West Virginia Division of Tourism Story Archives - West Virginia Public Broadcasting

New Airline Will Fly To Orlando, Charleston, SC

Breeze Airways will begin offering non-stop flights from CRW to Orlando, Florida and Charleston, South Carolina beginning May 31st.

Right now, there are four flight destinations out of Charleston’s West Virginia International Yeager Airport: Charlotte, Washington D.C., Chicago and Atlanta. Five more destinations were announced on Tuesday.

Gov. Jim Justice was joined by state, county and city leaders in the airport terminal to announce that start-up Breeze Airways will begin offering non-stop flights from Charleston to Orlando, Florida and Charleston, South Carolina beginning May 31st.

Justice said the carrier will add three more non-stop flights over the next two years, including New York City and one stop on the West Coast.

“I’ve said over and over that our airports in West Virginia are our lifeblood,” Justice said. “They fuel our economy, bring in tourism, and their ripple effects are off-the-charts. I’m so proud to welcome Breeze Airways to Almost Heaven.”

Justice said this public/private partnership between Breeze Airlines, a two-year-old company out of Utah, along with the state, Kanawha County, and the City of Charleston comes after years of decline in available destinations from smaller airports around the country, including Yeager Airport.

Justice, Kanawha County Commission President Kent Carper and others stressed that this is a long-term partnership. Earlier this month, Spirit Airlines announced it was discontinuing all Yeager Airport service in May, including its Orlando flight.

Tourism Secretary Chelsea Ruby says this public/private partnership is part of a marketing campaign to expand on the “Drive to West Virginia” concept. She said this venture is about making West Virginia more accessible to visitors and new residents and bringing in people from further and further away.

“When we started these meetings, we were talking about how we would replace Orlando,” Ruby said. “Then, we immediately said, that’s not what we’re here to do. We’re here to find a partner who is here long term, who’s not going to come in and pull out six months later.”

A Justice press release notes Breeze Airways was launched in 2021 by JetBlue founder and former CEO David Neeleman with a mission to fill a key gap in America’s air-travel offerings: efficient, affordable, direct flights between secondary airports, bypassing hubs for shorter travel times.

Angela Vargo, the vice president of Marketing and Communications for Breeze Airways spoke to those gathered at the airport, calling Breeze a N.L.C.C., a nice low-cost carrier.

“We also have family friendly policies, like family seating which you do not pay for,” Vargo said. “We do not think you should have to pay to sit next to your children, although sometimes I want to pay people to sit next to mine. We also have no change or cancellation fees.”

The new routes are now on sale on the Breeze website at introductory fares of $59 to Orlando and $49 to Charleston, one way.

Tourism Day On Full Display At The Legislature

In 2022, state tourism revenue set an all time record with $5 billion in traveler spending. “Almost Heaven” was on full display as Tourism Day filled the State Capitol rotunda halls on Monday.

Thousands of people from throughout the state, country and world experience the thrill of whitewater rafting on West Virginia rivers every year. Some are whitewater veterans, but many first-timers come to West Virginia to experience the New River Gorge National Park and Preserve and raft through the heart of one of the state’s most beautiful areas.

Chelsea Bricker is marketing leader with Adventures on the Gorge, one of several whitewater rafting outfits. Chelsea explained that these days, Fayette County tourist destinations offer much more than rafting.

“We do ziplining; we do rock climbing. We do rappelling; we do mountain biking. We have an aerial obstacle course as well,” Bricker said. “You can do a hiking trip in the New River Gorge. You really can come and spend an entire week there, or just come for a couple days. We also have a pool right on the edge of the New River Gorge National Park so you can relax if that’s your idea of an adventure.”

A hidden tourism gem in Mason County, the West Virginia State Farm Museum offers snapshots in history, representing the industry of the farm as well as the state’s farm heritage. Museum Executive Director Tim Kidwell said following a COVID-19 downtime, 2023 museum events will be back in full harvest.

“We’ll start off with a spring steam and engine shed. Hopefully weather permitting, we usually have 50 to 60 antique engines and tractors on display and in operation,” Kidwell said, “Then each month we actually hold an antique tractor show during the summer and we’ll be wrapping up the year this year with our fall festival.”

One tourism day display, presented by Jay Fryman with Backroads of Appalachia, showcases his popular regional motorsports trail ride organization, now getting legislative approval for people to ride into West Virginia.

