Like a bad stretch of road that leads to awe inspiring scenic wonders, tourism in 2025 was a bumpy road. But the changing facing of destination marketing is also an unprecedented opportunity, especially for leaders with vision.

From small towns to big cities branding and marketing will be key to tapping into these new opportunities. Success will depend on leadership that will embrace new technologies. From social media campaigns to exciting interactive websites changing times require changing strategies. 

Surprisingly many businesses as well as CVB and chamber of commerce directors overlook the most important and the easiest way to transform a community into a destination. A well-curated, accurate and error free event calendar is key to making a community a place that people want to visit, to live, to retire, to open a business and to raise a family. 

After the post pandemic era’s boom, visitor behavior has matured into something more nuanced. Travelers are seeking experience-rich, locally authentic, and community-focused journeys. 

Postcards, static calendars, and one-off brochures still have their place. But in the grand scheme of things, they just don’t cut it anymore. You don’t promote local or regional events with flyers left under windshield wipers in a supermarket parking lot anymore. So, why are you using labor intensive and error prone event calendar curation?  

It is increasingly important that tourism offices, Chambers of Commerce, and CVBs keep their fingers on the pulse of what’s happening now. That means managing a robust, up-to-date events calendar that tells everyone where to go, what to do, and why it matters. As made evident in the rather dramatic change in tourism trends last year, that event calendar is more important than ever before. 

And yet too many still rely on spreadsheets, email submissions, and social media posts. And as a result, these lists are incomplete, outdated, or buried behind clunky calendars that no one visits.

As we steer into 2026, three key tourism trends are emerging. First, events figure prominently when people begin planning a holiday adventure, a road trip, or weekend getaway. 

From festivals and farmers markets to gallery walks and outdoor concerts, events have become more than a local happening. They are trip motivators. Travelers search for “what’s happening this weekend?” long before they look up flights or hotel rates.

AI and data-driven tourism are fast becoming the foundation for successful community marketing. We see this in the rise of platforms such that predict visitor interests, automate content generation, and personalize recommendations. AI isn’t just a buzzword. It’s transforming how destinations connect with potential visitors, interpret trends, and shape itineraries. 

Content is now the king. And context is the crown. 

Search engines reward current, frequent, and relevant content. When your events calendar is clogged with stale listings or tiny community gatherings that never get updated, your website loses SEO traction. But when a calendar is fresh, comprehensive, and searchable, it is transformed into it a destination magnet. 

If you tell people where to go with clarity, relevance, and personality, your community thrives. It becomes a destination. If you don’t, visitors will simply go somewhere else.

For decades, tourism offices have tried to solve the events calendar challenge the same way. They hire more staff or add interns to sort through submissions and comb social media. Spreadsheets are updated. Data is input into the website. 

And some events are missing or there is an error with information input. The valiant battle to keep a calendar current and relevant is seldom successful. It is akin to Don Quixote jousting at windmills. 

Simply put, this is an old school tactic. But events roll in faster than humans can type, and community bulletin boards are scattered across platforms. The problem isn’t manpower or even staff dedication. 

Just as social media and websites have replaced flyers and newspaper advertisements, AI based platforms have enhanced and streamlined event calendar development. To varying degrees Tempest, Simpleview, ChamberMaster / ChamberMate that combine calendar curation and membership management solutions have resolved some key issues. 

Each has its strengths in promotion, SEO, CRM, and organization. But their failing is the dependence on someone feeding them data.

That’s where Yodel comes in, we are the next generation approach. We are the game changers. And we are the tool that will transform your community into a destination.

Picture this, you walk into the office on Monday morning, and your events calendar is already refreshed, sorted, and optimized. Events pulled from community sites, social media feeds, club calendars, tourism office submissions, and more. No added expense is incurred when staff work late into the night on data entry. No missed listings. No stale events.

That’s the power of Yodel AI-powered event calendar curation. It’s not magic. This is a smart automation built specifically to help tourism offices and chambers convert events into engagement and destination appeal. 

With Yodel hundreds of event sources from Facebook and stakeholder websites to official calendars are searched. With dynamic updating your calendar stays fresh in real time. There is no need to ensure the calendar is relevant as old or cancelled events drop off automatically. 

SEO optimization is built in as each event gets indexed and structured in a way that search engines love. That boosts your visibility and drives organic traffic. 

Using custom filters and audience targeting allows you to tailor what kinds of events show up and that translates into monetization opportunities. Local sponsorships and ads can be embedded into the calendar, creating a revenue stream that supports your tourism office

When your event calendar turns into a living, breathing marketing and community development hub you get credibility as well as higher website engagement. Visitors stay longer, explore more pages, and trust your site as the authoritative source for planning their trip. 

You are also assured of increased event attendance. Travelers plan their visits around festivals, concerts, and special weekends. Each event then becomes an economic boost for local businesses. 

When locals see their events highlighted alongside destination favorites, it fosters deeper community engagement and belonging. That is exactly the kind of authentic charm travelers are seeking. With Yodel your calendar becomes a beacon, not a bulletin board.

Tourism isn’t a passive waiting game. It’s an active storytelling challenge: Tell people where to go and make them want to go there with Yodel. In 2025 and into 2026, technology isn’t optional. This is what will separate destinations that thrive from those that just survive.

Turn your community’s story into a destination narrative, one event at a time with Yodel. With thoughtful curation, dynamic content, and a bit of forward-thinking ingenuity, your events calendar won’t just list what’s happening. It will drive visits, spark connections, and build a sense of place that travelers carry home long after they leave.

Written by Jim Hinckley’s America