An annual Strategic Partnership Fund has been created to provide timely support for high-value destination development or marketing projects to make positive short-term impacts in Southern Oregon as a destination. For the 2024/2025 cycle, investments focused on industry partner training and education opportunities; niche- and off-season marketing support; visitor-facing outdoor recreation work; and equity, inclusion and accessibility initiatives that will make Southern Oregon a more welcoming destination.
Stakeholders are encouraged to review TSO Strategic Partnership Fund Guidelines to determine if your business or organization is eligible to submit a future proposal.
Travel Southern Oregon is pleased to have invested $60,000 in FY24/25 to provide timely support for high-value destination development or marketing projects to make positive short-term impacts in Southern Oregon as a destination. Here is a summary of projects and partners that have been funded in FY24/25:
Institute for Applied Sustainability at Southern Oregon University – Sustainable Tourism Professional Training Workshop
($10,500)
The Sustainable Tourism Professional Training is designed for the tourism industry professionals in Oregon. The training will provide foundations in sustainable and regenerative tourism while reviewing the Travel Oregon transformational strategic vision -identifying a tangible pathway for various tourism businesses and organizations in the journey towards sustainability.
Participants in the training will leave with a thorough understanding of sustainability and sustainable tourism, knowing what Travel Oregon’s transformational strategic vision entails, as well as a set of tools on how to begin/build, measure, and continuously advance sustainable tourism.
Case studies from destinations and businesses worldwide will enrich knowledge and ideas for Oregon businesses and beyond. The practitioners’ training is developed at Southern Oregon University Institute for Applied Sustainability and endorsed by Travel Oregon.
Grants Pass Museum of Art – Dia de los Muertos Celebrations
($3,000)
The Grants Pass Museum of Art started the Dia de los Muertos celebration in 2023 in order to add more diversity to the museum and engage more people who might not otherwise visit. It was so successful that they are doing it again in 2024. We have a “community gallery” in the museum that is used for exhibits that are not necessarily merged with our other main exhibits. We will have colorful flower garlands, masks, various forms of art and an Ofrenda (alter) in the room. In partnership with the Jospehine County library and the local Latino community, exhibits will remain in the gallery from October 29 through November 15 and public cultural activities have been planned across the holiday of Dia de los Muertos.
Oregon Wellness Retreat – What’s Your Wellness? Travel Campaign
($5,000)
Oregon Wellness Retreat used strategic partnership funds for the “OWR 2025 What’s Your Wellness? Travel Campaign”, which aims to support “Niche” and “off-season” tourism for Southern Oregon. The primary goal of our proposed project is to boost off-season tourism in Southern Oregon.
The niche market that we have been catering to over the past year is growing in popularity both nationally and internationally. We are aiming to achieve tangible progress in the winter of 2024 and 2025, with a specific focus on inbound tourism as our key success indicator. Oregon Wellness Retreats caters to travelers aged 45-85 with an annual income exceeding $100,000. These tourists have both the time and the means to take multiple vacations in a year. They might come for an art retreat in the winter and return for a Relationship Nourishment adventure in the fall, or come for a personal
therapy retreat in the spring and return with their families for white-water rafting in the summer. Most of OWR’s guests fly in from around the country and have never heard of Ashland until coming across an OWR ad in their Google search. OWR is attracting people who may have never visited Ashland if not for our Google ads. Our goal is not to attract tourists who are already familiar with and fond of Ashland, but rather to reach new visitors.
Gold Hill Adventure Hub – Infrastructure Support for Tourism Businesses and Employees
($7,000)
Rogue Rafting Company has purchased a commercial building in the city of Gold Hill, Oregon. We intend to revive the building and turn it into an adventure hub for Southern Oregon. We partner with a number of local businesses in the community including Rogue Valley Zipline Adventures, Del Rio Vineyards, Laurel Hills Golf Course, Sawyer Paddles and Oars, Gold Hill Station, D’s Deli and Figaro’s Pizza. Together with these businesses we are able to offer some amazing adventures for visitors and locals alike. These adventures showcase what makes Southern Oregon such a special place to visit and/or call home.
Adventures offered from this location will include: whitewater rafting, fishing, kayaking, jet boating, camping, ziplining, paddle boarding, biking, hiking, wine tasting, golfing and local food options. We would like to add employee amenities as well. In the outdoor adventure industry much of the workforce leads a fairly nomadic lifestyle. Guides spend their year chasing employment often camping or living out of their vehicles during the season. By having bathrooms, showers, laundry facilities and access to a kitchen we can have happier and healthier guides. These amenities can help to bring more employees to the area to experience what Southern Oregon has to offer and potentially turn them into long term residents.
Tourism Conference & Training Support
($1,750)
TSO supported two separate training opportunities for engaged tourism professionals in our region. We were able to assist RogueTrotter Tours attend the annual Outdoor Recreation Summit to learn more about various outdoor recreation opportunities and partnerships that will help elevate that busniess. And we sponsored the leader of the new Winston Chamber of Commerce to attend the annual Oregon Governors Conference on Tourism to learn more about the value of tourism and the successful partnerships that help make it thrive.
Indigo Creek Outfitters – New Klamath River Trip Marketing
($6,700)
Indigo Creek Outfitters did not conduct trips in 2024 on the Upper Klamath due to the dam removal construction. This resulted in a roughly 25% loss in revenue compared to 2023. Returning to the Klamath River in 2025 and successfully marketing new trips is imperative to the viability of our Southern Oregon based business. Grant money will be used to advertise and promote the “New Klamath” and the new trips we, and other Klamath River outfitters, are offering in 2025. The marketing campaign will attract visitors to our region and provide economic impact far beyond our own business. The “New Klamath” campaign, whose objectives are to increase awareness of the new trip offerings, drive bookings for Upper Klamath river trips in Southern Oregon, and provide information and story ideas to the media about the “New Klamath,” aims to promote the exciting opportunities for whitewater rafting on the Klamath River following the recent dam removal and invites visitors to Southern Oregon to experience the renewed Klamath River.
