[OMS_MANAGERS] FW: 📣Destination Boot Camp: Registration + Lodging DUE FRIDAY 4/25/25

Thu Apr 24 10:47:20 PDT 2025

Hi all – here’s the info on the Destination Boot Camp that Rebecca mentioned on our MoM call this morning in case anyone is interested in attending….Best, Sheri

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Sheri Stuart (she, her, hers) |  Oregon Main Street Coordinator
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Oregon Heritage, Oregon Parks and Recreation Department
Desk:  (503)986-0679 cell: (503)551-3705
725 Summer St NE, Ste C
Salem, Oregon 97301

Visit our website<http://www.oregonheritage.org/>, Like us on Facebook<https://www.facebook.com/OregonHeritage>, Visit our Blog<http://oregonheritage.wordpress.com/>, Join the Oregon Heritage News e-news<https://omls.oregon.gov/mailman/listinfo/Heritage> Check our LinkedIn<https://www.linkedin.com/company/oregon-parks-and-recreation-department/>.

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Sheri Stuart (she, her, hers) |  Oregon Main Street Coordinator

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Oregon Heritage, Oregon Parks and Recreation Department

Desk:  (503)986-0679 cell: (503)551-3705

725 Summer St NE, Ste C

Salem, Oregon 97301

Visit our website<http://www.oregonheritage.org/>, Like us on Facebook<https://www.facebook.com/OregonHeritage>, Visit our Blog<http://oregonheritage.wordpress.com/>, Join the Oregon Heritage News e-news<https://omls.oregon.gov/mailman/listinfo/Heritage> Check our LinkedIn<https://www.linkedin.com/company/oregon-parks-and-recreation-department/>.

From: Alexa Carey <Alexa at traveloregon.com<mailto:Alexa at traveloregon.com>>
Sent: Tuesday, April 22, 2025 10:24 AM
Cc: Development <development at traveloregon.com<mailto:development at traveloregon.com>>; Alexa Carey <Alexa at traveloregon.com<mailto:Alexa at traveloregon.com>>; Vanessa <vanessa at vanessatharp.com<mailto:vanessa at vanessatharp.com>>
Subject: 📣Destination Boot Camp: Registration + Lodging DUE FRIDAY 4/25/25

Hello everyone,

I hope you’re still riding the post-GovCon glow if you were able to join us at the conference! We wanted to let you know that there’s still space available for the 2025 Travel Oregon Destination Boot Camp, happening May 19–21 in Hood River - and we’d love to see you there! This year’s gathering is shaping up to be one of our most dynamic yet.

Here’s a preview of several sessions:

•         Beyond the Blueprint: Crafting a Stewardship Strategy That Fits

•         What’s the Plan? Demystifying Destination Master, Tactical, and Work Plans

•         The Funding Flip: Navigating Scarcity with Strategy to Make Magic Happen

•         Built to Be Shared: Designing Projects with Marketing in Mind to Break Down Silos

•         Shared Experience Destination Workshopping: Serving Resourced Communities with Challenges, Diversifying Destinations, and a Rural-Focused Intensive

•         Visitor Experience Breakouts: Accessibility in Recreation, Trail Development, and World-Class Culinary Development

In addition to one-on-one appointments and our core development-focused sessions, this year’s Boot Camp expands into strategic crossover areas like marketing, messaging, and communications. Based on your survey feedback, we’re bringing these topics into the room while staying grounded in destination development and stewardship.

(New this year) We’re also excited to share that around 25 Travel Oregon staff will be in attendance — more than ever before. This creates a powerful opportunity for dialogue and direct engagement across the agency, including multiple new staff. There are two sessions where we’re creating space for feedback and review from Travel Oregon teams and peers to provide direct feedback.

Please consider bringing printed copies of your materials for Tuesday morning, including:

•         Collateral and print materials

•         Stewardship, master, strategy or project plans

•         Emerging grant concepts

•         Communications plans & messaging frameworks

•         Work-in-progress tools or concepts

If you’re planning to join us, please register by this Friday — space is limited. Signing up is free & we expect to fill the remaining spots quickly.

             👉 Be sure to register by Friday, April 25 to save your seat. RSVP here. <https://cvent.me/82q9Xy>

      👉 Please flag that this Friday, April 25 is the cut-off date for hotel registration! Room block is released & prices will increase. Reserve lodging here<https://www.bestwestern.com/en_US/book/hotel-rooms.38121.html?groupId=5L3JN9F3>.

Lastly, here are a few questions I received recently that may be helpful in informing your decision to attend.

Q: If I attended Boot Camp before, should I attend again?

A: Yes! Similar to GovCon, Boot Camp features entirely new content each year shaped directly by responses to the advanced registration survey and the TIPS survey to ensure sessions reflect what’s most relevant for destination leaders right now.

While some programs, like the Intro to Destination Stewardship series in the fall, may feature more repeated content for newer industry leaders, Boot Camp is designed to evolve annually. One of its greatest strengths is the opportunity to convene with a smaller, statewide peer group to build a connected learning community. With 90–125 attendees from across Oregon (compared to GovCon’s 650-ish), Boot Camp offers a more intimate, targeted experiential learning program focused on destination development & stewardship. We encourage annual participation!

