By Graham McKenzie Montgomery, Alabama is the state capital and there are many reasons to visit. It has a bit of everything one could want on vacation including history, arts, activities and a rapidly emerging food scene. For a start let’s take the arts scene. Within the city boundaries is the Museum of Fine Arts which has a simply wonderful collection of Modern American work combined with seasonal exhibitions of famous overseas artists. For me the most outstanding feature was the amount of work from local black artists and their take on the past, present and future. A short drive from the MMFA (as its known locally) is Shakespeare’s Festival. In my ignorance I was expecting an open-air mixture of people dressed as Iago, Marc Anthony, King Lear, and Romeo and Juliet. Wrong! What I experienced was a truly magnificent theatre set up with a main auditorium and several smaller ones all in one building. Despite the name it is not exclusively works from William S. I was privileged to hear and watch some of the preparation for their Christmas Special of ‘It’s a Wonderful Life’ which was to be broadcast via the world wide web. Sound effects are produced locally and live which proved very amusing when I discovered what was going to make the sound of George Bailey jumping into the water to save his Angel. A rather ancient toilet plunger! Food and the first class serving of it is a growing section of the Montgomery scene. Cuisines from around the nation and indeed around the world are readily available. I personally enjoyed an Italian meal that Momma would have been proud of. Afterwards you can celebrate Montgomery most famous musical son in Hank Williams. At his museum, which has a comprehensive collection of clothes, cars and pictures, you can learn all about his life and indeed his untimely death just aged 29 on January 1, 1953. The man is so popular in Alabama that Septenber21 is ‘Hank Williams Day’. If activity is your thing, then the area has many options for strolls, walks and treks. As well as larger parks and trail sites, the walk by the Alabama River is a delight where you can stop and while away many a happy hour just watching the world and river go by. Kayaking and fishing is also available. The real reason however that you would want to visit Montgomery is the comprehensive study and coverage of African American history. It covers the transatlantic slave trade of the mid-19^th century, , through the Civil Rights movement, right up to the modern-day struggles of the Black Lives Matter movement. Many people will have heard of Rosa Parks who took a stand against bus segregation within the city. Her story is told in detail within a dedicated museum as is the story of the freedom riders who in the early 60’s took a similar stand on interstate buses that ended in bloody violence at the Montgomery Bus Station. You can visit the church and the house where Martin Luther King worked and lived. Go to the aerodrome at Tuskegee where a squadron of black pilots trained during the second world war and fought in Europe only to find they were not wanted when they returned. Not too far away is the town of Selma where in 1965 a group of young African Americans decided to march the fifty-four miles to the capital to protest about the restrictions put in place for voter registration if you were black. I was privileged to interview one of the ‘foot soldiers’ from that day that will forever be known in American History as Bloody Sunday. Perhaps the most sobering experience was my visit to the Equal Justice Initiative and its museum. ‘The Legacy Museum: From Enslavement to Mass Incarceration is situated on a site in Montgomery where black people were forced to labour in bondage. Blocks from one of the most prominent slave auction spaces in America, the Legacy Museum is steps away from the rail station where tens of thousands of Black people were trafficked during the 19th century. From the moment you enter you are aware of the struggles and injustice forced upon people because of the colour of their skin but it pushes beyond this to struggles all around the world. It is a place that I recommend anybody to visit. For knowledge seeking tourists who want a more complete understanding of African American history a visit to Montgomery is essential.

