alabama department of tourism

Alabama Tourism Department

The official site for industry professionals, frequently asked questions.

• When was ATD created?
• What is the purpose of ATD?
• How is ATD funded?
• How does ATD impact tourism?
• What is 1-800-Alabama?
• What is www.alabama.travel?
• Where does ATD advertise Alabama?
• What are Welcome Centers and where are they located?
• What are the Rest Areas and where are they located?
• How can my brochures be distributed in the Welcome Centers?
• How can I acquire ATD brochures for displays?
• Who designs and creates Alabama's official travel brochures?
• What is a Matching Grant and how do I qualify?
• How is ATD involved in weather emergencies?
• What is the official Alabama Vacation Guide and how do I obtain a listing?
• What is Tourism Tuesday?
• How does ATD work with travel writers?
• How does ATD assist the group travel market?
• What are the four ATD regions?
• What are some other ways ATD promotes tourism?
• How does ATD pursue the global travel market?

When was ATD created? Back to top

The agency which now goes by the name of the Alabama Tourism Department was created in October 1951 by legislative act as the Bureau of Publicity & Information. The name was amended and changed in May 1984 to Bureau of Tourism & Travel and changed again in 2010 to the present name.

What is the purpose of ATD? Back to top

How is atd funded back to top.

ATD is funded by one-fourth of the 4 percent state lodgings tax collected by all hotels, motels, campgrounds and other accommodations. Alabama's funding ranks 9th among the 12 Southern states.

How does ATD impact tourism? Back to top

What is 1-800-alabama back to top.

ATD operates the 1-800-Alabama nationwide toll free and (334) 242-4169 telephone system for Alabama tourism information. Calls are answered five days a week by travel counselors who are knowledgeable about Alabama’s tourism product and the state travel industry. The travel counselors handle incoming calls, mail, and live chat, offer travel counseling for tourists and potential tourists, assist students doing Alabama research projects and process e-mail requests. Hours of operation are:

Monday-Friday, 8 a.m.-5 p.m.

Central Time

What is www.alabama.travel? Back to top

ATD maintains a website at www.alabama.travel . It contains comprehensive travel information and links to local tourism sites. ATD’s Facebook page is www.facebook.com/AlabamaTravel . For details on being included, contact Dawn Chandler at (334) 242-4415 or [email protected] .

Where does ATD advertise Alabama? Back to top

ATD's advertising efforts are targeted toward the Southeast, since 85 percent of tourists come from within a 500-mile radius of Alabama. Ads are placed in both print and broadcast media. State law prohibits ATD from placing advertisements within Alabama. For more information, contact Grey Brennan, 334- 242-4459 or [email protected]

What are Welcome Centers and where are they located? Back to top

What are the rest areas and where are they located back to top.

Rest Areas are strategically located within the interior of the state along major highways. They provide a place for travelers to take a break while en route to their destination, and are not staffed by ATD employees. They come under the authority of the Alabama Department of Transportation.

How can my brochures be distributed in the Welcome Centers? Back to top

Brochure Approval Guidelines and Procedures

How can I acquire ATD brochures for displays? Back to top

If you desire to display brochures that are published by ATD, you may call and inquire about availability. Requests for literature not published by ATD should be made directly to the attraction/event/lodging of a city. Contact Mattie Pierce, (334) 242-4644 or [email protected] .

Who designs and creates Alabama's official travel brochures? Back to top

What is a matching grant and how do i qualify back to top.

The Matching Grants program provides assistance on a 50/50 matching basis to non-profit Alabama tourism organizations promoting travel and vacation business in Alabama. Those approved may be considered for grants on an annual basis. Funds may be used for brochures, tourism promotion websites, and out-of-state media advertising. No organization, or any of its subdivisions or affiliated groups, will be approved for more than one matching grant. Each non-profit organization will be required to submit its tax exempt identification number or its tax exemption letter from the Internal Revenue Service. For details, contact Leigh Cross at (334) 242-4416, [email protected] or Scott Burbank at (334) 242-4359, [email protected] .

How is ATD involved in weather emergencies? Back to top

What is the official alabama vacation guide and how do i obtain a listing back to top.

The official Alabama Vacation Guide contains comprehensive information about the state's attractions, lodgings, state parks, campgrounds, outdoor recreation, outfitters and golf courses and also the calendar of events. The Guide is published by ATD and given out to more than 250,000 tourists annually. Alabama Vacation Guide information is also posted on the ATD website at www.alabama.travel and is updated as needed. For information about submitting events for the calendar of events, adding or changing listings, or enhancing listings with display ads, contact Pam Smith at (334) 353-4541 or [email protected] .

What is Tourism Tuesday? Back to top

Tourism Tuesday is an electronic newsletter about ATD, its activities and other industry news. It is distributed weekly via email. Articles are gathered from various sources or written in-house. The editor welcomes news stories or articles about big anniversaries, restaurants or attractions to open and events to be held. We collect stories and repackage them in a concise easy-to-read newsletter. Contact Dwayne ORiley at (334) 353-4516 or [email protected] .

