We received a 2025 NYS Tourism Excellence Award!
We received a 2025 NYS Tourism Excellence Award!
Our Empire State Trail Towns program received the Excellence in Tourism Stewardship: Shaping A Better Future award from the New York State Tourism Industry Association. The award honors organizations that foster responsible, sustainable economic development activities and programs that enhance a destination for visitors and residents alike.
About Empire State Trail Towns
Our Empire State Trail Towns program helps small communities along the Canalway Trail build stronger connections to local greenways, while revitalizing economies through community-led planning and strategic investment.
We help to foster trail-based economic development by empowering towns to become vibrant trail destinations, increasing tourism, improving trail access and visibility, promoting active transportation, and supporting placemaking efforts. Trail Towns is about more than attracting visitors, it's about creating livable, walkable communities that reflect the local community.
The 10-month planning process is guided by a local steering committee made up of municipal leaders, business owners, nonprofits, and residents. We provide technical assistance, workshops, mapping tools, and facilitation support to help communities assess assets, identify gaps, and develop a clear Action Agenda. This agenda outlines both quick wins and long-term strategies to improve trail access, signage, infrastructure, and economic integration.
Learn more about Empire State Trail Towns.
We’d like to give a BIG thank you to the New York State Tourism Industry Association for this honor!