From Gateway to Year-Round Destination: Co-Creating Visit Alamosa’s Five-Year Tourism Strategy
When Visit Alamosa set out to chart the future of tourism in Alamosa County and the greater San Luis Valley, the goal wasn’t simply “more visitors.” It was a clearer vision for how tourism can strengthen community well-being, support local businesses, and protect the landscapes and culture that make this corner of Colorado so distinctive.
Solimar International had the privilege of providing technical support to Visit Alamosa through a community-led planning process that culminated in the Alamosa Five-Year Tourism Strategy (2026–2030)—a roadmap designed to align partners around shared priorities and practical actions.
A strategy built by the community, for the community
The foundation of the strategy was a robust situation analysis and engagement effort designed to capture what residents, businesses, land managers, and partners want tourism to become. Together with Visit Alamosa, we combined data review with broad listening to ensure the strategy reflected real on-the-ground needs and opportunities.
Over several months, the planning process gathered more than 650 points of input through workshops, surveys, interviews, and an online community engagement platform. Community perspectives were captured through multiple channels—bringing in diverse voices and priorities across the destination—so the strategy could reflect lived experience as well as data.
Visit Alamosa’s “why” statement—We love our community and strive to improve the quality of life by enhancing and sharing the Alamosa Experience—served as a compass throughout the process, reinforcing that destination success must be measured in resident benefits and pride, not just marketing reach.
Turning insights into a shared vision
The situation analysis confirmed what many locals already know: Alamosa has an incredible foundation—anchored by Great Sand Dunes National Park and a strong sense of place—but faces familiar rural-destination challenges such as seasonality, workforce constraints, and the need to strengthen the overall visitor journey.
From those insights, the strategy establishes a unifying “North Star” for the years ahead:
A year-round tourism economy that inspires pride, supports local prosperity, celebrates the people, and protects the landscapes of the San Luis Valley.
Five pillars for long-term destination success
To move from vision to action, the plan is organized around five strategic pillars shaped directly by stakeholder priorities and community aspirations:
What Solimar’s role looked like in practice
Solimar’s sustainable tourism team supported Visit Alamosa by helping structure the engagement approach, synthesizing findings into strategic themes, and translating community priorities into an actionable, performance-oriented strategy. The final plan reflects strong local ownership, guided by Visit Alamosa’s leadership and strengthened through input from a steering committee, tourism partners, community organizations, and residents.
A plan designed to be used—not shelved
A key feature of the strategy is its emphasis on implementation: clarifying how partners will collaborate, how progress will be tracked, and how priorities will be revisited as conditions change. The plan calls for formalized partnerships and ongoing stakeholder engagement, including an annual meeting to review progress and refine priorities.
Solimar is proud to have partnered with Visit Alamosa to help develop a community-driven strategy that balances destination growth with stewardship and resident well-being—ensuring that Alamosa’s tourism future is as resilient and authentic as the San Luis Valley itself.