Ulster County Press and the Ulster County Lodging Coalition

After a few months on the road it is good to be home and catch up with local happenings. I picked up the Ulster County Press today and enjoyed reading it; it covers things that are often overlooked. The top headline of this edition was about local lodging owners forming a lobby group. I cheer the news and wish them well. I have been to 9 countries in the last few months and worked with many local and national tourism boards, tourism is a known factor in improving business, not just for the lodging but even to a coffee shop or small farm stand. In the US there is no national tourism board; it is done by states and locally. I understand that locally money is hard to come by for the purpose of encouraging visitors. I salute those such as David O’ Halloran owner of the Pinegrove Ranch and Jacquelyn Appledorn, general manager of the Mohonk Mountain House for taking matters into their own hands. In fact there has been a Discover America Partnership for a few years who promotes travel from abroad to the US, on the board is Bill Marriott and Jonathan Tisch as well as many others who understand the importance of tourist dollars. Tourism accounting for $443 million and 10,000 jobs in Ulster is no laughing matter, think of the gas tanks filled! Great article Ulster County Press and Robert Ford.