DFW Area Tourism Council

Formed to jointly market the entire Dallas/Fort Worth area as a single destination, the Dallas/Fort Worth Area Tourism Council (DFWATC), a not-for-profit organization, banded together all segments of the tourism industry. The council represents area communities, area hotels, major area attractions, museums, restaurants, retail establishments, transportation companies and support services to the industry.

The mission of the organization is “to increase tourism revenue and visitors through cooperative public/private partnerships; to market the exciting Dallas/Fort Worth/North Texas area as a travel destination; to educate the public on the economic importance of tourism and to provide support on tourism industry issues of concern to the region.”

The council focuses on the promotion of the DFW area as a leisure destination to growing regional inbound market with heavy concentration on attracting visitors within a 500 mile radius. Today, in its 31st year of promoting the region, the council has grown from six founding cities and a handful of attractions to a member partnership of over 40 cities, in a 32 county area, representing over 150 organizational members in Dallas, Fort Worth and beyond.

DFWATC is directed by an executive committee and board of directors and governed by a constitution and bylaws.

History of the council

The Ccuncil was formed in 1978 and known originally as the North Texas Tourism Council by the cities of Arlington, Dallas, Fort Worth and Irving. Within three years, they were joined by the cities of Grapevine and Grand Prairie. Formed to jointly market the entire Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex as a single destination, the council changed its name in the mid-eighties to the Dallas/Fort Worth Area Tourism Council.

During the early years, the council primarily concentrated on the international market, an area not being addressed by individual members, as well as maintaining members in ABA, NTA and other similar organizations. In 1982, in response to membership requests, it shifted direction to address a growing regional inbound market with heavy concentration on attracting visitors within a 300-500 mile radius of the DFW area. While addressing the regional market as a primary target market, the council also addresses the domestic travel market and international market.

Current activities

By working together cooperatively with its member partners, the council is able to publish the Official Visitors Guide to the Dallas/Fort Worth Area and maintain its web presence through its web site , as well as lead extensive marketing and media efforts to showcase the area to travel consumers, tour and travel planners, travel journalists, and visitors both inbound and during their stay in the DFW area in a variety of ways.

Notable among its strategy are the following:

• Council-sponsored media familiarization tours into the area
• Cooperative advertising through electronic and print media
• Annual distribution of the 400,000 of the Official Visitors Guide
• Press releases to local, regional and national media
• Cooperative participation in travel and consumer shows
• Council-sponsored events that reach specialized target market segments
• Individual member opportunities for exposure to the media

In 2009, the council started its Dallas/Fort Worth Area Tourism Council Foundation to promote educational endeavors to strengthen the North Texas hospitality and tourism industry and workforce.

DFWATC Foundation

The Dallas/Fort Worth Area Tourism Council Foundation is a 501c3 non-profit organization formed to help build the capabilities of the North Texas tourism workforce through education and training.

Being a service based industry; a skilled and qualified workforce is vital to the success and future of tourism and the vitality of the area’s economy. By promoting, developing and utilizing existing educational materials, programs, courses that pertain to all aspects of the tourism-hospitality industry for university age levels and those already employed in the industry, the foundation aims to increase the knowledge base, education and skills of area workers and raise awareness of the tourism-hospitality industry as a viable career path thus ensuring a skilled and knowledgeable workforce.

CTA (Certified Tourism Ambassador) program

The DFWATC Foundation is the accredited provider of the CTA program in North Texas . The mission of the North Texas Tourism Ambassadors Program (NTTAP) is to increase tourism by inspiring front-line employees and volunteers to work together to turn every visitor encounter into a positive experience in the North Texas region.

The Certified Tourism Ambassador program is a nationwide certification program that serves to increase tourism by training and inspiring front-line hospitality employees and volunteers to work together to turn every visitor encounter into a positive experience.

Their premise is: if front-line employees and volunteers (those who come into immediate contact with the visitor) provide quality customer service to visitors (convention attendees, tourists, business travelers, etc.), the visitor is more likely to have a positive experience. Visitors who have a positive experience are more likely to return at some point in the future. They will share their perceptions with their friends. Everyone benefits – the tourist, the hospitality industry, the local economy and the front-line ambassador.

Tag Taggart Scholarship

The Tag Taggart Scholarship was started in 2003. The purpose of the scholarship is to increase the number of students from the Dallas/Fort Worth region to seek out a career in the tourism industry in hopes that the recipients will become future leaders in that field. The scholarship was named in honor of one of its longtime members – Irving L. “Tag” Taggart. Mr. Taggart had been instrumental in the development of the tourism industry both in the Dallas/Fort Worth area but also within the State of Texas for over 30 years.