About Us
Why Destination Must Visit®
A purpose-built, performance-driven approach to destination marketing that integrates strategy, execution, and accountability into a single, coordinated operating model.
Our Team's Experience
Proven across the destinations that define American tourism.
Our award-winning team has contributed to destination marketing, tourism promotion, visitor engagement, event activation, hospitality, public relations, and economic development initiatives involving organizations and destinations including:
State & Destination Tourism Organizations
- Explore Georgia
- Visit Florida
- Arkansas Tourism ("The Natural State")
- Discover Puerto Rico
- United States Virgin Islands Department of Tourism
- Visit Savannah
- Visit Roswell
- Destination Augusta
- Visit Augusta
- Visit Macon
- Explore Gwinnett
- Travel Cobb
- Discover Dunwoody
- Visit Tybee Island
- Discover Dahlonega
- Visit Washington County
- Villa Rica Tourism
- Visit Fairfax
- Visit Loudoun
- Choose Chicago
- Meet Chicago Northwest
- The Palm Beaches
- Destinations International
Hospitality, Resorts & Visitor Experience Brands
- The Ritz-Carlton
- Alys Beach
- Marriott Vacation Club
- Disney Vacation Club
- Blackburn Inn & Conference Center
Tourism, Events & Industry Initiatives
- Georgia's National Travel & Tourism Week Summit
- Auburn-Opelika Tourism
- Taste of St. Croix
- Sweet Jazz Festival
- Taste of Reston
- Oktoberfest
- Atlanta Dogwood Festival
- Special Olympics events
- Graham County tourism initiatives
- Scenic America
Industry Recognition & Media Reach
- Food & Wine
- National Geographic Traveler
- Bon Appetit
- Travel + Leisure
- Small Market Meetings
- Sports Destination Management
- ESPN Classic
- NBA TV
- Discovery Channel
- Southwest Airlines publications and promotional channels
Our Approach
More than destination promotion. A complete operating model.
Destination Must Visit® offers a purpose-built, performance-driven approach to destination marketing that integrates strategy, execution, and accountability into a single, coordinated operating model. Rather than functioning as a traditional marketing vendor or a collection of disconnected services, Destination Must Visit® delivers a unified system designed to produce measurable outcomes and sustained economic impact.
Destination Must Visit® provides more than destination promotion. It delivers a structured, scalable system for actively managing and growing the visitor economy through coordinated execution, informed decision-making, and measurable results.
Mission & Vision
Guided by purpose. Driven by impact.
To strengthen destinations through collaborative tourism advancement, strategic destination marketing, hospitality engagement, experiential activation, and stakeholder partnerships that inspire visitation, elevate communities, and generate sustainable economic impact under the Destination Must Visit® tourism advancement framework.
To position Destination Must Visit® Tourism Alliance, Inc. as a transformative destination leadership organization recognized for elevating communities, strengthening tourism ecosystems, creating meaningful visitor experiences, and advancing globally competitive destination identities through the Destination Must Visit® brand platform.
Core Values
The principles that guide everything we do.
Collaboration
We believe successful destinations are built through strong partnerships among tourism, hospitality, business, government, cultural, and community stakeholders.
Destination Excellence
We are committed to creating memorable destination experiences that elevate visitor engagement, community pride, and hospitality excellence.
Innovation
We embrace creative thinking, experiential marketing, and forward-looking tourism strategies that strengthen destination competitiveness.
Community Engagement
We value authentic community participation and believe local culture, identity, and people are essential to successful destination development.
Integrity
We operate with professionalism, accountability, transparency, and ethical stewardship in every partnership and initiative.
Economic Impact
We support tourism strategies that generate measurable economic growth, strengthen local businesses, increase visitation, and enhance destination vitality.
Diversity & Inclusion
We believe inclusive destinations create stronger visitor experiences and more vibrant communities.
Sustainability
We support responsible tourism and destination stewardship practices that preserve cultural, economic, and community assets for future generations.
Our History
Decades of destination development. One proven model.
Destination Must Visit® Tourism Alliance, Inc. was established to advance destination development, tourism growth, and economic impact through a coordinated, alliance-based model that brings together marketing, hospitality, stakeholder engagement, and visitor experience strategy.
The organization's foundation is rooted in decades of practical experience transforming underrecognized locations into active, high-performing destinations through disciplined marketing, strategic partnerships, and experience-driven programming.
This approach traces back to 1997, when founder Carolyn E. Howell was engaged to support the repositioning of the Dulles Golf Center & Sports Park in Northern Virginia — pioneering a repeatable model that combines visibility, experience design, and stakeholder alignment to create destination relevance and sustained demand.
The Foundation
Founder Carolyn E. Howell is engaged to reposition the Dulles Golf Center & Sports Park in Northern Virginia — pioneering a destination development model combining visibility, experience design, and stakeholder alignment.
Events Executed
Over decades of work, the team has successfully executed more than 2,600 events, conferences, trade missions, tourism activations, and destination-driven experiences across local, national, and international markets.
Formally Established
Destination Must Visit® Tourism Alliance, Inc. is formally established as a 501(c)(6) nonprofit to support municipalities, tourism districts, and hospitality ecosystems through a structured, scalable approach to destination marketing.
Alliance-Driven Growth
DMVTA continues applying its proven model to support destination advancement initiatives — helping communities establish sustainable, experience-driven visitor economies.
Alliance Design
DMVTA was intentionally designed to align tourism marketing, economic development, and stakeholder engagement — supporting collaboration among hotels, venues, attractions, and local businesses while providing a unified framework for managing destination growth and performance.
A Distinct Competitive Advantage
Experience that converts tourism activity into measurable economic outcomes.
Ready to strengthen your destination?
Let's start a conversation about how Destination Must Visit® can help your community build a sustainable, experience-driven visitor economy.