Post by blackcrowheart on Jun 1, 2006 15:38:10 GMT -5
Tribal events, sites contribute to NM's tourist traffic
By Harlan McKosato
New Mexico Business Weekly
Updated: 8:00 p.m. ET May 28, 2006
As the value of tourism in New Mexico approaches $5 billion annually, the state's pueblos and tribes are taking on greater roles, with new tours, museums and inter-tribal partnerships.
"Native American culture is a big draw," says Travis Suazo, director of tourism development for the New Mexico Tourism Department and a member of the Pueblo of Laguna, as well as Acoma and Taos pueblos. "It's one of the major reasons, along with the scenic beauty and landscapes, why people visit New Mexico."
Events such as the annual Indian Market in Santa Fe and the Gathering of the Nations Pow Wow in Albuquerque draw thousands of visitors to the state each year.
The newest tourist attraction on tribal lands is the Sky City Cultural Center and Haak'u Museum at Acoma Pueblo, 45 miles west of Albuquerque, opening May 27. The $15 million, 40,000-square-foot building evokes the Acoma ancestral architecture at Mesa Verde and Chaco Canyon.
There will be interactive components in the museum, such as a chance to bake bread in an outdoor oven, or horno. Tours will take visitors atop the 370-foot sandstone mesa, home of the Acoma people for 2,000 years.
"Acoma has been involved in the tourism industry since the 1940s," says Brian Vallo, director of the new cultural center and museum and an Acoma member.
In the 1970s, Acoma built a tourist center at the base of the mesa. This housed a museum, gift shop and food service. In May of 2000, the tourist center burned down and the tribal council approved a plan to rebuild. But first they decided to take a closer look at the tourism industry in New Mexico and funded a market study. As a result, the council decided to build the cultural center and museum.
"Meeting community needs was a big part of the decision to build this type of facility," Vallo says. "One of the priorities was to enhance cultural preservation, so there is space provided in the facility for classes and lectures so that the general history of Acoma Pueblo could be shared. And there was a need to establish a permanent collection of our artifacts, documentation and historic photographs. So part of the facility serves as an archive."
Suazo works with tribes like Acoma to create tourism plans that put them in control of how they showcase their culture.
"My job is to, basically, work with the 22 tribes, collectively and individually, to find out how they'd like to be promoted," says Suazo, who also manages the state's Indian Tourism Program. "The goal is to develop 'managed business tourism' where tribes are making the decisions, developing the vision and the overarching focus of their tourism project."
No economic impact study has ever been done on the impact of Indian Country on the state's tourism industry. Suazo plans to have a study of this kind underway by the end of the year. The state's tourism department Web site outlines the tourism and recreational opportunities at the pueblos. Many of the pueblos have Web links through the site as well.
Tribes, especially gaming tribes, are looking to diversify their economies, Suazo says. Gaming revenue has allowed tribes to offer more attractions for tourists such as golf, spas and the music and entertainment.
Recent legislation will allow his department to build three new off-highway trails for the Off-Highway Vehicle Program, and Suazo says he would like to look at tribal lands for developing an OHV trail.
"We promote New Mexico as a visitor destination to the world. And the non-Indian and Indian communities see it more as a partnership to keep visitors in the state as long as possible," says Suazo, who headed up special projects for the Indian Pueblo Cultural Center in Albuquerque before taking his current post with the state.
"From our office to economic development to Indian Affairs, from Gov. Richardson to [Indian Affairs] Cabinet Secretary [Bennie] Shendo to our [Tourism] Cabinet Secretary [Michael] Cerletti, the state has been instrumental in opening communications," he adds. "I think it could be called a new era for tribal tourism."
The Indian Pueblo Cultural Center, which is jointly owned by the 19 pueblos of New Mexico, is one of the biggest tribal tourism hotspots, attracting more than 200,000 visitors annually. Its biggest draws are the weekend American Indian dance performances. The center has partnered with the Greater Albuquerque Chamber of Commerce and the Albuquerque Convention and Visitors Bureau to ensure that tourists fresh into town are guided toward the attractions that IPCC offers.
The center was founded as an educational institution, says Tazbah McCullough, marketing director for the center and a member of the Navajo Nation.
"Pueblo leaders wanted visitors to be educated about their particular pueblo before they visited. So our mission is to serve as a gateway to the 19 pueblos of New Mexico and to educate," McCullough says.
Not all tribal attractions are centrally located, however. Remote pueblos find it more difficult to lure tourists, even with casinos. But Monique Fragua says the Pueblo of Jemez is benefiting from being on the Jemez Mountain Trail National Scenic Byway.
"A lot of tourists come here for the scenic beauty and they discover the cultural heritage," says Fragua, the office manager for the Walatowa Visitors Center on Highway 4. "And then they meet friendly people."
Fragua says that the tribe is continuously developing its Adventure Tours Program. This involves information specialists from the pueblo educating visitors about tribal history, culture and contemporary living.
"Visitors can walk through our nature garden and get a tribal interpretation of the land and the animals of the area. They can go through our museum and get interpretations of photographs and the art display we have on exhibit. And they can watch a bread-baking exhibition and pottery demonstration," she says.
The Jemez Pueblo has partnered with the Hyatt Regency Tamaya Resort & Spa to bring bus groups from the Santa Ana Pueblo-owned resort to experience the Walatowa.
Suazo says he wants to assist tribes with their tourism projects. And he says he enjoys bringing in tribal leaders to get their perspectives on tourism.
