Terry captured this banner welcoming people to the Cherokee Cultural
District. The syllabic script writing on the banner is the same
information written in
Cherokee. While tourism has been the economic lifeblood of the
Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians (EBCI) for decades as families within
easy driving distance of Western North Carolina came to see the
Cherokee Indians and their way of life, in recent years fewer families
have visited the Qualla Boundary and most visitors have come for gaming
entertainment. That trend is a source of concern, so Cherokee
Preservation Foundation convened Heart of Cherokee, a planning effort
to help the tribe get tourism growth back on track. Both heritage
tourists and gaming aficionados are desired on the Qualla
Boundary. Many Americans and international visitors are keenly
interested in heritage tourism, travel that is motivated by a desire to
experience the authentic resources of a community or region. With
its cultural heritage, the EBCI has much to offer such visitors today,
and Heart of Cherokee’s goals involve making the tribe’s cultural
offerings for visitors even richer so more of them will come for an
extended stay, tell their friends about the Qualla Boundary, and come
back to visit again. Studies have shown that cultural heritage
travelers stay longer and spend more money than other kinds of
travelers.
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