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Show Tourism Hike Aids Economic Growth Of 'Color Country' "The Color Country Five County area had the highest percent travel increase In tourists for the 1976 year than any other region in the state, Bill Duckett, executive secretary of the Color Country Advertising Committee and first vice-president of Utah Association of Travel Region said. He added that he feels the advertising dollars spent had a great deal to do with the increase. The amount of advertising conducted by Color Country and each individual county and community is responsible for a large amount of this tourist increase, he added. Duckett has been on the Color Country Advertising Committee for nine years and has been the executive secretary for three. Last August, Color Country hosted "a Discovery America Travel Association" tour consisting of 84 foreign writers. "The amount of advertising the Five County area received in the foreign countries far exceeded the $4,000 spent to host the travelers," Mr. Duckett said. As a result of entertaining two different groups of Triple A tour planners from the Southern California Auto Clubs last year Color Country has arranged for another 80 people to tour this area during the next three years. The first group will travel through the Five County area April 25-29. After visiting St. George, Zion National Park, Coral Pink Sand Dunes and Lake Powell they will arrive at Ruby's Inn April 27 at 5 p.m. There will be a get together with the county and communities' leaders and a dinner at 7 p.m. that same evening. April 28 they will tour Bryce Canyon National Park, Cedar Breaks, Brian Head and then stay in Beaver that night. Host for the five-day tour will be Mr. Duckett and Ken Kraus, representing the Utah Travel Council. Duckett just returned from four travel shows held throughout western United States. Over 400,000 people attended these travel shows which were held at Anaheim, Las Vegas, Phoenix and Salt Lake City. The four shows cost Color Country about $4,000 with a total distribution of about 200,000 pieces of literature. Besides attendance at the four travel shows, brochures were handed out at the Denver, Dallas, San Francisco and Los Angeles shows. Color Country spent about $23,000 from July 1 to June 30 of this year on media advertising on radios, newspapers, magazines and brochures. Marv Bell of Creative Marketing In Salt Lake City is the contracting agency for the media part of Color Country's Budget. The total budget for fiscal year 1977 is $46,000. The fiscal year budget was supported by transient room tax and the Utah Travel Council matching funds. Thirty-four percent of each of the Five County's transient room tax was contributed by the counties and $15,430 from the state. The remaining 66-percent of Garfield County transient room tax was spent advertising Garfield County. This committee Is headed by Neil Duncan. The proposed budget for the 1977-78 fiscal year for Color Country Includes $54,377 to be spent on advertising with $18,000 furnished by the Utah Travel Council. Following are the 1977-78 expenditures with the total amount first, followed by the amount being paid by the UTA: Travel shows, $5,000 ($250); travel agents, $5,000 ($2,500); seminar participation, $1,000 ($500); Kane County POE, $1,500 ($750); new display booth, $2,000; administration, $9,000; media $28,000 (14,000); contingency, $2,877. The counties participating and the money generated by the transient room tax in each area are: Beaver, $2,521; Garfield, $4,489; Iron, $9,091; Kane, $6,352; Washington, $13,924. Duckett works very close with the Utah Travel Council director, Michael D. Gallivan. A survey conducted a tew miles east of St. George Port of Entry by the Utah State University last year found that the stay for the tourists stopping at the center increased a half a day. They also found that those stopping at the Port of Entry spent $98.87 per day. In Utah compared to $75.49 per day for the tourists not stop ping. Which amounted to $168,000 more taxes last year not counting the added boost each area received. |