“Down in Mobile, they’re all crazy, because the Gulf Coast is the kingdom of monkeys, the land of clowns, ghosts and musicians, and Mobile is sweet lunacy’s county seat” wrote Eugene Walter in his novel The Untidy Pilgrim.   In almost 70 years things have not changed and based on my recent experience the man was 100% accurate. It is the party city of the South. The bars, the restaurants, the open spaces and even the clothes shops have a splendid anarchy about them with wicked designs, slogans and humour. Almost every week there is a festival of some kind and even when not, local residents will get dressed in costume and promenade the streets just for the thrill. I bear witness to this as I arrived fully three weeks before Halloween and it was Tex Mex food festival time. Needless to say, this gave rise to music, food, pop up stands and of course outrageous costumes. I was fully expecting El Vez to turn up and offer up nothing but a hound dog but unfortunately, he had left the stadium by the time I got there. No Mexican outfit? No problem, its only three weeks to Halloween so out comes the ghosts, monsters, walking pumpkins and anything resembling abnormality. As Paul Whitehouse would say “Brilliant”! Mobile is Alabama’s third largest city and was founded in 1702 as the capital of French Louisiana, making it also the oldest city in Alabama. Contrary to popular opinion it also the original home of Mardi Gras. A festival, what else, that was established by French Catholics from the North who wanted to escape the puritanical beliefs of their elders in the northern states of the USA from Ash Wednesday in the lead up to Lent. The first Mardi Gras, originally known as Boeuf Gras (fatted ox) was in 1703 and the following year it became de rigueur to wear a mask to the celebrations. Eight years later the first parade took place and both traditions have remained in place for over 300 years. It is the oldest official Carnival celebration in the United States and it is therefore hardly surprising that the city has maintained and indeed expanded that festival feeling to 52 weeks of the year. Located on Mobile Bay with deep water access to the Gulf, the city has always been an important seaport playing a significant role in the slave trade and now forms part of the rich and well documented Civil Rights trail across the Southern States. During the Civil War after a ferocious battle in the bay, Mobile was captured by Union forces and served as a major port, supply depot and source of cotton which was used for export thereby raising valuable finance for their military exploits. Mobile also has a number of attractions including the USS Alabama Battleship Memorial Park, the Gulf Coast Explore Science Centre, and the Mobile Museum of Art.  It has a humid subtropical climate, with hot summers and mild winters which coincidentally is ideal for festivals and parties.

  Travel South USA (TSUSA) is pleased to announce a new partnership with AmericanTours International (ATI) to drive increased domestic and international travel to the South.   ATI is North America’s leading accommodation and service provider, offering preferred rates at more than 25,000 properties. Their team of experienced buyers negotiates exclusive rates in North America’s most popular destinations, and in areas where availability is typically scarce, such as National Parks, National Seashores and smaller communities. ATI also offers discounted and commissionable rates at a broad array of specialty lodgings, including short-term stay apartments, vacation rentals, houseboats, ranches and luxury camping accommodations. More than a bed bank, ATI provides clients with the lowest rates while supporting the global agent community as a full-service tour operator.   Travel South’s new campaign will harness ATI’s proprietary DriveAmerica™ platform to drive inbound tourism to the southern states by targeting ATI’s extensive base of commercial travel partners in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada and the EU. The campaign centers on new road trip itineraries that will highlight contracted hotels, restaurants, attractions and guided experiences in Alabama, Arkansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri and Tennessee. ATI’s flexible booking system allows travel professionals to customize a road trip from scratch, or to utilize and make desired changes to one of the many recommended DriveAmerica™ itineraries.   “We are thrilled to partner with Travel South USA,” said Nick Henchel, Chief Operating Officer of ATI. “DriveAmerica™ is our newest technology platform, a game changer that delivers inspired itineraries, door-to-door driving instructions with local attractions and activities along the route, and guaranteed hotel accommodations for an entire trip.”   “Partnering with ATI and the DriveAmerica™ platform is a wonderful opportunity to showcase and deliver bookings to the destinations, hotels, attractions and guided experiences across the South,” said Liz Bittner, President & CEO of Travel South USA. “We know that consumers are interested in the authenticity of the South, but in the past have struggled with being able to offer a booking platform for small businesses to tap into the global travel agency marketplace. ATI’s DriveAmerica™ is a key connector for the travel trade to access flexible road trip planning with thousands of commissionable bookings available.”   Travel South’s product development team is working with ATI to secure great offers for agents to share with their customers. Over the coming months, there will be more partners, more hotel and attraction deals, and more outreach to the travel trade around the globe.   “The ROI is a win-win for our trade clients, valued customers and destination partners,” added Bittner. “We love sharing stories that inspire visitation to the authentic South and backing them up with an e-commerce platform that empowers our tour operators and travel trade customers.”   The campaign launched on December 1, 2022, and will run throughout 2023, with a four-month media advertising campaign designed to capture bookings from December through March.   The travel trade campaign is targeting TravelMole Media Group’s 67,000 UK travel agent, tour operator, OTA, etc. subscribers and 115,000 in USA to inform them about the Travel South USA DriveAmerica itineraries and how to sell and book them.

