CHICAGO – Illinois Office of Tourism director, Cory Jobe, will conduct a media tour through Southern Illinois July 17-19 to reveal the latest county tourism numbers and promote the newest makers to join the Illinois Made program. Media events will take place at the following small businesses, all Illinois Made makers.
Southern Illinois Media Tour
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Tuesday July 17
Crown Brew Coffee – Carterville
12:30 p.m.
116 N. Division St.
Carterville, IL
Wednesday July 18
Rendleman Orchards Farm Market – Alto Pass
10:00 a.m.
9680 State Highway 127th N
Alto Pass, IL
Excel Bottling Company – Breese
1:30 p.m.
488 S. Broadway
Breese, IL
Thursday July 19
Grafton Winery & Brewhaus – Grafton
10:30 a.m.
300 W. Main St.
Grafton, IL
“Illinois experienced a record number of 114 million visitors to our state in 2017 bringing new money to our small businesses, hotels and attractions supporting 335,000 jobs in the process,” said Cory Jobe, director of the Illinois Office of Tourism. “Our success as a state depends on each county doing their part to promote the diverse ways visitors can experience their own amazing moments in Illinois.” Southern Illinois was ground zero for the Solar Eclipse last August bringing an estimated 200,000 visitors to the region, with a visitor spending impact between $15-18 million dollars.
The Illinois Made program continues to contribute to the success of Illinois’ growing tourism industry. Currently, there are more than 130 makers in the Illinois Made program including locally-owned craft breweries, wineries, artisans, family-owned meat markets, orchards, and more. Southern Illinois features more than 20 Illinois Made makers.
“Illinois Made is a critical part of promoting authentic experiences to drive visitors deeper into Illinois,” said Jobe, “We couldn’t imagine a better setting to have our Southern Illinois media tour than the businesses that make the state such an amazing place for both locals and visitors.”
Three of the Illinois Made makers featured on the Southern Illinois media tour will have new videos available to download on July 17 on Enjoy Illinois’ YouTube channel.
- To learn more about Illinois Made visit: EnjoyIllinois.com/IllinoisMade
- To download photos of Illinois Made makers click here.
- To submit a business to be included in Illinois Made click here.
