLLIN DEVON WILLIAMS

COLLIN DEVON EVENTS

New York City and Antigua

Collin Devon Events (CDE) began as a graduation trip for Collin Williams in 2015. He created a thoroughly planned itinerary and took his loved ones to his family’s home country, Antigua. The eight-person trip went off without a hitch, and soon thereafter, Williams organized an inaugural group trip to the island with 30 travelers, mostly Black millennial professionals in the 25–35 age range.

Although Williams didn’t always have entrepreneurial dreams, he’s always been willing to strategize to meet the needs of those in his community. In college, he was an on-campus barber and the social chair of a student-run organization where he used the funds to throw events.

Williams had no intentions of continuing the tours, but following an article feature in TIME magazine, travelers began reaching out and asking him about the next group trip. On the second visit in 2016, CDE doubled its group size. The company continues to grow yearly, with the largest group tour experience hosting 500 people — the largest in the history of Antigua.

Since then, Williams has led numerous group tours to the country and was named a goodwill ambassador by the Antiguan government. He has also added destinations like Grenada and Ghana to CDE’s tour line-up. instagram.com/collindevonevents

CLARENCE GOODMAN C CHICAGO TOURS

Chicago

A South Side Chicago native, Clarence Goodman knows the Windy City deeply. He owns C Chicago Tours, an organization that began accidentally while Goodman worked for a large, now-defunct Chicago tour company. C Chicago offers 30 different private tours in the city, including the popular Chicago’s Black History Tour.

Goodman didn’t always have entrepreneurial dreams, though. He was born just after the Chicago Renaissance period, and a lot of Black history was happening around him while he was growing up. This upbringing and a love for history keep Goodman on his tourism entrepreneurship journey.

Goodman’s greatest pride and joy is when people say they wish he’d been their history teacher or didn’t realize how important Chicago was to the history of the world, the U.S. and Black history.

“It’s very important to me as a Black man, an American, as a citizen of the world, for people to understand the place of Black history in the world,” Goodman said. clarencegoodman.wixsite.com

MAKING THEIR MARK

Deaundra Rolle THE EDISON IN DISNEY SPRINGS

Deaundra Rolle — affectionately known as Chef Dee — has been masterfully fusing Ca ribbean flavor with American fare as the ex ecutive chef at The Edison in Disney Springs. Rolle puts her spin on seafood by using cit rus, fresh herbs, seasonings and hot peppers, a nod to her upbringing in the Bahamas.

Rolle first developed her appreciation for the culinary arts in her native Caribbean coun try. She was an avid fan of the Food Network, keeping her television fixed on the channel. But it was her grandmother who would provide her earliest lessons. The family matriarch would send Rolle off to pick peas to prepare soup. She would also help her grandmother turn benne seeds (sesame seeds) into the popular Bahami an street dessert benne cakes.

Rolle decided to pursue her passion by attending Keiser University in Melbourne, Australia, and attaining a bachelor’s degree in restaurant and food service management from the University of Central Florida. While in college, she gained experience at hotels and joined the Disney College Program. After graduation, Rolle continued to work across the Walt Disney World properties at All-Star Resorts, Epcot, Animal Kingdom and Disney Springs before her role at The Edison.

Generally, women are underrepresented in the food industry’s corporate pipeline, par ticularly Black and Latina women. Rolle said she experienced challenges in her trajectory but is proud to be an example to other Black women and aspiring chefs in her community.

Orlando

A Collin Devon Events beach trip

JOIN THE CROWD

HERE ARE SIX GREAT BLACK EVENTS TO ATTEND

BY ALYSE TATUM

The Afro Utah Festival celebrated its second installment in 2022.

COMMUNITY CELEBRATIONS HAVE ALWAYS BEEN AN IMPORTANT PART OF THE BLACK EXPERIENCE IN AMERICA. Dating as far back as Juneteenth (or Jubilee Day) in 1866, when former slaves joined to celebrate the first anniversary of the two-year-late emancipation of enslaved people in Galveston, Texas, Black people have been coming together to celebrate their culture, their communities and their freedom.

Here are some Black cultural festivals that promise distinctive experiences for group travelers.

SOMETHING IN THE WATER Washington, D.C.

Created by Renaissance man and music mogul Pharrell Williams, Something in the Water showcases Black music, culture and art while highlighting diversity, community and empowerment for the youth and small businesses. With artist alumni such as Jay-Z, Missy Elliott, Snoop Dogg, T.I. and more, the festival celebrates West Coast, East Coast and Southern rap. The Pop-Up Church

COURTESY AFRO UTAH FESTIVAL

Service has also included notable gospel artists like Kirk Franklin, Rev. John P. Kee and Mary Mary.

