PORTLAND – Geotourism is a growing trend and now state officials think it will help bring more visitors to Oregon and Washington as well.
The National Geographic Society unveiled its latest Geotourism MapGuide, which features the Central Cascades as a key destination.
The map promotes sustainable travel, highlighting hundreds of locations where tourists can enjoy nature while also helping to preserve it. It features more than 200 geotourism sites with cultural, recreational, agricultural, natural and geological points of interest.
Todd Davidson, with Travel Oregon, said he thinks this will be good for both Oregon and Washington.
"There are 55 million Americans who categorize themselves as being geo-tourists, which means they travel to places that they know they're going to enjoy and also want their experience to be something that's going to enhance that place while they're there,” Davidson said.
The MapGuide project launched in January 2009 and has already been expanded by local people and businesses in Oregon and Washington. “We received 1,200-plus map point nominations,” Davidson added. “The printed map includes about 200 [locations], but all the others can be viewed on the new Web site.”
