The Colorado Recovery Assistance For Tourism Program assisted Colorado tourism destinations and industry associations advance collaborative projects to foster the long-term resilience of the statewide industry.
This program was funded by a $2.4 million CARES Act Recovery Assistance grant from the U.S. Economic Development Administration.
This program included four different offerings:
- Restart Destinations Program
- Restart Industry Associations Program
- Reimagine Destinations Program
- Reimagine Industry Associations Program
These programs included a mix of strategic planning, community visioning and action planning workshops, free consulting from tourism experts, and access to resources to implement tourism-related projects. Colorado Tourism Office Destination Development programs are always customized to meet the needs and objectives of local partners, with the goal of attracting new forms of visitation, enhancing local tourism offerings, conserving cultural and natural assets, and improving residential quality of life.
The Colorado Recovery Assistance For Tourism is no longer active and was only available from 2021 to 2023. Follow this link to learn more about active Colorado Tourism Office Destination Development programs.
Overview
Type: Technical assistance and grant
For: Tourism destinations and industry associations
Amount: Varies
Application deadline: Program is no longer active
OEDIT division: Colorado Tourism Office
Restart Destinations Program
The Restart Destinations Program assisted Colorado tourism destinations to drive short-term recovery as they emerged from the COVID-19 pandemic. This was a one-time offering made possible by a CARES Act Recovery Assistance grant the Colorado Tourism Office received in January 2021.
The Colorado Tourism Office approved 28 Colorado tourism destinations to participate in the Restart Destinations Program in July 2021. Participating destinations received:
- a destination recovery assessment
- a full-day community visioning and action planning workshop
- 75 hours of free consulting to advance recovery-focused tourism projects
- direct marketing support from the Colorado Tourism Office
More than 525 Colorado tourism stakeholders were directly engaged across the 28 destinations during the development of the destination recovery assessments and delivery of the workshops. As a result of this engagement, the Colorado Tourism Office identified the following shared industry priorities that were consistent across the findings gathered within the 28 participating destinations:
- advance off-peak tourism opportunities
- advance tourism workforce
- champion the value of tourism
- develop and enhance visitor experience
- encourage responsible and respectful use
- foster inclusive travel opportunities
- promote local businesses and experiences
Following the delivery of each workshop, each participating destination received 75 hours of free consulting from a tourism expert to implement priority actions that were identified during the workshop. This resulted in the completion of 28 Restart Destination Mentor Projects that advanced recovery-focused tourism activities throughout Colorado.
Success stories about each program delivery are available in the Participating Destinations section below.
The following Colorado tourism destinations were approved to participate in the Restart Destinations Program in July 2021:
- Aspen Chamber Resort Association
- Canyons & Plains of Southeast Colorado (on behalf of Bent, Baca, Crowley, Las Animas, Prowers, Otero, and Kiowa County)
- City of Central
- City of Woodland Park
- Clear Creek County Tourism Bureau
- Creede/Mineral County Chamber of Commerce (on behalf of Silver Thread Scenic Byway)
- Custer County Tourism Board
- Fremont County Tourism Council
- Greater Pueblo Chamber of Commerce (on behalf of Pueblo County)
- Lake City Hinsdale Marketing Committee
- Lake County Tourism Panel
- Marble Crystal River Chamber
- Mesa Verde Country Tourism Office
- Moffat County Tourism Association
- Prowers County Tourism Board
- Tourism Council of Carbondale (on behalf of the Roaring Fork Valley Destination Alliance)
- Town of Lyons
- Towns of Fruita and Palisade
- Towns of Minturn and Red Cliff
- Towns of Silverthorne and Dillon
- Visit Colorado Springs (on behalf of El Paso, Fremont, and Teller County)
- Visit Durango
- Visit Estes Park
- Visit Fort Collins
- Visit Glenwood Springs
- Visit La Junta
- Visit Montrose
- Visit Ouray
Restart Industry Associations Program
The Restart Industry Associations Program assisted Colorado tourism industry associations to drive short term recovery as they emerged from the COVID-19 pandemic. This was a one-time offering that was made possible by a CARES Act Recovery Assistance grant the Colorado Tourism Office received in January 2021.
The Colorado Tourism Office approved 19 Colorado tourism industry associations to participate in the Restart Industry Associations Program in September 2021. Participating industry associations received:
- 75 hours of free consulting to advance recovery-focused tourism projects
- direct marketing support from the Colorado Tourism Office
Success stories about each project are available in the Participating Industry Associations section below.
The following Colorado tourism industry associations were approved to participate in the Restart Industry Associations Program in September 2021:
- Bicycle Colorado
- Collegiate Peaks Scenic and Historic Byway
- Colorado Agritourism Association
- Colorado Association for Viticulture & Enology (CAVE)
- Colorado Brewers Guild
- Colorado Distillers Guild
- Colorado Restaurant Association
- Destination Colorado
- Fort Sedgwick Historical Society
- Gold Belt Tour Scenic and Historic Byway Association
- Grand Lake Creative District
- Grand Mesa Byway Association
- Museums of the San Luis Valley and Southern Colorado
- Northwest Colorado Cultural Heritage Program
- Pikes Peak Outdoor Recreation Alliance
- Sangre de Cristo National Heritage Area
- Santa Fe Trail Scenic & Historic Byway
- Trail of the Ancients Byway Association
- Western Colorado Adventure Trail (WestCAT)
Reimagine Destinations Program
The Reimagine Destinations Program assists Colorado tourism destinations advance projects that foster the long-term resilience of the Colorado tourism industry.
