DES MOINES, Iowa—The Iowa Tourism Office presented 26 awards recognizing excellence in the tourism industry at a ceremony Wednesday in Des Moines during the 2022 Iowa Tourism Conference.
“Iowa tourism realized a great recovery since last summer,” said Amy Zeiger, state tourism manager for the Iowa Tourism Office. “That’s in large part to the innovative work from our partners. We’re excited to celebrate their accomplishments and the industry’s momentum with these awards.”
Awards, divided into metro and rural distinctions, were made in 13 categories. In addition, conference attendees voted for the People’s Choice Award; nominees were the second-highest scoring nominations.
The complete list of 2022 Iowa Tourism Award recipients:
Outstanding Attraction National Mississippi River Museum & Aquarium, Dubuque (Metro)Luna Valley Farm, Decorah (Rural)
Outstanding Community Fort Madison (Metro) Balltown (Rural)
Outstanding Dining Business The Wells Visitor Center & Ice Cream Parlor, Le Mars (Metro)Crane & Pelican Café, Le Claire (Rural)
Outstanding Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Initiative Yummi Blox, Sioux City (Metro)Driftless Yoga Festival, Decorah (Rural)
Outstanding Event Dew Tour, Des Moines (Metro)Beyond the Game Festival, Dyersville (Rural)
Outstanding Individual Leader The Bertch Family, Waterloo (Metro)Jill Vandevoort, Pella (Rural)
Outstanding Lodging Property Kingsley Inn, Fort Madison (Metro)New Day Dairy Guest Barn, Clarksville (Rural)
Outstanding Marketing Collaboration Keokuk Area Convention & Tourism Bureau, Kingsley Inn and Nauvoo Tourism Office (Metro)City of Sioux Center and Sioux Center Chamber of Commerce (Rural)
Outstanding Niche Market Initiative My County Parks (Metro)Turkey River Recreational Corridor (Rural)
Outstanding Promotional Material Travel Dubuque (Metro)Fairfield Convention & Visitors Bureau (Rural)
Outstanding Retail Experience Deal’s Orchard, Jefferson (Rural)
Outstanding Social Media Execution Council Bluffs Convention & Visitors Bureau (Metro)Emerge Marketing Solutions, Manning (Rural)
Outstanding Website Council Bluffs Convention & Visitors Bureau (Metro)Adams Community Economic Development Corporation, Corning (Rural)
People’s Choice Award The Wells Visitor Center & Ice Cream Parlor, Le Mars
The Iowa Tourism Office, part of the Iowa Economic Development Authority, works closely with community partners, attractions and events, to promote the state’s beautifully vast scenery and unique history. Tourism in Iowa generated $1.5 billion in tax revenues in 2020, with more than $860 million supporting state and local governments, while employing a total of 60,218 people statewide. For more information on everything Iowa has to offer tourists, visit traveliowa.com.
(contributed press release)
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