Tourism doesn’t begin at the visitor center.
It begins in the car ride from the airport, the hotel check-in, the café line, and the casual conversation on the street. Those early, human moments shape how a destination feels long before a map is unfolded or a recommendation is requested.
That idea sits at the heart of a recent episode of Where We Goin’, hosted by Melyssa Reeves of One West Tourism Alliance, featuring Andrew Moore of Travel Portland and Stephen Ekstrom of Learn Tourism. The conversation explores how Portland’s Rose City Certified program is redefining what a community engagement initiative can be — not as a checkbox training, but as a catalyst for pride, confidence, and connection.
🎧 Listen to the episode here:
Andrew Moore shares a realization that many destinations eventually reach: visitor centers are rarely the first point of contact. More often, a rideshare driver, hotel associate, or restaurant server becomes the unofficial ambassador of a place.
When those early interactions are shaped by misinformation, fatigue, or uncertainty, the destination pays the price. When they’re shaped by confidence, empathy, and local knowledge, something remarkable happens — visitors feel welcomed, informed, and connected.
Rose City Certified was designed to meet that reality head-on by equipping frontline workers with tools to have better conversations, not scripted responses.
One of the most powerful themes in the episode is the intentional shift away from traditional customer service training. Travel Portland didn’t want a program people endured. They wanted one that changed how people saw themselves in the visitor economy.
That meant focusing on three essentials:
Transformation — helping people do something new or better
Engagement — active participation, not passive consumption
Accessibility — learning that fits real lives, schedules, and learning styles
The result is a program that feels less like compliance and more like empowerment.
Another standout element of Rose City Certified is its willingness to address complexity. Instead of avoiding difficult topics around livability or safety, the program gives learners the language and context to respond with nuance, empathy, and facts.
Just as important, it reminds locals why they fell in love with Portland in the first place.
When people reconnect with their city’s identity, values, and culture, they tell better stories. Those stories travel farther than any brochure ever could.
What makes this conversation especially valuable for the broader tourism industry is its replicability. The episode underscores that effective community engagement programs don’t require massive budgets — they require clarity of values, collaboration with stakeholders, and a commitment to evergreen, adaptable learning.
As Melyssa Reeves highlights throughout the discussion, this approach provides a blueprint for destinations of all sizes seeking to enhance community alignment and visitor experience simultaneously.
The Where We Goin’ episode is a reminder that learning, when done well, doesn’t just transfer knowledge — it builds confidence, pride, and belonging. And in tourism, those human outcomes are what visitors remember most.
If you’re considering how your destination engages its community, supports frontline workers, or shares its story with the world, this conversation is well worth your time.
🎙️ Listen to the full episode:
https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/4-from-training-to-transformation-building-smarter/id1827279890?i=1000737581514