“Backroads of Appalachia is a nonprofit organization who does economic development to motor sports tourism for the poorest regions of Appalachia,” Fryman said. “We work in Eastern Kentucky, southwest Virginia, eastern Tennessee, and now West Virginia. We’re working with the West Virginia state Legislature to develop a trail system here and promote it to bring that tourism into the small towns. We haven’t had anything since coal died. So that’s what we did.”

The state currently employs more than 44,000 people working in direct tourism jobs. With expected growth, there’s an estimated 24,000 annual job openings, and many of those in the hospitality industry, someone needs to house and feed all those tourists.

The past few years, southern West Virginia Hatfield McCoy ATV trails have rivaled whitewater rafting and winter skiing in bringing in thousands of out of state tourists. John Fekete, deputy executive director for the Hatfield McCoy Trails, said last year they sold 95,000 trail passes and 80 percent of those were non-resident, out of state people. Fekete said the challenge is finding places in the coalfields for those trail riders to lodge and eat.

”We need more entrepreneurs. We need more development. We’re seeing some of that now. We saw a couple of big resorts come in in the last couple of years,” Fekete said. “Ashland Resort down in McDowell County, they’re growing. They’ve been around for about 10 years. We’ve got the Devil’s Backbone over in Red Jacket. They’ve got almost 50 cabins and are in the process of building 100 more. So the developments are coming but we need more.”

In Nicholas County meanwhile, high schoolers have started the Good Gauley Coffee Company, giving students a head start in one of many tourism hospitality trades. Katie Goette, the ProStart culinary teacher at Nicholas County Career and Technical Center said food tourism or food niches are really quite popular right now. And a barista job may offer more interest and advancement than your fast food endeavor.

“It’s great for these students. It’s an empowering first entry level job into the business instead of fast food,” Goette said. “As a barista or roasting coffee, you have to learn the flavor profiles, which is a great entry level culinary skill. You have to have customer service and get to know your customers and what kind of – how they want their coffee, how they like what they like, and how they take their coffee.”

West Virginia’s record setting 2022 tourism gains were experienced throughout the four corners and two panhandles of the state, with even stronger revenues expected in 2023.

Hatfield-McCoy Trail Riders Can Win UTVs In State Giveaway

Trail riders who purchase permits for West Virginia’s Hatfield-McCoy trails can win one of two high-performance UTV’s, or side-by-side ultimate terrain vehicles

Trail riders who purchase permits for West Virginia’s Hatfield-McCoy trails can win one of two high-performance UTV’s, or side-by-side ultimate terrain vehicles.

The West Virginia Department of Tourism is offering the giveaway to encourage riders to explore West Virginia’s fall colors.

Anyone who purchases a 2022 riding permit for the Hatfield McCoy trails before Nov. 15 will be entered to win the prize and the two winners will be randomly selected on Dec. 15.

“The Hatfield-McCoy Trails have been an incredible draw for many visitors to our state, as well as our in-state residents,” Gov. Jim Justice said. “Last year alone, 29,500 new riders explored the expansive trail system.”

One UTV will be awarded to an in-state resident, while the second UTV will be given to an out-of-state resident. Anyone who currently holds a Hatfield-McCoy Trail permit for 2022 is automatically entered to win.

Permits cost $50 for non-residents and $26.50 for West Virginia residents.

Hatfield-McCoy Trail permits can be purchased at any Hatfield-McCoy Trailhead facility: Bearwallow, Buffalo Mountain, Cabwaylingo, Devil Anse, Ivy Branch, Pinnacle Creek, Pocahontas, Rockhouse and Warrior, along with the Hatfield-McCoy Trails Welcome Center and Country Roads Visitor Center; or at one of over 130 authorized HMTpermit vendor locations such as local ATV outfitters stores and a variety of lodging providers.

State Legislators Receive Update On Ascend WV Program

State legislators got an update on the Ascend West Virginia program from Chelsea Ruby, Secretary of the West Virginia Department of Tourism and Danny Twilley, Assistant Vice President of the West Virginia University Brad and Alys Smith Outdoor Economic Development Collaborative

During Monday’s legislative interim meetings, Chelsea Ruby, Secretary of the West Virginia Department of Tourism, and Danny Twilley, Assistant Vice President of the West Virginia University Brad and Alys Smith Outdoor Economic Development Collaborative, gave the West Virginia Legislative Oversight Commission on Workforce Investment for Economic Development an update on Ascend WV.

