Governor Napolitano Goes “Treasure” Hunting In Arizona
In a recent effort to promote in-state tourism, Governor Janet Napolitano has begun taking weekend excursions to visit some of the state’s lesser-known areas and attractions, places some would consider “hidden treasures.” The tour, officially termed the “Treasures Tour,” is yet another post-9/11 initiative meant to boost the state’s tourism numbers. The strategic thinking behind the effort goes something like this: Wherever she goes, the governor attracts attention, so if the governor is seen out and about touring some unusual spots in the state, perhaps other Arizonians will be enticed to follow suit.

“The goal,” says Jacki Mieler, Director of Media Relations and Communications for the Arizona Office of Tourism, “is to educate Arizonians about all of the wonderful things they have right here in their very own state. I think a lot of people who live here don’t know that some of these places exist. Hopefully this will spur people to get out there and see their own state.”

Kicked off in February, the Treasure Tour, sponsored by AAA Arizona and Beaudry RV, is scheduled to continue for the “unforeseeable future,” says Mieler.

In February, the Governor’s expedition made its way down to Santa Cruz County as part of a Southern Arizona tour. The weekend tour included dropping in on the Tucson Gem and Mineral Show, a cowboy poetry festival in Sierra Vista, the Desert Botanical Gardens in Tucson, and the Titan Missile Museum in Sahuarita before swinging down to check out Santa Cruz.

Once here, the Governor and her entourage made two stops: Callaghan Vineyards in Elgin to sample wine and converse with area vintners and Patagonia’s Velvet Elvis to check out…well…the pizza, of course. “We went to a restaurant I’d heard about for years,” said Napolitano, “it serves interesting pizza…different salads and desserts…it’s a wonderful setting for wonderful food, and we met with the wonderful people of Patagonia.” (Rumor has it that the Governor’s Southern Arizona Director enjoyed the Velvet Elvis so much that she returned a week later on her own.)

Arizonians are encouraged to participate in the Treasures Tour by logging onto www.arizonatreasures.gov and nominating attractions for future tour visits. Members of the Santa Cruz Tourism Council are urged to visit the site and coax the Governor back down to our lovely county by voting for some local attractions. (Santa Cruz County is, after all, loaded with treasures!) Though the governor can’t promise to visit each nominated area, the website is a terrific forum for tourism promotion.

“I think the Treasure Tour has been extremely successful,“ says Mieler. “The press coverage the governor gets from going to these areas spreads the word to other Arizonians. And obviously, people have become really passionate about it…everyone’s going to the website to report more hidden treasures.”

"The Birds Fly South" is sponsored in part through funding from the USDA RBEG grant program.