How does ATD work with travel writers? Back to top

How does atd assist the group travel market back to top.

The Alabama Tourism Department (ATD) is ready to work with travel industry professionals to help make it as easy as possible to plan an Alabama vacation for your clients. Group travel planning services offered by ATD include offering suggested itineraries, Hub & Spoke and themed tours along with hotel and attraction information, and providing listings of Alabama motor coach companies and tour operators.

Other group travel services include:

• Sports Marketing - –provides contacts and information on sports facilities and venues for sporting events.

For more details regarding group travel services, contact Grey Brennan,(334) 242-4459, [email protected] or Rosemary Judkins, (334) 242-4493, [email protected] . Or visit the Group Travel Resources page.

What are the four ATD regions? Back to top

Counties: Blount, Cherokee, Colbert, Cullman, DeKalb, Etowah, Franklin, Jackson, Lauderdale, Lawrence, Limestone, Madison, Marion, Marshall, Morgan, Winston

Counties: Bibb, Calhoun, Clay, Cleburne, Chambers, Chilton, Coosa, Fayette, Greene, Hale, Jefferson, Lamar, Perry, Pickens, Randolph, St. Clair, Shelby, Sumter, Talladega, Tallapoosa, Tuscaloosa, Walker

Counties: Autauga, Barbour, Bullock, Butler, Choctaw, Coffee, Covington, Crenshaw, Dale, Dallas, Elmore, Geneva, Henry, Houston, Lee, Lowndes, Macon, Marengo, Montgomery, Pike, Russell, Wilcox

Counties: Baldwin, Clarke, Conecuh, Escambia, Mobile, Monroe, Washington

What are some other ways ATD promotes tourism? Back to top

• Provides statistics on the economic impact of travel activity in Alabama.

• Plans and organizes special year-long themed marketing campaigns:

How does ATD pursue the global travel market? Back to top

Alabama welcomes tourists from all countries and markets in the world. We promote Alabama as a travel destination through partnerships with Brand USA, Travel South USA, the services of in-market representatives in key markets and focus on the consumer and travel trade through advertisements, public relations efforts and directly to consumers, travel journalists, and travel trade at important shows and consumer events. The Alabama Tourism Department assists with familiarization tours for foreign travel journalists and tour operators.

ATD’s international in-market representatives in the UK/Ireland market are Andy Facer and Surinder Manku of 5F Marketing.

Andy Facer [email protected]

Surinder Manku [email protected]

In the German/Austria/Switzerland markets, a German Partnership with several of the major destination marketing organizations in Alabama has been formed to provide representation in those markets for important tourism sections of Alabama. The partnership contracts with Textransfer in Germany. Our representative for Public Relations and Marketing is Janin Nachtweh. The contact information is as follows:

In additional markets, ATD has joined with several other Travel South member states in contracting for services:

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• Geography & Environment
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Alabama Tourism Department

Headquartered in Montgomery , the department’s director and assistant director are appointed by the governor. Sixty-three merit-system employees staff eight divisions, with managers overseeing the personnel, marketing, media, publications, financial services, mail, communications, and welcome-center divisions.

The ATD operates from Alabama’s General Fund, with an annual appropriation by the state legislature supplemented by a percentage of the State Lodging Tax charged for hotel and motel rooms and campground sites. The department promotes tourism nationally and internationally through advertising in print media, radio, television, and online sites. Most of this advertising budget is spent promoting tourism among southeasterners, because studies have shown that 85 percent of the tourists traveling to Alabama live within a 500-mile radius. State law prohibits the bureau from purchasing advertising inside Alabama. ATD employees write and produce tourism-related materials as well as travel-related articles and press releases. They also distribute press kits and organize press trips for members of the media, tour operators, and travel agents.

Working with its advertising agency, a private company chosen by the director and an advisory committee made up of tourism professionals and industry leaders from around the state, ATD plans and organizes special year-long marketing campaigns that focus on a central theme. For instance, 2004 was “The Year of Alabama Gardens” and 2106 was “The Year of Alabama Makers.” The department provides support to individual travel writers who wish to produce print or broadcast stories about Alabama destinations.

Each year’s crowning achievement for the department is the Official Alabama Vacation Guide, which offers readers a tourist’s view of the state from the mountains of northeast Alabama to the shores of the Gulf of Mexico. Highlights across the state include Space Camp at the U.S. Space and Rocket Center in Huntsville ; Ivy Green , Helen Keller ‘s home in Tuscumbia ; the statue of Vulcan in Birmingham ; Bellingrath Gardens near Mobile ; and the Troy University Rosa Parks Museum in Montgomery.

