Winter Chautauqua 2025

The Gainesville Convention and Visitors Bureau (Explore Gainesville) proudly hosted the 2025 Winter Chautauqua conference on March 9–10 at The Boathouse at Lake Lanier!

This annual event, organized by the Northeast Georgia Mountains Travel Association, brought together tourism professionals from across the region for two days of learning, networking, and collaboration. The conference kicked off with Sunday check-in at the Courtyard Marriott in downtown Gainesville, followed by guided COOLbus tours highlighting public art and downtown development projects. Evening festivities included Olympic-themed games, live music, and a networking after-party at Decoy.

Monday’s sessions began with an inspiring keynote address by Gloria Syfan, followed by an update from Jay Markwalter, Tourism Director for the Georgia Department of Economic Development. Breakout sessions covered a variety of tourism-related topics, including entertainment tourism with Lynda Lee Smith, personal and professional development with Ilke Lander, agritourism, film tourism, public art initiatives, digital media strategies, public relations, and hotel/motel tax management. Notable speakers included Cheryl Smith, David Zelski, Caitlin Neal, Phil Bonelli, Randy Davidson, Angela Sheppard, Ayla Crippen, Laurie Rowe, Dr. Tyler Reinagel, and Chris Cavanaugh.

Hosting the Winter Chautauqua conference was a tremendous honor for Explore Gainesville, showcasing the city’s hospitality, scenic beauty, and leadership within the tourism industry. The success of the event highlighted Gainesville’s growing reputation as a destination for meetings and events and strengthened partnerships that will continue to move Northeast Georgia forward. Explore Gainesville looks forward to building on this momentum and welcoming even more opportunities to Lake Lanier’s shores!