  In America Halloween preparations start at the beginning of 'fall' and begin at least a week before the actual event with trips to the nearest Pumpkin Patch and impressive house decorating commences! Discover the spooky Deep South USA with voodoo, ghost stories and haunted houses all waiting for you, plus the decorations are quite spooktacular too!...   THE WITCH'S GRAVE IN MISSISSIPPI   Yazoo City's Glenwood Cemetery - voted the second spookiest cemetery in the US - holds a grave surrounded by chain links known as “The Witch’s Grave”. According to the legend, an old woman lived on the Yazoo River and was caught torturing fishermen who she lured in off the river. Chased through the swamps where she was half drowned in quicksand, she swore her revenge: “In 20 years, I will return and burn this town to the ground!”...   READ MORE   HOW TO CELEBRATE THE SPOOKIEST DAY OF THE YEAR IN NEW ORLEANS   Second only to Mardi Gras for its dazzling display of fun and finery, Halloween in New Orleans draws thousands to the Quarter for devilish fun while vampires, zombies, ghosts, goblins, and everything else parade up and down Frenchmen Street displaying the city’s legendary wit and creativity in their carefully crafted costumes....   READ MORE   ALABAMA HAUNTED HISTORY TOUR   At Old Cahawba, you don’t have to believe in ghosts to hear the past speaking to you. On this rare, moon lit tour in Orrville, Alabama, you will be shuttled to this ghost town’s most haunted locations. Historical accounts of sightings and personal experiences will be shared by your hosts and if you come in contact with a spirit, then sit around the bonfire afterwards to share your experience....   READ MORE   EXPERIENCE TENNESSEE'S GHOST STORIES AT THESE HAUNTED DESTINATIONS   Shadowy figures in hallways and cell blocks, the legend of the Bell Witch, ghost stories echo from the past in cemeteries, battlefields and historic hotels and communicating with spirits beyond the grave at a séance: these are some of the strange happenings at haunted destinations across Tennessee...   READ MORE

  One of the best times to visit the South is during Fall to experience the splendour of the South's best Autumn offerings. Whether it's from a riverboat, bike or car there's many ways to enjoy this beautiful season.   Deep South USA is home to the most visited national park at the Great Smoky Mountains, the Natchez Trace Parkway that weaves through Tennessee, Alabama & Mississippi plus unique Autumn festivals throughout Louisiana - all offering an abundance of breath-taking Autumn views throughout the South.  

Targeting Hotelbeds' network of commercial travel buyers in the US, UK, Canada & Germany, and will highlight the South's attractions as a leisure destination.   Hotelbeds, the world’s leading bedbank, today announced a new campaign with Travel South USA to introduce travel advisors to the southern states of the USA and promote both domestic and international tourism. Starting this month, Hotelbeds will launch the campaign with Travel South USA focused on its extensive network of travel advisors in the US, United Kingdom, Canada and Germany, to promote the many authentic destinations included in the promotion. In doing so, Hotelbeds aims to showcase the wide range of tourist attractions that the southern places have to offer, from beaches to mountains; from activity to leisure; from big cities to small towns, that can be enjoyed at any time of the year. Following the success of the 2020 campaign in cooperation with Travel South USA, this year's campaign will feature nine (9) states and fourteen (14) cities in the southern United States. Each destination will provide a unique and diverse experience for leisure tourists. The marketing campaign will be promoted through the company's two main distribution channels Hotelbeds (for wholesale distribution) and Bedsonline (for retail travel advisors). Joseph Sheller, Head of Global Destination Marketing at Hotelbeds, said: “After a very successful co-operated domestic campaign with Travel South USA, that included 9 participants, we are expanding the footprint for this campaign. Now we have 23 destinations that will be participating, and the timing could not be better with the recent announcement of EU travel into the United States. I want to thank all the participating destinations from Travel South USA who was instrumental in facilitating and coordinating this effort.” Liz Bittner, president & CEO, Travel South USA, added: “Partnerships are key-value and imperative for the Travel South USA group of states and city partners, and we couldn’t be more pleased with the extraordinary results from our Hotelbeds strategic partnership. “The campaign in 2020 helped many destinations stay afloat, and based on our early successes, we have launched a new and expanded campaign. Over the coming months, we have more partners, more hotel and attraction deals, and more outreach to the travel trade around the globe. The ROI is a win-win for our trade clients, valued customers, and destination partners. We love telling stories that inspire a visit to the Authentic South and backing it up with an e-commerce platform protecting our tour operators and travel trade customers.”   