Bellingham and Whatcom County (Washington) Cultural Heritage Tourism Plan

This destination in northwest Washington state boasts an abundance of natural assets and recreational activities. With attractive and vibrant downtowns as well as a variety of historic sites, local leaders wanted a tool to bring the communities together and build a sustainable, year-round tourism plan focusing specifically on their cultural heritage. The Lummi and Nooksack culture present unique educational experiences for visitors, yet a need to cultivate these opportunities with respect for and directed by the tribal leadership was recognized. Hargrove International led a planning committee – along with various community leaders and stakeholders – through a comprehensive process to inventory cultural heritage assets, conduct market profiles and competitive analysis, set goals and objectives, create a “strategy screen” to prioritize projects, and established a one-year Action plan to move the process into implementation.