The first quarter of 2025 is in the books and the team at Yakima Valley Tourism was busy on many fronts. Here’s a synopsis of our activities over the past three months.
Chamber After Hours
Earlier this week we hosted the monthly Greater Yakima Chamber Business After Hours at the Yakima Visitor Information center near Target. At the social event we updated attendees on our many activities and services.
Travel guide
February welcomed the arrival of more than 120,000 copies of the 2025 Travel Guide, and distribution began through the community, the Northwest and beyond.
This full-color magazine highlights the many attractions, events and services found in the Yakima Valley and locals can pick them up at our Visitor Information Center at 101 N. Fair Ave. in Yakima or our Info Center kiosk at Valley Mall in Union Gap.
Taste Washington event
In mid-March we showcased the Yakima Valley at Taste Washington Grand Tasting, the largest annual consumer wine event in the state.
We poured wines from more than 25 of our local wineries, with Crafted in our booth serving tasty bites. More than 7,500 people and media were in attendance.
State high school championships
Also in March, Yakima hosted two of our largest state tourneys; the WIAA 1A and 2A State Basketball and the 1A/2A/3A/4A Dance & Drill State Championships at the SunDome.
Before the events, Rich Austin with our Sports Commission coordinated a community-wide effort to refinish and repaint the basketball courts.
Media coverage
During the first quarter, our outreach efforts garnered some significant travel coverage in a variety of outlets. In February, our PR firm Green Rubino coordinated and was on Seattle’s FOX 13 morning talk show with Chukar Cherries to promote the Yakima Valley Red Wine & Chocolate event.
A New York-based travel writer and guidebook author included the Snow Mountain Ranch wildflower trail managed by the Cowiche Canyon Conservancy in a National Geographic online spring wildflower feature.
Lonely Planet online featured the Selah Ridge Lavender Farm in a story touting “the world's most gorgeous lavender fields.” The feature also mentioned Hotel Maison for lodging and Crafted for fine dining.
Restaurant Week
We partnered with the Greater Yakima Chamber of Commerce to promote their Restaurant Week in March along with the Downtown Association of Yakima, Selah Downtown Association, Visit Union Gap and the Central Washington Hispanic Chamber of Commerce.
Marketing and promotions
The online Taco and Tamale Trail map and promotions was updated, featuring 26 trail stops in Yakima and the Valley. Shortly we’ll launch an updated version of our popular free Spring Barrel Passport.
In addition, we placed media buys in a number of West Coast lifestyle and travel magazines including 425 Magazine, Northwest Travel & Life and 1889 Magazine. Digital marketing and email efforts included promotions for Red Wine & Chocolate in February plus spring attractions and events.
Industry development and training
In February we staged a tourism workshop where the Yakima Valley Tourism team shared insights, latest trends and developments in the tourism sector.
Throughout 2025 we’ve partnered with TwoSix Digital, a leader in digital tourism marketing, to deliver Destination Uplift for our member businesses. The online marketing education series provides monthly webinars designed for the tourism and hospitality industry.
Topics have included how businesses can utilize AI, set up meaningful conversion tracking in Google Analytics and best practices for email promotions.
In addition, work continued on the Yakima Valley Tourism Ambassador Program front-line training. Our plans are to launch that program by June.
Overall it was a busy first quarter on a number of fronts and the momentum will continue in the coming months.
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