ADVANCE TRAVEL & TOURISM RECEIVES CHAIRMAN AWARD
MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. (April 24, 2018) – Advance Travel & Tourism received the Chairman Award from the 12-state Southeast Tourism Society (STS) at the association’s inaugural Connections conference in Myrtle Beach.
Advance Travel & Tourism was one of 14 winners of Shining Example Awards that recognize excellence in tourism. Louisiana, with four winners, and West Virginia, with three winners, were the most acknowledged states.
The Chairman’s award is given to an organization that goes above and beyond in contributing to the efforts of STS.
Here is a recap of the winners:
Tourism Office of the Year with budgets of up to $2 million
Greenbrier County CVB (West Virginia)
Tourism Office of the Year with budgets of more than $2 million
St. Tammany Parish Tourism and Convention Commission (Louisiana)
Escape to the Southeast Travel Attraction of the Year
Rock City (Tennessee)
STS Top 20 Festival of the Year
Natchitoches Christmas (Louisiana)
Governmental Tourism Leadership Award
Louisiana Lt. Governor Billy Nungesser
Partnership Award
Greenbrier Valley Tourism Recovery Partnership (West Virginia)
Rising Star Award
Kelly Collins (State Fair of West Virginia)
State Tourism Office of the Year
Alabama Tourism Department
Beacon Award
Shelley Johnson (Lake Charles/Southwest Louisiana CVB)
Best Marketing Award <$500K
Birthplace of Country Music (Bristol, Tenn./Bristol, Va.)
Best Marketing Award >$500K
Visit North Carolina
Best Niche Marketing Award
South Carolina African American Heritage Commission
Chairman’s Award
Advance Travel & Tourism (Birmingham, Ala.)
Dorothy Hardman Spirit of STS Award
Georgia Turner (West Volusia Tourism Bureau, DeLand, Fla.)
About STS
Founded in 1983, Southeast Tourism Society (southeasttourism.org) promotes and develops tourism in its 12 member states of Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia and West Virginia. Its headquarters are in Atlanta. Membership includes state travel offices, convention and visitors bureaus, lodging properties, attractions, travel media and other travel-related organizations.
Learn more about how we can help you adapt to the evolving marketing landscape and ramp up your efforts.
May 11, 2026
At Advance Travel & Tourism, we believe the best partnerships start with understanding the realities destination organizations face every day. That’s one of the many reasons we’re excited to welcome Thomas Salley to the team as our newest Account Executive.
May 11, 2026
Visibility used to follow a familiar pattern: search, rankings, clicks, visits. That structure is starting to shift. AI doesn’t just retrieve pages. It assembles responses. Instead of presenting a list of links, it’s interpreting information and building answers. That changes how destinations appear—and whether they appear at all. Being present online is no longer the only requirement.
May 11, 2026
Clarity is starting to play a different role. Not just in messaging—but in visibility. As AI systems interpret and assemble information, they favor content that’s easy to understand and easy to use. That creates a subtle shift. Destinations compete on clarity and speed—who makes sense fastest gets the decision.




Ad Choices