About Travel South USA Travel South USA is America's oldest and largest regional travel promotion organization, formed in 1965. The long-standing regional collaboration of the state tourism offices of Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia provides a foundation to positively position tourism as a vital and dynamic element in the region's economic development. In 2019, tourism ranked throughout the region as one of the top three industries, behind manufacturing and agriculture, and was responsible for $133 billion in spending by visitors, generating 1.4 million direct jobs, $30 billion in worker paychecks, and almost $16 billion in state and local taxes. Visit www.TravelSouthUSA.com for consumer information and www.TravelSouthUSA.org for travel industry information. About Hotelbeds Hotelbeds is the world’s leading bedbank. In a fragmented and complex travel landscape, Hotelbeds provides over 180,000 hotel properties across the globe with access to high-value, complementary distribution channels that significantly increase occupancy rates and optimise RevPAR – whilst not competing with the hotelier’s direct distribution strategy. Hotelbeds does this by offering hoteliers access to a network of over 60,000 hard-to-access B2B travel buyers such as tour operators, retail travel agents, airline websites, and loyalty schemes in over 140 source markets worldwide. These channels provide hotel partners with returning guests that book further in advance, cancel less, spend more in-destination and stay longer.   In addition to accommodation, Hotelbeds is also the world’s largest B2B seller of travel ancillaries, offering 25,000 transfer routes and 18,000 activities, as well as attractions, tickets and car hire. Operating under the ‘Beyond the Bed’ product line, it provides both hoteliers and travel distribution partners with an efficient platform and powerful tools to easily integrate and commercialise its leading portfolio of high-margin products. The company is headquartered in Palma, Spain. Hotelbeds Media Contact PR & Media Relations Clara Truyols – [email protected]

Angelica De Stefano Travel South USA [email protected]

Travel South USA is inspiring post-pandemic travel through the launch of its International Showcase later this year, bringing industry professionals together back in New Orleans, Louisiana, for the first time since 2014. The event, taking place from November 30-December 3, 2021, will connect European, Middle East, Africa and India (EMEAI) tour operators with southern destinations and suppliers. The program will feature the gateway of Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, the home airport of presenting sponsor Delta Air Lines, and key airports in the South. Travel South USA teams across the EMEAI region are working together to select international tour operators to participate. Elite international buyers will fly exclusively with Delta Air Lines and visit the southern region to experience its famous hospitality. A specialized program has been created exclusively for the buyers featuring presentations by state tourism offices, selected appointment scheduling, and access to all marketplace functions and social networking opportunities. New buyers provide growth opportunities for southern destinations and connect people to generate tourism revenue. “It has been a tough 18 months of the pandemic but we believe there is no time like the present to host select international tour operators and journalists at the upcoming International Showcase and prove we are open and ready with safety protocols for global business and leisure travelers,” said Liz Bittner, president & CEO, Travel South USA. As global travel slowed, airports across the South continued their expansion and modernization projects. The new investments at Atlanta airport (ATL) continue to make international travel safe and efficient, while specialty restaurants, high-tech plug-ins for electronics, new signage, kiosks, and baggage systems are ready as international travelers return. More than a billion dollars of infrastructure and investments have been made at airports in New Orleans (MSY), Memphis (MEM), Nashville (BNA), Lafayette (LFT), and Birmingham (BHM) combined. Travel via these airports will be included in pre and post familiarization tours for delegates attending the International Showcase. About Travel South USA Travel South USA is America’s oldest and largest regional travel promotion organization, formed in 1965. The long-standing regional collaboration of the state tourism offices of Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia provides a foundation to positively position tourism as a vital and dynamic element in the region’s economic development. In 2019, tourism ranked throughout the region as one of the top three industries, behind manufacturing and agriculture, and was responsible for $133 billion in spending by visitors, generating 1.4 million direct jobs, $30 billion in worker paychecks, and almost $16 billion in state and local taxes. Visit TravelSouthUSA.com for consumer information and TravelSouthUSA.org for travel industry information.   Angelica De Stefano Travel South USA +1 404-231-1790 email us here

