What is Tourism for All?
As a Destination Marketing Organization, the Charlottesville Albemarle Convention & Visitors Bureau (CACVB) is committed to tourism for all. The Tourism for All program is the CACVB’s ongoing initiative to support Charlottesville and Albemarle County partners in building a welcoming environment for all visitors.
"Tourism for All" is our guiding mission to welcome all visitors, improve the quality of life for residents, support a robust tourism ecosystem, and drive overnight visitation through innovation and collaboration.
Program Mission, Vision & Values
Mission: To welcome all visitors, we aim to improve the quality of life for residents, support a robust tourism ecosystem, and drive overnight visitation through innovation and collaboration.
Vision: To create the best possible experience for visitors and quality of life for residents by being the most inclusive, diverse, welcoming, thriving destination in the Southeast.
Values: To uphold the values of resiliency, unity, diversity, creativity, and responsibility and let these ideals lead the work we do. We can empathize with what it feels like to connect and feel like you can safely and responsibly immerse yourself into the intricate fabric of a place. A welcoming environment captures these sentiments, recognizing that people of all backgrounds, perspectives, and abilities exist in the world.
Why Tourism for All?
Tourism has a direct impact on Charlottesville and Albemarle County. Current economic impact numbers indicate that the CACVB’s efforts helped stimulate more than $956 million dollars of director visitor spending in our destination, and this economic activity helped support more than 7,000 jobs. Based on the 2023 Past and Prospective Visitor Research conducted by SIR, visitors indicated the feelings of being happy, welcomed, and oneself were the top emotional attributes for visiting. Feelings of safety, fun, hassle free, and relaxing were top rational attributes for a visitor to be drawn to our destination. Money, priority to other destinations, lack of family-friendly activities, and 2017 associations are listed as main reasons not to visit.
What constitutes a welcoming environment can vary significantly based on the individual. As hospitality professionals, we’re charged with providing a service that balances a visitor’s cultural differences, individual preferences and past experiences, personality, and situational impressions. The Tourism for All program can help businesses create a sense of belonging, make others feel acknowledged, and extend a warm welcome through a series of educational and networking opportunities.
To access more research and CACVB plans, log in to our partner portal. If you need assistance with your login, please reach out to development@visitcharlottesville.org.
How Do I Get Started?
This work starts with you, our tourism and hospitality partners! There are multiple ways for hospitality partners to become involved and learn from the Tourism for All program, whether it’s for a day or six months! Explore ways to engage below!