Almost all communities are blessed with some sort of marketable attraction, even if it is only one thing that is unique to their location. However, just like in a retail shop, it’s better to have many products in stock that appeal to a wide range of customers than just one popular item. The shelves of our tourism shop are well-stocked in Carroll County.
For those interested in agriculture and heritage, we have an aisle full of products that celebrate our community’s past and home-grown products of the present and future.
Attractions like the Southeastern Quilt and Textile Museum, West Georgia Textile Heritage Trail and Southern Quilt Trail remind us of our area’s past as one of the biggest cotton fiber and fabric goods producers in the state. The Pine Mountain Gold Museum in Villa Rica documents the first gold strike in Georgia – and it wasn’t Dahlonega. McIntosh Park preserves and celebrates the area’s rich Native American history while also offering visitors some of the most beautiful natural sights in the South. The newly restored Carrollton Train Depot, cemetery tours and historic district tours across the county tell even more of our area’s story.
Events like Ag-Heritage Days and the Old Time County Fair celebrate our area’s agricultural past while numerous farmers markets, you-pick farms, Udderly Cool Dairy and the West Georgia Vineyard and Winery Association’s efforts invite the visitor to taste our county’s delicious home-grown and made farm products.
Our tourism store features one of the leading recreation and parks inventories in the state. State, regional and invitational tournaments are hosted by city and county recreation departments, schools, churches and civic groups. Parks like Little Tallapoosa Park, McIntosh Reserve and Tanner Park entice thousands of outdoor enthusiasts to our county every year. Historic Banning Mills, featuring the Guinness-certified tallest climbing wall and longest zipline canopy tour in the world, draws people from around the globe.
Hungry visitors will find plenty of dining diversity to satisfy every taste and budget. Our thriving downtown areas boast many independent restaurants that cut a wide culinary swath while regional and national chains serve up familiar favorites to travelers.
Our education aisle is fully stocked as well. Our schools and colleges provide camps, seminars, workshops, performances, classes and other special events.
Carroll County Tourism Store’s entertainment section features all sorts of cultural activities, events and performances. Live music, plays and art shows abound in venues across the area like the Carrollton Cultural Arts Center, Copeland Hall, the Townsend Center, amphitheaters in Villa Rica and Carrollton, the Moonshadow Music Hall, Mill Town Music Hall and numerous area eateries that feature live music.
Annual events such as Mayfest, McIntosh Reserve Fall Festival, A Taste of Carrollton, Villa Rica’s Gold Rush Festival, founders day events in Bowdon, Mt. Zion, Roopville and Temple and the MeccaFest Fine Arts Festival create unique experiences for visitors with a wide range of interests.
Having tourism products that appeal to such a broad spectrum of people’s interests and desires means we can promote our community to many more potential visitors than if we had a more specialized set of tourism assets. More diverse product means more people visiting, which means more money spent here in our economy.
E pluribus unum is not only a great descriptive phrase describing our diverse country, it is also an outstanding marketing plan.
Dorsey is executive director of the Carrollton Area Convention and Visitors Bureau, the official destination marketing organization for Carrollton/Carroll County.
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