The Colorado Tourism Office seeks to partner with awarded Colorado destination organizations by serving as their extended strategy and implementation team.
Program objectives include:
- enhanced collaboration between state and local tourism leaders
- shared alignment on priorities to advance tourism
- implementation of one or more innovative tourism projects
Participating destination organizations will receive:
- a destination assessment
- a full-day community visioning and action planning workshop
- 100 hours of free consulting to advance priority projects
- $20,000 of direct marketing support from the Colorado Tourism Office
Colorado destination organizations that participated in the Restart Destinations Program last year are encouraged to select one of the shared industry priorities that emerged from the delivery of the Restart Destinations Program:
- advance off-peak tourism opportunities
- advance tourism workforce
- champion the value of tourism
- develop and enhance visitor experience
- diversify and retain tourism funding
- encourage responsible visitation
- foster inclusive travel opportunities
- promote local businesses and experiences
Colorado destination organizations that did not partner with the Colorado Tourism Office on the Restart Destinations Program have the opportunity to focus their participation in the Reimagine Destinations Program on one of the shared industry priorities, or they can use the program to build broader awareness of multiple priorities within their local tourism industry.
Program timeline:
| May 3, 2022 | Applications Open |
| June 7, 2022 at 4pm MDT | Applications Close |
| July 7, 2022 | Award Notifications |
| August 2022 | Destination Assessment Begins |
| September-December 2022 | Workshops Held |
| January 2023 | Consulting Begins |
| June 2023 | Program Completed |
Follow this link for the recording of the Reimagine Destinations Program Overview hosted on May 10.
The following Colorado tourism destinations were approved to participate in the Reimagine Destinations Program in July 2022:
- Alamosa Convention and Visitors Bureau
- Arvada Visitors Center
- Canyons & Plains
- City of Woodland Park
- Lake City/Hinsdale County Marketing Committee
- Lake County Tourism Panel
- Logan County
- Mesa Verde Country Visitor Information Bureau
- Prairie Development Corporation
- Roaring Fork Valley Destination Alliance
- Saguache County Tourism Council
- Steamboat Springs Chamber
- Town of Lyons
- Town of Nederland
- Towns of Fruita and Palisade
- Towns of Minturn & Red Cliff
- Visit Estes Park
- Visit Fort Collins
- Visit Glenwood Springs
- Visit Greeley
- Visit La Junta
- Visit Longmont
- Visit Ouray
- Yuma County Economic Development Corporation
Reimagine Industry Associations Program
The Reimagine Industry Associations Program assists Colorado tourism industry associations to advance strategies that foster long-term industry resilience. This offering is made possible by a CARES Act Recovery Assistance grant the Colorado Tourism Office received in January 2021.
The Colorado Tourism Office seeks to partner with awarded tourism industry associations by serving as their extended strategy and implementation team.
Program objectives include:
- enhanced collaboration between state and industry tourism leaders
- shared alignment on priorities to advance tourism
- implementation of one or more innovative tourism projects
Participating industry associations will receive:
- 75 hours of free consulting to advance priority tourism projects
- a $10,000 creative asset production shoot
Success stories about each previous Restart Industry Associations project are available in the Participating Industry Associations section.
Colorado tourism industry associations that participated in the Restart Industry Associations Program last year are eligible to apply for the Reimagine Industry Associations Program.
Program Timeline
| Applications Open | August 9, 2022 |
| Applications Close | Thursday, September 15, 2022 at 4 p.m. (MDT) |
| Award Notifications | October 4, 2022 |
| Mentors Assigned and Free Consulting Begins | November 2022 |
| Program Completed | June 2023 |
The Colorado Tourism Office hosted an informational webinar about the Reimagine Industry Associations Program on August 16, 2022. Watch a recording of the webinar.
The following Colorado industry associations were approved to participate in the Reimagine Destinations Program in September 2022:
1. Bicycle Colorado
2. CAVE & Colorado Winefest
3. Collegiate Peaks Scenic & Historic Byway
4. Colorado Brewers Guild
5. Colorado Distillers Guild
6. Destination Colorado
7. Gold Belt Tour Scenic & Historic Byway
8. Pikes Peak Outdoor Recreation Alliance
9. San Juan Skyway Scenic Byway
10. Santa Fe Trail Scenic & Historic Byway
11. Top of the Rockies Scenic & Historic Byway
Other State Recovery Programs
The Colorado Tourism Office is one of two state agencies that received a CARES Act Recovery Assistance planning grant from the U.S. Economic Development Administration to support recovery efforts in communities across Colorado.
The Colorado Rural Resiliency and Recovery Roadmaps program is being managed in partnership with the Department of Local Affairs’ Colorado Resiliency Office and OEDIT’s Rural Opportunity Office. Applications are open and will be accepted through noon on May 13, 2021.
The program will select 16 rural communities to receive technical assistance and grants for regional teams of rural communities to drive economic relief, recovery, diversification, and long-term resilience.
Communities that would like to address broader recovery, diversification, and long-term resilience issues are encouraged to apply. Communities are eligible to participate in both programs.
Program Manager
