By Donna Shaw, Illinois State Travel Director

Donna Shaw

When I speak to travel and tourism groups around Illinois, I sometimes like to start with a guessing game: Where do you think Illinois ranks among the 50 states in terms of revenue from travel and tourism? The answer surprises a lot of people. We are fifth in the nation, exceeded only by California, Florida, New York and Texas. And we do it without the benefits of seacoasts or mountain ranges. For the communities of Illinois, that accomplishment means a lot more than just civic pride. Tourism, now the world's largest industry, added $15.9 billion to the Illinois economy in 1994 (the latest available federally compiled statistics) and provided employment for 241,500 people across the state. Every county in Illinois, from Rockford to Cairo, from the Mississippi to the Ohio, has a piece of this huge economic pie. Travelers generated $995 million in state and local taxes—almost a billion dollars for our schools, parks and neighborhoods, and all the other things that make our state and our nation a great place to visit and a wonderful place to live.

Tourism is uniquely suited to boost the economic development of communities because it can develop wherever imagination thrives and appreciation of our heritage is alive and healthy. But it doesn't happen automatically. Tourism today is a fiercely competitive arena. We compete not only with other states and destinations, but with television, long work weeks and other modern realities that vie for our customers' precious leisure time. At the Illinois Bureau of Tourism, our job is to partner with our industry to spread the word about the unique diversity and richness of Illinois, where you can reconnect with our heritage in our small towns or experience big-city excitement in one of the world's great urban environments. In addition, our state has 4,300 miles of scenic shoreline, 1,100 historic sites and nearly half a million acres of state parks to enjoy.

You have probably seen our award-winning "Million Miles from Monday" advertising campaign. It is doing an astonishing job of getting the word out that Illinois has a great weekend getaway for every interest, every budget, every schedule. And it's now easier than ever to find the getaway that's right for you. A toll-free call to 1-800-2-CONNECT puts you in touch with one of the knowledgeable travel counselors at the Illinois Travel Counseling System. They'll listen to your interests and plans, then use one of the largest tourism databases in the nation to help you plan the perfect trip in Illinois, customized just for you.

People have responded to this service in record-breaking numbers. Calls for April 1996, exceeded 1995 levels by 400 percent. With our ability to fax or e-mail custom itineraries to callers within 20 minutes, we've established a customer service that differentiates Illinois from its competition. Even more importantly, 65 percent of people who call 1-800-2-CONNECT actually take that trip to Illinois.

If you have computer access to the World Wide Web, you can connect to that same database to do your own trip planning. Just point your browser to http://www.enjoyillinois.com and follow the user-friendly menus. However you reach us, you'll find a wealth of history, shopping, entertainment, culture and events that will open new horizons even for lifelong residents of our state.

Travel and tourism has the power to deepen our knowledge and understanding of our world and our state while it provides economic opportunity to better all our communities. It works best when every one of us takes part. I urge each of you to decide to explore Illinois this year. Call 1-800-2-CONNECT for detailed getaway ideas and itineraries created just for you, and discover the treasures of our great state, guaranteed to take you a Million Miles from Monday in Illinois. Happy traveling.

Donna Shaw is deputy director, Illinois Department of Commerce and Community Affairs, Bureau of Tourism. She was recently named secretary/treasurer of the interim USA National Tourism Organisation, a public/private sector partnership that will become the marketing agency for inbound international tourism to the U.S.

4 ILLINOIS COUNTRY LIVING JUNE 1996