City of Oakland Economic Development – Marketing Collateral Support
($5,000)
Oakland, Oregon, is attempting to establish itself as an emerging wine destination within the Umpqua Valley. The town has three unique wine tasting businesses located within its historic downtown, which dates back to the late 1800s. Each tasting room is in a beautifully restored historic building that reflects the town’s rich heritage. Situated just two miles off Interstate 5, Oakland is easily accessible for both local visitors and tourists exploring Southern Oregon. However very few of the thousands of travelers on I-5 know that this historic gem exists. The goal of this project is to collect assets for use in promotional materials to help market Oakland as a wine destination. We are in the early stages of realizing the potential for Oakland to be recognized as the Northern Gateway to the Umpqua Valley AVA and funds would be used for photography and videography of our historic town and wine businesses.
Travel Medford – Customer Service Training Workshops
($4,000)
Travel Medford will host customer service training expert Brad Anderson, who held a breakout session at Travel Oregon’s 2024 Governor’s Conference on Tourism, to focus regional attention on customer service in our own communities. Front line staff in the Rogue Valley don’t always have opportunities to attend educational conferences like GovCon, and Southern Oregon representatives felt it was both timely and necessary to bring his unique and impactful training to the region. There hasn’t been as much of a directed effort to offer or deliver customer service training in our area post-COVID and this fills a gap for the entire region through a reputable organization called Blueprint. Workshop goals will focus on Understanding Visitor Value. Effective Communication Skills, Customer Personality Styles, Understanding Sales Impact, Role-play and Skills Development and Best Practices in Busy Times. Funds requested will be used for the cost of the training, venue, travel expenses and lodging for Mr. Anderson. Registration costs will go toward food and beverages for the attendees and Travel Medford will cover the net expenses for the event.
Sutherlin Area Chamber of Commerce Visitor Center – Tekified!
($5,000)
The Sutherlin Area Chamber of Commerce, in partnership with the City of Sutherlin, has a beautiful log cabin visitor center in a small city park at the town entrance. Our beloved visitor center much like its historic log cabin facade…must be brought along into the current century and “tekified.” In addition to updatijg technology inside teh visitor center, this project will add an outdoor kiosk with a video monitor to showcase our destination “after hours” to the many who stop by to get our outdoor brochures. This outdoor kiosk with video capability is in partnership with TNB Performance Fab and Design and will be designed to create a custom secure kiosk, while also featuring local outdoor-inspired art. The Visitor Center is a high-traffic area, which is good, but it also needs a secure kiosk.
Elkton Art & Wine Tour – Marketing Support
($4,000)
Elkton’s Art & Wine Weekend started with an open studio by acclaimed ceramic artist Hiroshi Ogawa 30+ years ago. Just over ten years ago, the Elkton Community Education Center helped the event grow into a tour of local wineries, artist studios and art exhibits in business and nonprofit venues. The event takes place over Thanksgiving weekend and project goals are 1) to position the Elkton Art & Wine Tour as a unique and fresh alternative to Thanksgiving weekend wine tastings in Roseburg and the South Willamette Valley and 2) to give our local AVA a tangible example of the impact we can have on tourism when we work together on collective marketing. Expanding this event also helps extend the Elkton tourism season beyond the summer months. Funds will be used to hire a marketing professionalto update the event brand, ensure all event materials use the brand consistently, update ECEC’s media contact list and develop new advertising outlets in the tourism and wine industries. Additional funds would be used to buy paid ads to test high-priority outlets and to produce a street banner and quarter-sheet flyers with the new logo.
A Greater Applegate – Wander Applegate & QueerFest Support
($2,600)
A Greater Applegate has become the de facto destination management organization for Applegate Valley, filling that need for our community to continue supporting our sustainable tourism efforts and new projects. TSO funds will support the Wander Applegate Working Group as it continues to raise up Applegate Valley as a destination. and works with the community to add its voice to our sustainable tourism efforts. The Working Group meets quarterly, with each meeting focusing on a specific aspect of tourism in Applegate Valley: shoulder season, vacation rentals/B2B connection, Winter Summit preparation, and summer tourism preparation. Funds will also support Queerfest and the Applegate Evening Market. The first Queerfest was held in 2022 and has grown in each subsequent year. It now includes a silent disco and performances, as well as a marketplace where Queer makers and artisans could sell their creations. Each year, Queerfest has attracted over 500 people to the Applegate from as far as Portland and the Bay Area. Applegate Evening Market is held from May–October. It has just completed its fourth and most successful year so far. Its new location at The Lindsay Lodge provides a setting that is welcoming and—with the scenic backdrop of the Applegate River and bridge—is quintessentially Applegate.
Travel Medford – WISE Workshops for Savor Southern Oregon
($4,000)
Travel Medford is hosting a signature wine event for Rogue Valley winery promotion in June 2025 called Savor Southern Oregon. Wineries have voiced their support for needing a major event that will help increase visitation to the tasting rooms and to target people outside of the region. In preparation of the event, Travel Medford proposes to lead a multi-layered project focused on hospitality at tasting rooms. Travel Medford will host a one-day tasting room workshop in April that will focus on skills, tasting room best practices and customer service experience needed based on the assessment results. Travel Medford plans to work with the respected industry expert Wine Industry Sales Education (WISE) as the third party. WISE specializes in providing education, training and certification for wine industry professionals who deal directly with consumers, building upon the belief that direct-to-consumers results are the key to success in the wine industry.