At the recent Travel South Ultimate Ad Challenge, southern state tourism offices gathered to hear pitches from print and digital marketing companies, including Bandwango, the Utah-based technology company. Bandwango presented a unique offering for the state tourism offices gathered - a discounted license that would enable the states to craft check-in challenge style passports built around a theme or set of attractions. "The day of the Travel South Ad Challenge was one of the most exciting days in Bandwango history," Monir Parikh, CEO of Bandwango, said. "We have been absolutely thrilled by the ideas these clients have brought to the table, and we're looking forward to long partnerships with each of them. These passports are just the beginning!" Alabama Tourism, Kentucky Tourism, Louisiana Office of Tourism, Missouri Division of Tourism, Tennessee Tourism, West Virginia Tourism, Visit North Carolina, South Carolina Tourism Department, and Visit Mississippi, are planning the most creative collection of passes I have ever seen, shared Liz Bittner, President & CEO. These unlimited passes offer the consumer an easy digital way to connect and receive info about the fascinating, quirky, beautiful, remote, one-of-a-kind places and activities that make the South like nowhere else in the world. This type of collaboration on programming offers state tourism offices to co-op regional marketing promotions and leverage their buying power with particular attention to small towns, undiscovered areas, and off-the-beaten-path places. Three states have already launched their first passports with Bandwango: Kentucky Tourism, Louisiana Office of Tourism, and Tennessee Department of Tourist Development. Kentucky Tourism's Parks Pass launched in August 2021 and features 44 state parks and 8 National Park properties. The pass is gamified and encourages all pass holders to check in to win various prizes! Passholders who check in to 5 parks will receive a koozie or pair of sunglasses, while those who check-in at all locations will receive a branded t-shirt and be entered in to win the Ultimate Park Prize package. This package includes a Kentucky State Park Overnight, a $100 State Parks Gift Card, plus an adventure prize package including a kayak, paddle, and life jacket. Louisiana's Office of Tourism crafted their "The Unusual is Our Usual Pass" to support their existing brand campaign by the same name. The passport features check-in points that celebrate the weird, kooky and out-there places Louisiana is best known for - including the Castle Tree and the Haunted Gothic Hanging Jail. Passholders who check in to 8 locations win a mystery prize! Tennessee's Department of Tourist Development is using the Bandwango platform to take their Ken Burns' Country Music Passport | TN Vacation digital. In previous years, the initiative leveraged paper passports to guide visitors along the pathway. West Virginia's Department of Tourism will be utilizing Bandwango to spotlight the state's 20+ waterfalls. Alabama is curating their state-wide attraction pass. Both states along with passes for the Missouri Division of Tourism, Visit Mississippi, Visit North Carolina, and South Carolina Tourism are expected to launch in Winter and early Spring 2022. About Bandwango Bandwango (www.bandwango.com) is a technology company based out of Murray, Utah, with more than 250 Destination Marketing Organization (DMO), Convention & Visitor Bureau (CVB) and other clients across the United States and Canada. Bandwango's signature product, the Destination Experience Engine (DXE), enables clients to curate free and paid experiences into passports, trails, and marketplaces designed to deliver the best tickets, tours, and savings to locals and visitors alike. DXE is an end-to-end solution that combines anywhere, merchant and inventory management, redemption technology, white-labeled mobile web application delivery, customer service, managed accounting, and true economic impact data to provide a seamless solution to destination marketing organizations, associations, and other industry partners. About Travel South USA Travel South USA is America's oldest and largest regional travel promotion organization, formed in 1965. The long-standing regional collaboration of the state tourism offices of Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia provides a foundation to positively position tourism as a vital and dynamic element in the region's economic development. In 2019, tourism ranked throughout the region as one of the top three industries, behind manufacturing and agriculture, and was responsible for $133 billion in spending by visitors, generating 1.4 million direct jobs, $30 billion in worker paychecks, and almost $16 billion in state and local taxes. Visit www.TravelSouthUSA.com for consumer information and www.TravelSouthUSA.org for travel industry information.