In 2017, ATD launched its three-year celebration of Alabama’s 200th anniversaries as the Mississippi Territory, the Alabama Territory, and statehood . Events and content produced for the celebration were divided into three themes, one for each year: Discovering Our Places, Honoring Our People, and Sharing Our Stories. The department produced, in collaboration with private companies, a mobile app and book, The Alabama Bicentennial PastPort, that allowed participants to map out significant locations in the state and “check in” when they visited. Events took place all over the state and included a kickoff party in Mobile, a dedication at St. Stephens , a reenactment of even surrounding the first constitution in Huntsville, and a parade and concert finale in Montgomery. A series of bronze plaques celebrating notable moments and periods in state history were commissioned and erected in the newly created Bicentennial Park across the street from the state capitol in 2020 and unveiled at the finale. Additionally, the Alabama Constitution Hall Historic Park and Museum were renovated and reopened in a celebration that included the reenactment of Pres. James Monroe ‘s surprise visit to the constitutional convention in 1819.

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Wayne Greenhaw Montgomery, Alabama

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Office of the Governor of Alabama

The Office of Alabama Governor Kay Ivey

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Department of Tourism and Travel

Lee Sentell

Director of the tourism department.

http://alabama.travel/

Lee Sentell was appointed by Governor Kay Ivey to his fourth term as director of the Alabama Tourism Department, a position held since 2003. During his tenure, Alabama’s tourism industry has grown 119 percent to $14 billion, making Alabama’s tourism growth one of the highest in the Southeast.

Under Sentell’s leadership, the agency has been recognized for successful marketing campaigns that increased tourism in Alabama. The agency has received national awards for advertising campaigns focusing on Alabama arts, foods and small towns. In 2014, he convinced the Alabama Legislature to declare “Sweet Home Alabama” as the official marketing slogan for the state.

He serves on the boards of the National Tourism Directors Council, the Southern State Tourism Directors Association, the Alabama Historical Commission, and the Alabama Music Hall of Fame. He previously served on boards of the Alabama State Council of the Arts, the Alabama Shakespeare Festival, and the Alabama Humanities Foundation. He is the founder and chair of the U.S. Civil Rights Trail associated with TravelSouth USA based in Atlanta.

He was marketing director of the U.S. Space & Rocket Center and served as tourism director of the Huntsville Convention & Visitors Bureau. He is a former city editor of the Decatur Daily.

The Ashland, Ala. native is a communications graduate of Auburn University.

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Alabama's Forgotten 'First Road' Gets a New Tourism Focus

The Alabama Department of Tourism, lawmakers and other groups are working to bring awareness and tourism dollars to communities along one of Alabama’s first roadways

Alabama's Forgotten 'First Road' Gets a New Tourism Focus

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. (AP) — Byler Road is as old as Alabama , authorized by state lawmakers in 1819, to bring settlers to the western part of the state.

The Alabama Department of Tourism, lawmakers and the Byler Road Steering Committee are working to bring awareness and tourism dollars to communities along one of Alabama's first roadways, the Tuscaloosa News reporred.

“The fact that this is the cornerstone of the development of the state of Alabama from its earliest days makes it unique. I think it is going to have long-term positive consequences,” Lee Sentell, director of the Alabama Tourism Department, told the newspaper .

Sentell spoke at an event this week that kicked off a campaign to begin raising awareness of Alabama’s historic road.

Byler Road was authorized by the Alabama State Legislature in 1819 and was constructed under the supervision of Capt. John Byler between 1820 and 1823. It served as a toll road since it had to pay for itself. The road began on the Tennessee River in Lauderdale County and ran southward to the Black Warrior River, ending in what is now the city of Northport.

Some sections of the original road have been replaced by newer roads or reclaimed by forests.

Photos You Should See - April 2024

The Prewitt Slave Cemetery is one of the historic places along Byler Road. Pat Kemp on Thursday set out small white crosses to honor the people buried there. “My great-great-grandfather and my great-great-grandmother are both buried here,” Kemp told the newspaper.

Kemp, the president of the Prewitt Slave Cemetery Association, said a recent effort by anthropology students from the University of Alabama had discovered 815 to 900 graves in the cemetery that was previously believed to have only held about 300 to 400 graves.

“We really are looking back at this portion of our state’s history and all the historic things that have happened and the people who lived along this trail in order to move forward and try to help ourself economically,” Rep. Tracy Estes, R-Winfield, said.

Copyright 2023 The  Associated Press . All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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Official Alabama Store

Welcome to the Official Alabama Store  

Shop here for unique merchandise exclusively from the Alabama Tourism Department. Whether you’re looking for a memento of your last Alabama road trip or a souvenir for someone you may have forgotten, you’ll find something special here from Sweet Home Alabama.

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"Alabama Road Trips: 52 Ideas To Get Away" Book

Regular price $20.00

Capitol Mug

Regular price $9.95

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