We call ourselves Vacationland, and tourism is our largest industry, but it also is an industry that for too long has been taken for granted and underappreciated. We will change that. People come to Maine from all over the world because of what we have to offer: a beautiful coast, pristine lakes and ponds and miles of rivers for fishing and recreation. We also have vast tracts of wilderness areas, majestic mountains, and communities filled with history, culture and warm and friendly people. In addition to our great outdoors, we have vast creative and cultural assets that are equally important magnets.
People come here to hunt and fish, to go sailing, kayaking, canoeing, bicycling, hiking, skiing, snowmobiling and a host of other outdoor pursuits. Many people own second homes in Maine. And Maine is an increasingly popular place for people to retire, bringing with them disposable incomes and valuable skills, while placing few demands on our schools and state services. What draws these tourists and permanent settlers alike is not only our pristine natural resources, however.
In addition to our traditional sources of tourism dollars, Maine is now host to burgeoning year-round cultural tourism that attracts visitors from around the globe to our outstanding museums, galleries, performance venues and historical landmarks, as well as to our statewide festivals and fairs. Our local farms are themselves becoming destinations and our farmers’ markets, as well as our artisanal local food products, wines and beers, all figure prominently in the success of our nationally recognized restaurants. People are coming to Maine and spending money to take advantage of these diverse cultural assets, but we have so far failed to promote them as effectively or aggressively as we should.
Like any industry, tourism requires investment. We are competing for visitors with other places around the country and throughout the world. We cannot simply take it for granted that people will come here because they always have; we must promote ourselves aggressively, continually search out new markets and find ways to help our tourism, recreation and sporting businesses invest in the kind of infrastructure and amenities that will keep people coming back to Maine.
Lowering the cost of doing business in Maine will help our tourism-related businesses, just as it will all other businesses, and investing in education, especially arts, technology, hospitality and recreation management programs, will make sure that the industry has trained workers and is developing the next generation of industry leaders.
Finally, people come here because Maine is special – what has come to be called quality of place. Maintaining that quality experience is the most important investment we can make. That means respecting and protecting our natural environment and our wild and scenic places. It means preserving farmland, forests, working harbors and downtowns. It means reinvigorating those historic downtowns by attracting creative entrepreneurs with favorable living and working conditions. It means welcoming investment in our state, but doing so on our terms, not someone else’s.