Upon its inception in 2019, Something in the Water was held in Virginia Beach, Virginia, to spotlight the area and the talent within it. Williams, being from Virginia, wanted to present his roots and peers to the world. Though the festival was not held in 2020, Williams kept its mission alive by campaigning for Juneteenth to become a paid holiday in Virginia. After succeeding in those efforts, he moved his sights to the nation’s capital, Washington, D.C. Eventually, on June 17, 2021, Juneteenth became a federal holiday. somethinginthewater.com

AFROPUNK

Brooklyn, New York

Like most in-person events, Afropunk took a hiatus in 2020 and 2021, then made its highly anticipated return September 10-11. Afropunk is a music, film, fashion and art festival that started in Brooklyn in 2005 and is now an international touring festival. It’s also regarded as one of the top festivals for fashion, style and self-expression.

The concept of the festival came from a documentary called “Afro-Punk,” which showcased Black people living the punk lifestyle. Originally, the Afropunk festival catered more to that crowd, with alternative punk music and entertainment. As the festival expanded, so did its music genres.

Today, Afropunk is bigger than ever, with top-tier musical performances from almost every genre. This year’s performers included The Roots, Isaiah Rashad and Earl Sweatshirt. Other attractions on the festival grounds were a marketplace with local vendors, a food garden called Bites n Beats and interactive activations by sponsoring brands. afropunk.com

ARIZONA BLACK RODEO  Scottsdale, Arizona

The Arizona Black Rodeo, run by the Arizona Black Rodeo Association, is one of the biggest Black events in the state and is nick named “the hottest show on dirt”. It features national African American rodeo competitors and was formed to share the history and heritage of Black people in the Old West, as well as their impact on Western culture. Part of its mission is also to teach sportsmanship, equestrian skills and agriculture to the community, particularly to young people.

There is a lot of cultural interest in Black rodeo today, but this isn’t a fad. Black people have been involved in rodeos since rodeos existed. But they were not always allowed to be in the forefront, which is part of the reason Black rodeos were created.

Celebrating its 11th year in 2022, the Arizona Black Rodeo still holds true to its core values: youth, community, agriculture, education, health and entertainment. To help educate even more people, the Arizona Black Rodeo Association formed Black Rodeo USA, an organization that tours the United States azblackrodeo.wixsite.com

MAKING THEIR MARK

Keyra Lynn Johnson DELTA AIR LINES

In 2021, Delta Airlines elevated Keyra Lynn Johnson to vice president and chief diversity, equity and inclusion officer. She spearheads a comprehensive DEI strategy and implements programs impacting Delta employees, customers and the wider com munity.

Johnson graduated from Georgia State University with a degree in speech commu nication before becoming a part of the Delta family more than 25 years ago. Her first role was on the front line as an associate customer service agent before moving into communi cations-oriented positions. She steadily rose to senior leadership on the airline’s corpo rate, internal and employee communications teams. In 2016, she became the managing director and eventually chief diversity and inclusion officer.

Johnson heads the Delta Care and Schol arship Funds, the airline’s nonprofit dedicated to providing scholarships to employees and their families for educational advancement and assisting those experiencing unexpect ed hardship. She also serves on the board for Southern Crescent Sexual Assault and Child Advocacy Center. A strong connection to faith and family underscores her leadership and passion for community outreach.

Atlanta

The main stage at Something in the Water

COURTESY SOMETHING IN THE WATER

BY LEBO LUKEWARM,

COURTESY AFROPUNK

BY NAS HOLSTON, COURTESY AFROPUNK

An Afropunk performer

Celebrating Black creativity at Afropunk

BLACK ARTS FESTIVAL Kalamazoo, Michigan

In 1985, Kalamazoo’s Recreation Leisure and Cultural Affairs depart ment helped plan and fund a downtown festival to promote Black arts and culture. Because of those efforts, the inaugural Black Arts Festival was held in August 1986 and was a great success. To keep attendees’ interest until the next year, some of the original organizers, Gail Sydnor, Lois Jackson and James C. Palmier, decided to create a committee to promote Black art year round. So, the Black Arts and Cultural Committee (now the Black Arts and Culture Center) was formed.

The committee continued to grow, eventually exceeding its original purpose. By 1990, the committee had its own building and was launching and supporting art exhibits, plays, dances, movies, events, and various classes and became the Black Arts and Cultural Center of Kalamazoo. In 2001, the center moved to a new building.

The 2022 edition was the 36th anniversary of the festival, during which local and international artists media showcase their work each year. There are even technology events now. And the event stays focused on its original mission: to “develop human potential, self esteem and creativity among Blacks of all ages in the Kalamazoo Community, advance the awareness of Black artistic ability and to preserve Black cultural heritage.”

Special musical guests perform each year, with 2022’s headliners being R&B solo artists Sammie and Tweet. This festival is free during the day and has an entry fee in the evening to control capacity. blackartskalamazoo.org

Round up your group for some rip-roarin’ excitement from the likes of Cheyenne Frontier Days and Hell on Wheels in Cheyenne, Wyoming. The world’s largest outdoor rodeo and Western Celebration and the chuck wagon dinner and rodeo series are complemented by the thriving Wild West lifestyle found in our sophisticated city.

