Destination Marketing, Schoharie County’s tourism partner, is getting ready to spread its wings when it comes to attracting birding enthusiasts.
And if you think that’s just a bad bird pun, don’t worry:
DMC won’t be winging it or ruffling any feathers.
They’re just eggcited about the possibility of drawing visitors seeking peaceful, accessible, outdoor activities here, not as an add-on to a trip to Cooperstown, but as a destination in its own right.
Friday, DMC President Cassandra Harrington updated supervisors on where they’ve been in 2024 and where they’re looking to go in 2025.
DMC works with partners in Schoharie and Otsego Counties and beyond to grow the economy and quality of life through tourism with the customer the resident–not the visitor, Ms. Harrington said.
In Cooperstown, they work closely with Bassett Healthcare’s Recruitment and Retention Office, which shares DMC’s Inspire Guide and calendar of events with new and potential hires, Ms. Harrington said; both are things Bassett couldn’t put together on its own.
Also in Cooperstown, she said, they’re keeping a close eye on Japanese baseball star Ichiro Suzuki, an odds-on favorite for summer induction into the Baseball Hall of Fame and the crowds that would bring.
If Suziki’s inducted, she said, it could have a lasting impact on international tourism for the region; the anticipated March 1 opening of the Ramada Inn in Cobleskill would give visitors another place to stay and while it’s not expected to open until the summer 2028, the Japanese-style Hoshino Resort in Sharon Springs also stands to benefit from international tourism.
But the birds…
Birders spend billions annually on trips and equipment–not birdseed–but it’s also an easily-accessible activity that you can do with hiking boots and an inexpensive pair of binoculars.
Ms. Harrington said they’re planning to take advantage of the local spots for birding–among them Mine Kill State Park, Landis Arboretum, the Cobleskill Reservoir, Franklinton Vlaie, and the Schoharie County Eagle Trail–to make the county more than a stop after visiting Cooperstown.
“People are looking for a deeper connection with nature and what better place than Schoharie County,” she said.
It’s also going to be a lot of fun.
“There’s an awful lot of bird puns out there,” Ms. Harrington said, something they’ll share on their website, blogs, and on social media, with fun quizzes like ‘If you were a bird, what kind of bird would you be?’
2025 will also see DMC expand on the Front Porch interviews and photographs they did during COVID, doing the same thing with Featured Farmers, and they’re working on ways to promote local history in ’25, the 250th anniversary of the American Revolution, as well.
Tourism is a budget investment, Ms. Harrington said, with every $1 creating $10 in spending, $4 in salaries, and $1.20 in tax revenues.