Q: Doesn’t Boot Camp normally sell out within a few weeks?

Yes, AND we’ve expanded the number of available spots to accommodate the growing number of professionals engaging in destination stewardship work. Some partners have been focused on GovCon, which happened later than usual this year, but now is the time to reserve your spot for Hood River before we reach capacity.

Q: My role is in marketing, but I keep hearing about this event. Should I attend?

Yes, if you’re committed to integrating and engaging with your development colleagues, Boot Camp is a great opportunity. While traditionally focused on destination development, Boot Camp increasingly reflects the overlap between development, stewardship, messaging and marketing. It’s especially relevant for marketing professionals who are already working closely with development teams, or who are looking to break down silos and build more aligned strategies within their organization.

Thanks again for your continued partnership - we hope to connect with you in Hood River next month!

Warmly,

Alexa

Alexa Carey | Strategist – Destination Stewardship

Travel Oregon - Oregon Tourism Commission

319 SW Washington Street, Suite 700 | Portland, OR 97204

Office: 971.717.6205 | Direct: 971.717.6178 | Email: alexa at traveloregon.com<mailto:alexa at traveloregon.com>
Office Hours: Mon-Thurs 7:00-5:00 PM

traveloregon.com<http://www.traveloregon.com/> | industry.traveloregon.com

[signature_835942651]<https://traveloregon.com/>

________________________________

From: Alexa Carey
Sent: Friday, February 21, 2025 7:20 AM
Subject: 📣Registration Open: 2025 Travel Oregon Destination Boot Camp in Hood River from May 19-21

Hello everyone!

You’re invited to join Travel Oregon for the annual Destination Boot Camp, May 19–21, 2025, at the Hood River Inn (Best Western Plus) in Hood River, set against the stunning backdrop of the Columbia River Gorge.

Destination Boot Camp is a multi-day event designed to bring together Oregon’s tourism industry leaders focused on destination development, management, and stewardship. This invitation is specific to you and is tailored to professionals, including DMO and RDMO staff, Oregon Tourism Studio leaders, Destination Ready awardees, Main Street managers, Food & Farm Trail leads, city and county government leaders, recreation staff, and land managers.

Building on the success of last year’s format, this year’s Boot Camp will emphasize collaborative and interactive learning. Instead of traditional presentations & panels, sessions will focus on group discussions around key destination stewardship and management topics. Attendees are encouraged to participate actively in these discussions, sharing insights as teachers and learners.

Your input will shape the final agenda! Using feedback from the short survey linked below, we’ll ensure the content addresses the most pressing and relevant themes, with case studies and speakers that reflect your priorities. Please take a moment to share your thoughts—this five-minute survey<https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/5HNZQ7P> is due by Friday, March 7th.

Destination Boot Camp will take place over the following dates and times:

Monday, May 19

11:00 AM-4:30 PM + Evening Event

Tuesday, May 20

8:00 AM-5:00 PM + Evening Event

Wednesday, May 21

8:00 AM-2:00 PM

Boot Camp participation is FREE. However, registration is capped at 100 industry attendees. Travel Oregon offers this event without a registration fee to promote equitable access. However, this event books to capacity and has a waitlist each year. If you register and can no longer attend, you must cancel your registration via your confirmation email more than thirty days before the event by April 18th. Failure to cancel in advance or not showing up for the event will result in being waitlisted or removed from the invitation list for future events. We strongly encourage you to register only if you are fully committed to attending. This ensures the opportunity remains available to others who are eager to participate.

The registration deadline is Friday, April 18th – the form is available here.<https://cvent.me/82q9Xy>

(NOTE: EXTENDED TO 4/25 for GovCon)

Registration includes training, meals, materials, networking events, and group learning tour experiences. Participants are responsible for their own transportation to Hood River and lodging for Monday through Wednesday. A block rate at the Best Western Plus—Hood River Inn must be booked by April 15th. The price varies by room type selection and starts at $139 when you update your dates by room type. The lodging booking link with the auto-applied group rate is available here<https://www.bestwestern.com/en_US/book/hotel-rooms.38121.html?groupId=5L3JN9F3>.

Please direct any additional questions to the Destination Services team at development at traveloregon.com<mailto:development at traveloregon.com>. Please note that responses may come from Faviana Schectman, our new Destination Services Coordinator, Alexa Carey, or Vanessa Tharp.

Warmly,

Travel Oregon’s Destination Services Team

Alexa Carey | Strategist - Destination Stewardship

Travel Oregon/Oregon Tourism Commission

319 SW Washington Street, Suite 700 | Portland, OR 97204

D: 971.717.6178 | O: 971.717.6205

Email: alexa at traveloregon.com<mailto:jporter at traveloregon.com>

traveloregon.com<http://traveloregon.com/> | industry.traveloregon.com<http://www.industry.traveloregon.com/>

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