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Abilene Receives Top Honors at Kansas Tourism Conference

on October 20, 2023

2023-Marketing-Awards-Abilene,KS

The Abilene Convention & Visitors Bureau (CVB) was honored with three esteemed marketing awards at the Kansas Tourism Conference in Dodge City. These awards, presented by the Travel Industry Association of Kansas (TIAK), recognize outstanding achievements and innovation in tourism marketing.

Abilene competed in the medium-sized community marketing budget ($20,000 - $100,000) category and received three top awards:

  • Online Marketing Award Winner - "Little Town of Mansions" website.
  • Destination (Community) Awareness Award Winner - “World’s Largest Belt Buckle” asset development and marketing project.
  • Print Marketing Award Winner - Cowboy Art Trail brochure.

Additionally, Abilene was honored with the People's Choice Award, the top accolade presented by the association, in recognition of its exceptional work on the "World’s Largest Belt Buckle Project."

Marketing awards judges commented, “Great job! The media attention put Abilene on the national Western Attraction map.”

"These awards are extra special because they showcase the best of Kansas tourism marketing. Receiving these awards is a great way to end an outstanding year," said Julie Roller Weeks, Abilene Convention and Visitors Bureau Director. “Receiving one award is a very big deal, but four is unprecedented. I’m so proud of how far our organization has come to reach this point!”

These latest accolades add to Abilene's remarkable success in 2023, which includes being named "Best Small Town to Visit in the U.S." by TravelAwaits, "Best Historic Small Town" by USA TODAY, "Top 10 True Western Town of the Year" by True West Magazine, "Best Roadside Attraction in the U.S." by TravelAwaits, and "Best Social Media Campaign (Destination)" by Midwest Travel Network.

The Abilene Convention and Visitors Bureau is funded through Transient Guest Tax (TGT) and serves as the Destination Marketing Organization (DMO) for the City of Abilene. The organization markets Abilene as a tourist destination and provides assistance to visitors and groups. The goal of the CVB is to generate economic growth through tourism. To learn more about Abilene, please visit www.AbileneKansas.org.