URL: msnbc.msn.com/id/13029148/
By Harlan McKosato
New Mexico Business Weekly
Updated: 8:00 p.m. ET May 28, 2006
As the value of tourism in New Mexico approaches $5 billion annually, the state's pueblos and tribes are taking on greater roles, with new tours, museums and inter-tribal partnerships.
"Native American culture is a big draw," says Travis Suazo, director of tourism development for the New Mexico Tourism Department and a member of the Pueblo of Laguna, as well as Acoma and Taos pueblos. "It's one of the major reasons, along with the scenic beauty and landscapes, why people visit New Mexico."
Events such as the annual Indian Market in Santa Fe and the Gathering of the Nations Pow Wow in Albuquerque draw thousands of visitors to the state each year.
The newest tourist attraction on tribal lands is the Sky City Cultural Center and Haak'u Museum at Acoma Pueblo, 45 miles west of Albuquerque, opening May 27. The $15 million, 40,000-square-foot building evokes the Acoma ancestral architecture at Mesa Verde and Chaco Canyon.
There will be interactive components in the museum, such as a chance to bake bread in an outdoor oven, or horno. Tours will take visitors atop the 370-foot sandstone mesa, home of the Acoma people for 2,000 years.
"Acoma has been involved in the tourism industry since the 1940s," says Brian Vallo, director of the new cultural center and museum and an Acoma member.
In the 1970s, Acoma built a tourist center at the base of the mesa. This housed a museum, gift shop and food service. In May of 2000, the tourist center burned down and the tribal council approved a plan to rebuild. But first they decided to take a closer look at the tourism industry in New Mexico and funded a market study. As a result, the council decided to build the cultural center and museum.
"Meeting community needs was a big part of the decision to build this type of facility," Vallo says. "One of the priorities was to enhance cultural preservation, so there is space provided in the facility for classes and lectures so that the general history of Acoma Pueblo could be shared. And there was a need to establish a permanent collection of our artifacts, documentation and historic photographs. So part of the facility serves as an archive."
Suazo works with tribes like Acoma to create tourism plans that put them in control of how they showcase their culture.
"My job is to, basically, work with the 22 tribes, collectively and individually, to find out how they'd like to be promoted," says Suazo, who also manages the state's Indian Tourism Program. "The goal is to develop 'managed business tourism' where tribes are making the decisions, developing the vision and the overarching focus of their tourism project."
No economic impact study has ever been done on the impact of Indian Country on the state's tourism industry. Suazo plans to have a study of this kind underway by the end of the year. The state's tourism department Web site outlines the tourism and recreational opportunities at the pueblos. Many of the pueblos have Web links through the site as well.
Tribes, especially gaming tribes, are looking to diversify their economies, Suazo says. Gaming revenue has allowed tribes to offer more attractions for tourists such as golf, spas and the music and entertainment.
Recent legislation will allow his department to build three new off-highway trails for the Off-Highway Vehicle Program, and Suazo says he would like to look at tribal lands for developing an OHV trail.
"We promote New Mexico as a visitor destination to the world. And the non-Indian and Indian communities see it more as a partnership to keep visitors in the state as long as possible," says Suazo, who headed up special projects for the Indian Pueblo Cultural Center in Albuquerque before taking his current post with the state.
"From our office to economic development to Indian Affairs, from Gov. Richardson to [Indian Affairs] Cabinet Secretary [Bennie] Shendo to our [Tourism] Cabinet Secretary [Michael] Cerletti, the state has been instrumental in opening communications," he adds. "I think it could be called a new era for tribal tourism."
The Indian Pueblo Cultural Center, which is jointly owned by the 19 pueblos of New Mexico, is one of the biggest tribal tourism hotspots, attracting more than 200,000 visitors annually. Its biggest draws are the weekend American Indian dance performances. The center has partnered with the Greater Albuquerque Chamber of Commerce and the Albuquerque Convention and Visitors Bureau to ensure that tourists fresh into town are guided toward the attractions that IPCC offers.
The center was founded as an educational institution, says Tazbah McCullough, marketing director for the center and a member of the Navajo Nation.
"Pueblo leaders wanted visitors to be educated about their particular pueblo before they visited. So our mission is to serve as a gateway to the 19 pueblos of New Mexico and to educate," McCullough says.
Not all tribal attractions are centrally located, however. Remote pueblos find it more difficult to lure tourists, even with casinos. But Monique Fragua says the Pueblo of Jemez is benefiting from being on the Jemez Mountain Trail National Scenic Byway.
"A lot of tourists come here for the scenic beauty and they discover the cultural heritage," says Fragua, the office manager for the Walatowa Visitors Center on Highway 4. "And then they meet friendly people."
Fragua says that the tribe is continuously developing its Adventure Tours Program. This involves information specialists from the pueblo educating visitors about tribal history, culture and contemporary living.
"Visitors can walk through our nature garden and get a tribal interpretation of the land and the animals of the area. They can go through our museum and get interpretations of photographs and the art display we have on exhibit. And they can watch a bread-baking exhibition and pottery demonstration," she says.
The Jemez Pueblo has partnered with the Hyatt Regency Tamaya Resort & Spa to bring bus groups from the Santa Ana Pueblo-owned resort to experience the Walatowa.
Suazo says he wants to assist tribes with their tourism projects. And he says he enjoys bringing in tribal leaders to get their perspectives on tourism.
URL: msnbc.msn.com/id/13029148/