Wyoming starts here. Live the Legend in Cheyenne.

COURTESY BLACK ARTS FESTIVAL

COURTESY ARIZONA

BLACK RODEO

Arizona Black Rodeo

Kalamazoo’s Black Arts Festival

Discover Black History

BLACK CULTURAL FESTIVAL Eugene, Oregon

Eugene’s Black Cultural Festival was created by event producer Talicia Brown-Crowell for people of African descent in Oregon and surrounding areas to be able to celebrate and embrace their Black cul ture and heritage.

While attending other long-established festivals and events in Oregon, Talicia noticed her culture and people weren’t being adequately repre sented. Then in 2019 at Beloved Festival, she stumbled upon a Black and Indigenous People of Color (BIPOC) sanctuary for people of color to come rest. She found herself visiting the sanctuary multiple times, finding refuge and solidarity. After this experience, she realized how much the lack of BIPOC-centered events was taking a toll on her.

So, Brown-Crowell formed a planning and production team, and in August 2021, the inaugural Black Cultural Festival was held at Alton Baker Park in Eugene, Oregon. The second annual festival took place this August. The growing festival has been funded and sponsored by mostly Black-owned businesses, with its first year’s attendee demographic being 85% people of color. While there was an entry fee, they informed hopeful festivalgoers that no one of African descent would be turned away, even without the means to pay.

At the Black Cultural Festival, visitors can expect artists, vendors, food, entertainment, local Black-owned businesses and much more. blackculturalfestival.com

AFRO UTAH FESTIVAL Salt Lake City

The Afro Utah Festival took place for the second time this year. It was created to celebrate African American culture and heritage with food, dance, art and community. This festival is organized by the GK Folks Foundation, a nonprofit organization in Salt Lake City that focuses on education, empowerment, entrepreneurship and mental health resources for African descendants.

Debuting in August 2021, the Afro Utah Festival sought to bring together African Americans, Black immigrants and those of African descent to spotlight their art, culture and food, as well as to promote equity, inclusion and diversity. The festival’s organizers sought to cre ate an accurate and inspirational understanding of Black people and their contribution to the Utah community. The 2022 festival was held September 24 and had a sizable turnout, showing a great want for something like this in the city.

Due to the increase in the Black population in Utah, Afro Utah organizers felt it was important to educate the com munity about Black culture while also giving the new Black community a safe space to cel ebrate and embrace their own culture as well.

afroutah.org

CHOSIN OLOFI, COURTESY BLACK CULTURAL FESTIVAL

Black Cultural Festival

Forks of the road

proud to take a stand monument rhythm night club memorial museum

The dr. john bowman banks museum

of

history & culture

in Southwest Mississippi Where the African American Story Comes to Life!

Lance Hill, author

Deacons of Defense” (2004)

THE WAY

TO MEET

EXPLORE PENSACOLA’S RICH AFRICAN-AMERICAN HISTORY.

Pensacola is a city with an old soul and a vibrant modern vibe. Our stunning beaches beckon visitors with the promise of sunshine, saltwater and relaxation on white sandy shores. But the beaches are just the beginning.

Pensacola boasts more than 460 years of history with heavy African American influences from its very beginning in 1559. As your group explores Pensacola, they’ll find traces of this rich history at every turn.

Belmont DeVilliers, the bustling commercial and cultural hub of Pensacola’s black community during segregation, and the Chappie James Museum and Flight Academy, established at the childhood home of our nation’s first African-American four-star general of the U.S. Air Force, are just two of many sites not to pass up.

The highlighted experiences below are a great place to start planning your group’s itinerary.

MUSEUMS & HISTORIC SITES

Belmont Devilliers Neighborhood Chappie James Museum Fort Pickens

Historic Pensacola Village Mississippi Blues Trail Marker Rosamond Johnson Beach

Voices of Pensacola Multicultural Center

EVENTS Back on the Blocks Festival Crawfish Festival Foo Foo Festival

Gulf Coast Summerfest Pensacola JazzFest Pensacola Stompfest

PLAN YOUR TRIP @THEWAYTOMEET.COM

BLACK HERITAGE

Groups will take a step back in time when discovering Louisville’s Black heritage with the Unfiltered Truth Collection. These immersive experiences feature perspectives and stories that you may have never heard before at some of the city’s most unique and iconic attractions. Learn more at UnfilteredTruthCollection.com

Historic Locust Grove

group travel made easy

Shelbyville

County,

Centrally located between Louisville and Lexington, ShelbyKY has beautiful meeting spaces, several brand-name hotels and 65+ vacation rentals, two distilleries, and is the perfect home base for exploring the Kentucky Bourbon Trail®.

Known as the Saddlebred Capital of the World, groups of all sizes will love our farm tours, unique dining and shopping, and bourbon experiences. In other words, ShelbyKY makes group travel easy. Learn more at visitshelbyky.com/groups

Simpsonville