Program Summary
The Colorado Welcome Center Partnership Program is an industry partnership program that offers resources, benefits and networking opportunities for participating centers. Centers throughout the state can apply for a partnership as a community or regional partner with the Colorado Tourism Office Visitor Services Program.
This partnership program creates a clear pathway for any center in Colorado to collaborate with the Colorado Tourism Office. This program is designed to provide opportunities and support for all welcome centers across the state, and with a greater understanding and connectivity of each center’s operations and needs, the CTO can better serve each center within the program and further enhance the visitor experience.
Any center in Colorado that wishes to participate in the program, will be considered one of two categories, community or regional. Please review the full welcome center partnership program policy guidelines, (PDF) prior to applying.
Overview
Type: Program
For: Visitor Centers and Welcome Centers
Application period: March 11, 2025 - April 22, 2025
OEDIT division: Colorado Tourism Office
Community Partners are located within three miles of a local downtown area or visitor attraction and are staffed by local entities. These centers operate 5-days per week for at least 9 months of the year at a minimum. Community centers have discretion in what tourism areas they promote and can primarily focus on local tourism opportunities. Community partners will receive CTO visitor services training support.
Regional Partners are located within one mile of an interstate exit or state highway and are staffed by local entities. These centers will be required to share statewide visitor information and offer full-service amenities, including ample parking and restroom facilities. All staff and volunteers have access to the Colorado Concierge training program. These centers will receive CTO visitor services training support, as well as, brand opportunities.
Specific examples of benefits include, but are not limited to the following:
- Access to the Colorado Tourism Office brochure database for travel literature.
- Receive regular newsletters from CTO dedicated to Visitor Services.
- Quarterly connection calls for networking, training and/or certification purposes.
- Annual Care for Colorado training.
- Dedicated networking opportunities at the Visitor Services Summit each year.
- Access to CTO marketing portal and additional training on the CTO Learning Labs platform.
- Eligible to join Care for Colorado Coalition.
In addition to the above benefits, regional centers are eligible for:
- Scholarship opportunities for the Governor's Conference on Tourism.
- Staff engagement tools and trainings, as available.
- Additional marketing opportunities (such as occasional promotions), as available.
If the partnership program is a fit for your organization/visitor center. Please be sure to read the entire policy guide. This document provides all the detailed roles, responsibilities and expectations. Partnerships will be effective July 1-June 30 and partners must apply annually. There are no costs associated with application or participation.
- Applications are available March 11, 2025- April 22, 2025.
- Notifications will be made to applicants by June 13, 2025.
- For locations meeting the application criteria, a site visit may be scheduled in the spring.
Applications for fiscal year 2025-2026 are now closed. Please note that fiscal year 2025-2026 is the first year of this program and a pilot year. We look forward to hearing feedback throughout the partnership cycle. If you have any feedback or concerns, please let us know.
If you have any questions on the policies or application process, please reach out to taren.mulch@state.co.us.
Program Manager
