Wisconsin Great River Road (May 2021):  The Welcome Back to Wisconsin’s Great River Road – On the Road Again” is a multifaceted sales promotion campaign to ramp up road trips and overnight stays on the Wisconsin portion of the Great River Road and its 33 communities and 8 counties. The campaign is set to run May 1 – September 30, 2021 to capitalize on the projected increase of road trips vs. flying vacations for 2021 due to Covid 19 and the emerging confidence of vaccinated travelers who choose travel as a release and safe option for experiences.

Visitors to the site may sign up for a chance to win sweepstakes which includes Girlfriend Getaway, Paddling, and Camping weekends. The length of the Wisconsin Great River Road offers an ideal location for multi-day trips to extend the stay and welcome visitors safely this summer and fall since many are looking for less crowded options for accommodations and activities.

The campaign culminates in September, Drive the Great River Road Month, with businesses along the Wisconsin Great River Road offering deals and discounts to travelers in all eight of the counties that border the Mississippi River. Visitors may sign up at the website now to receive updates on the road and special notices on deals and discounts.

The Great River Road and its 33 communities already offer the refuge of the outdoors, and existing attributes including 4 State Parks (Merrick, Perrot, Wyalusing, and Nelson Dewey), many camping sites, and a location in the Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife & Fish Refuge. The Refuge created an intensive visitor survey that showed 475,000 visitors a year enjoy the La Crosse District of the refuge alone. The entire refuge saw 1.5 million visitors annually. (La Crosse District, Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge – NWR visitor survey 2012).

The Wisconsin Mississippi River Parkway Commission received a Joint Effort Marketing (JEM) grant from the Wisconsin Department of Tourism in the amount of $10,000 for their 2021 $25,000 Sales Promotion.

Travel Wisconsin Joint Effort Marketing (JEM) Grant Program

JEM grant funds are available to non-profit organizations for the promotion of Wisconsin tourism events and destinations. The state can fund a portion of a project’s advertising and marketing costs for up to three years until the project becomes self-sustaining.

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