In exchange for moving to the West Virginia towns of Morgantown, Shepherdstown, and Lewisburg, workers were paid $12,000, given access to professional development through West Virginia University, co-working facilities, and one year of free passes and two years of free rentals for outdoor recreation as part of the Ascend WV Program.

For the Ascend program in Morgantown, 7500 people applied for 50 spots. The applications came from all 50 states and from more than 70 countries.

Of the people who eventually moved to Morgantown, 23 percent originally hailed from the Mountain State. One of the new Morgantown residents hailed from Berlin.

“We’ve really seen a very diverse set of applicants,” said Ruby.

Contrary to earlier estimates, the program didn’t primarily appeal to people working remotely in the tech industry.

“There’s healthcare, computer systems, manufacturing, management, and then professional services,” she said.

The primary challenge was finding housing for new residents. Ruby indicated that the tax incentives from the recent passing of the Build WV Act will make it easier to find housing for new residents.

“The hope is that we can find some private developers to help us do that work rather than the state or WVU taking on that type of rehabilitation,” Ruby said.

Danny Twilley told legislatures that Ascend WV doesn’t just incentivize individuals to West Virginia, but tries to help them join the local community with events.

“We ask them to bring their families along with their significant others because, again, it’s all about building that sense of community and sense of belongingness,” said Twilley.

Secretary Ruby said the program was successful in presenting the state as a place to work remotely and even retire. She added that data shows Ascend advertising having a positive effect on the state’s image.

“The exposure of this Ascend program is really starting to get some traction. People are really starting to think about West Virginia as a place to work remotely,” she said. “That data shows Ascend advertising having a positive effect on the state’s image. These tourism ads layering on top of the remote worker ads are also starting to help, and we are continuing to improve West Virginia’s image overall.”

Ascend WV looks to expand to 1000 remote workers across five West Virginia towns.

West Virginia Unveils Vacation Guide Collection, New State Map

West Virginia Tourism unveiled its 2022 travel guide on Wednesday, or rather, its multiple travel guides.

Armed with $7 million in newly budgeted funding for promoting West Virginia as a travel destination, the state tourism department has gathered detailed demographics on in- and out-of-state visitors.

At the newly renovated Hawks Nest State Park, Tourism Secretary Chelsea Ruby announced a collection of four travel guides available this year. Ruby said these richly illustrated guides target a vacationer’s most popular interests, according to the research.

“So, we’ve got outdoor recreation, natural wonders, mountain culture and a new one for the nation’s newest national park, the New River Gorge National Park and Preserve” Ruby said.

Each of the vacation guides feature QR codes that expand on the published articles and provide online access to exclusive content and trip inspiration from hundreds of tourism businesses across the state.

Ruby also gave travelers a sneak peek of the 2022 Highway Map. The new map features all of West Virginia’s state parks and forests, alongside important traveler information, must-see stops, and scenic country roads to travel.

“This is also something the Governor pushed us on,” Ruby said. “He wanted this to be a keepsake – a collector piece – and, along with our friends from the West Virginia Division of Highways, we came up with an absolutely stunning map.”

Ruby said the four travel guides will be strategically inserted into several national travel magazines. She said more than 100,000 West Virginia vacation guides will be included with subscriber copies of Southern Living and Real Simple magazines to encourage travel to the Mountain State.

Ruby said these travel guides are available to order free on the wvtourism.com website.

West Virginia Tourism Gets 'Almost Heaven' Rights

A song beloved by West Virginians will now represent the state across the country. The West Virginia Tourism Office is hoping the song will help promote the state.

The West Virginia Tourism Office says it has obtained rights to use the song “Take Me Home, Country Roads” in marketing and will begin this week.

Made famous by John Denver, it calls the mountain state “almost heaven,” and has been an unofficial West Virginia anthem practically since its 1971 release. It was named an official state song in 2014.

Fans sing it at West Virginia University home football games.

The tourism office says it will make it a centerpiece of a major ad campaign next year.

According to National Public Radio, Denver first heard the incomplete song in the Washington, D.C., apartment of songwriter Bill Danoff and his girlfriend and writing partner, Taffy Nivert.

They finished it and recorded it together months later in New York City.