Travel, Tourism, and Interpretation

Partnerships with the tourism industry are essential to USDA Forest Service mission delivery in sustainable use, community development, and visitor management. We work with our inter-agency federal tourism partners, state tourism offices, and the Departments of Interior (DOI), Commerce (DOC) and Transportation (DOT) to promote sustainable visitation to natural areas through agreements and interagency coordination. Some of our partners include the Federal Tourism Policy Council, Western States Tourism Policy Council, the Southeast Tourism Society, and The American Indian Alaska Native Tourism Association, among others.

National Program Manager for Travel, Tourism, and Interpretation: Toby Bloom

For an overview of the travel, tourism, and interpretation program, please review this PowerPoint presentation.

Key program areas for USFS travel, tourism, and interpretation:

• USFS National Forest & Grasslands Explorer app
• USFS NatureWatch Website
• Passport in Time
• Recreation.gov - your gateway to explore America's outdoor and cultural destinations with trip planning, information sharing, and online reservations.
• Center for Design and Interpretation (CDI)
• Visitor use and economic monitoring data through the National Visitor Use Monitoring Program
• The NATIVE Act requires the Department of Commerce, the Department of the Interior, and federal agencies with recreational travel or tourism functions to update their management plans and tourism initiatives to include Indian tribes, tribal organizations, and Native Hawaiian organizations. The USFS has a MOU with the American Indian and Alaska Native Tourism Association for this work.
• Recreation Economies in Gateway Communities - a joint initiative between the Forest Service (FS)​ and USDA Rural Development (RD) Agencies to identify candidates in forest gateway communities for funding and technical assistance in the development of recreation and hospitality infrastructure. Grants, loans, and loan guarantees provided by RD support small business development in gateway communities, enhance the local recreation economy, improve quality of life for locals, and increase access to recreation for visitors.
• It’s All Yours campaign raises awareness of the public ownership of National Forests and Grasslands by targeting visitors and potential visitors with two messages: It's All Yours and go. play.  Together the two messages create a sense of freedom, exploration and ownership.

Resources and Links:

• Byways.org and National Forest Scenic Byways Guide
• Interpretive and Scenic Byway Plans from Center for Design and Interpretation (CDI)
• Leave No Trace
• Tread Lightly!
• Accessibility Program
• Conservation Education
• Discover the Forest
• National Forest Foundation
• Public Lands Alliance
• US Travel Association
• National Travel and Tourism Office
• Federal Highway Administration, Office of Federal Lands Highway
• National Trust for Historic Preservation
• National Forest Scenic Byways Guide  Requires the free Adobe Acrobat Reader (sample on Byways website)