Wednesday, May 22
11:30 a.m.–12:30 p.m.
Breakout II
Your tourism angle is death and tragedy — now what do you do? Travel Weekly describes this as a morbid, voyeuristic and fundamental human urge, but visitors often feel a desire to see the aftermath of disaster and destruction when they travel. The result is an increasingly common and popular form of travel — dark tourism. Learn how to capitalize, but not exploit, from those that have become centerpieces of this trend, and become a major stop on every traveler’s agenda.
Kelly Schulz is vice president, communications and public relations at New Orleans Convention and Visitors Bureau. A New Orleans native, Kelly returned to her hometown in 2006 to join the CVB team which was rebuilding New Orleans’ five-billion-dollar tourism industry in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Her team has managed media relations for the five anniversaries of Hurricane Katrina as well as the BP oil spill. Under Kelly’s leadership, the New Orleans CVB has received 16 international awards for best practices in crisis management from the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) and other organizations. In 2010, she was named one of HSMAI’s “Top 25 Minds” in Sales and Marketing. Connect with Kelly on Twitter.
Kate Fox is executive director at Destination Salem. Connect with Kate on Twitter.