Ahead of the 2025 Alabama Governor’s Conference on Tourism, our team has been thinking a lot about how much our state’s tourism ecosystem has grown—not just in numbers, but in heart, strategy, and national recognition.

We’ve been in enough industry rooms over the years to notice a shift.  Ten years ago, Alabama was often an “emerging” conversation in tourism and economic development circles—full of potential but still defining its brand.  Now, in 2025, the tone is different.  Alabama isn’t catching up.  We’re leading in ways that matter.

From Emerging to Example: How Alabama is Re-Defining Tourism Marketing

Nationwide, tourism trends are pointing toward experience-based travel, cultural authenticity, and creative economy growth.  Alabama has leaned into each of these, not as passing fads, but as long-term pillars.

• Experience-based travel: Across the U.S., destinations are moving beyond “see and do” lists toward immersive storytelling.  In Alabama, our coastal eco-tours, civil rights heritage experiences, and original festivals (e.g. Cullman’s Alabama Strawberry Festival) do more than entertain—they invite visitors into our way of life.
• Cultural authenticity: Many states talk about “keeping it real,” but here, authenticity is baked into the product.  Whether you’re hearing a blues riff in Muscle Shoals or sipping sweet tea in a front porch café, it’s the unpolished moments that stick.  It doesn’t get any more real than Big Bob Gibson BBQ in Decatur, Alabama.  (Yes, we’re biased, but…)
• Creative economy growth: States like Tennessee and Louisiana have long capitalized on music and arts tourism.  Alabama is now joining that front row, thanks in part to the new music incentive initiative—a policy move that tells creators, “Your work belongs here.” (Read more in our blog on music tourism to see why this is such a game changer.)

Why the Music Incentive Matters for Tourism

When the Alabama Entertainment Office expanded its incentives to include music production this year, it wasn’t just an economic policy.  It was a statement: that the songs, albums, and performances born here are part of our tourism story.

Arts and culture has been growing in importance as a driver of tourism nationwide, and Alabama’s move puts us right in step with leading states—and with a uniquely Southern rhythm that’s ours alone.

Alabama Cities Writing New Chapters in our Tourism Story

What’s exciting is how this momentum is showing up differently across our communities:

• Huntsville is blending space-age innovation with a growing music scene, positioning itself as a creative hub.  The Huntsville-Madison County CVB‘s recent rebranding reflects this push – to showcase the community’s full range of assets including outdoor recreation.
• Our sports tourism game is blowing up in a big way too.  Birmingham hosted 150 sports tourism events in 2024, including Major League Baseball at Rickwood Field.  Other entities, like Marshall County Tourism & Sports, are seeing strategic investments pay off.  According to Alabama News Center’s interview with Katy Norton, the community’s Sand Mountain Park generates “more than $20 million each year in economic impact and has also spurred new business activity” including multiple hotel openings.
• Gulf Shores—host to this year’s GovCon—is showing how sustainable coastal tourism partnerships can support a thriving coastal market, without losing the region’s charm.

Each story is distinct, but the throughline is the same: purposeful growth that puts people first.

Looking Nationally: Where Alabama Stands

States across the country are vying for visitor attention in 2025 with big-budget campaigns, infrastructure projects, and flashy events.  What sets Alabama apart in our agency’s opinion isn’t just scale—it’s soul.

While others are chasing trends, we’re cultivating them here—rooting them in our culture, landscapes, and history.  It’s why our visitor satisfaction scores are climbing alongside spending.  It’s also why repeat visitation is strong.  And it’s why, when peers in other states ask “What’s working in Alabama?” the answers are worth sharing.

The Governor’s Conference on Tourism is always a place for learning, networking, and celebration.  But this year feels like a chance to pause and recognize how far we’ve come—and to dream about what’s next!  We’re proud to have our agency’s roots in this state, in economic development circles, and now in destination-attraction marketing.

Whether you’re coming to trade ideas about marketing and advertising specifically, hear updates on statewide initiatives, or simply feel the energy in the room, we look forward to engaging with all of you in Gulf Shores!  To explore more of our work for partners in Alabama and nationwide, check out our portfolio.