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| 2/12/2010 1:59:00 PM | Email this article • Print this article |
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| An aerial view of the beautiful Historic Bluff Country, attracting vacationers from all over the United States and beyond. Photo provided courtesy Explore MInnesota Tourism. |
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HBC celebrating 25 years
By Gabby Gatzke
One local visitor bureau is gearing up to celebrate its 25-year anniversary this spring. Historic Bluff Country Regional Convention & Visitors Bureau was incorporated 25 years ago in May.
Kris Nolte, executive director, said HBC will be preparing for its 25-year anniversary at their annual meeting when spring rolls around. "We are planning on a 25-year anniversary dinner and hoping to have past board members present along with others who have impacted the success of HBC for the past 25 years," Nolte said.
Historic Bluff Country Regional Convention & Visitors Bureau offers travel and tourism information for SE MN. Their main offices, located in Harmony and Caledonia, have brochures and guides for businesses and communities in the region. Along with greeting visitors, the HBC staff offers referrals like lodging, dining, attractions and events.
One key feature that has made HBC successful in today's web-friendly society is the bureau's website, www.bluffcountry.com.
Nolte said the HBC website is very effective. "In 2009, the website received over two million hits which was up over 480,000 hits from 2008," Nolte said.
"We try to direct visitors to explore the HBC website, as the most complete travel information can be found in its content," Nolte said. "Links to just about anything can be found, including communities, events, attractions, shopping, lodging, maps and services."
Some special features Nolte found to be popular were the calendar of events, lodging, state bike trail information as well as the Root River activities section. On the website you can find links for information on towns across the region. Some towns are: Preston, Hokah, Brownsville, Rushford, Spring Grove, and Wykoff, in addition to towns located close to Bluff Country like St. Charles and several towns in Iowa.
One reason for the website's increase of hits may be due to the change in the tourism economy. Nolte said Bluff Country has been seeing a lot of visitors who are coming within reasonable driving distance, usually two to five hours. "Families are taking multiple, shorter, three to four day vacations rather than one expensive vacation," Nolte said. "Families are taking advantage of campgrounds and all their amenities."
Nolte also added that although Bluff Country has lost some businesses over the years due to change and the economy, there has been some growth as well. Nolte used the example of Harmony adding two new restaurants, Rushford's new community center coming later this year as well as Spring Grove's new digital movie theatre.
As far as the future goes, Nolte said HBC would continue to cooperatively promote bluff country travel and tourism with the area communities and businesses.
One major event, aside from the 25-year anniversary celebration, HBC is gearing up for is the Southern Minnesota Tourism Association meeting that they will be hosting May 5 through May 6, 2010. Nolte said it's a great opportunity to showcase SE MN and Bluff Country to persons in the travel industry for the entire southern region of Minnesota.
Nolte said HBC is also working with the University of Minnesota Extension Office to offer a class in the future for advertising in a digital world (GPS, digital mapping, mobile devises).
HBC began in May of 1985 when five area citizens (Karen Gray, Allen Fitting, Jim Schultz, Richard Nelson, and Delores Hauge) had a vision that the Bluff Country region could be promoted as being a desirable travel destination. One short year after being incorporated the by-laws were approved and an area map with the various bluff country attractions were developed.
Since its formation, HBC has produced several publications like the BackRoads Travel and Tour Guide, which is distributed state wide as well as the State Bike Trail Directory. They print anywhere between 35,000 to 50,000 copies of each per year.
HBC has also been connected with Explore Minnesota Tourism since the beginning of it's creation and is featured on the Explore Minnesota website.
The National Scenic Byway was another addition in 1994 when Bluff Country's MN Hwy 16 byway became a National Scenic Byway.
HBC is affiliated with Tour Minnesota Association (TMA) and Southern Minnesota Tourism Association (SMTA). They also advertise with larger publications such as AAA Home and Away Magazine, AAA Living Magazine, Itineraries Midwest and Minnesota Trails Magazine.
For more information on Historic Bluff Country visit their offices in Harmony or Caledonia or check out their user-friendly website at www.bluffcountry.com.
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