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Located in Suite 107 inside the Tri-Cities Airport, NETTA Executive Director Alicia Phelps said the association has had several homes before landing there. She said the office was located in ºÚÁÏÊÓƵ or Jonesborough before operating in Blountville.

“This time, we were really looking for somewhere that we could be a little more visitor forward facing with the opportunity to expand our footprint,� Phelps said. “So we worked with the Tri-Cities Airport and we had been speaking with them before COVID, about the opportunity to maybe have a space here, and COVID happened and there was so much uncertainty.�

She said the airport office space gives them the chance to add more staff, which Phelps said they plan to do this year.

“We worked with the airport to renovate the suite that we’re in, and that took a couple months with the local contractor,� she said. “We finally started moving in, piece by piece, in November.�

Phelps said NETTA added Sarah Fleming as membership and development manager in September 2024. She said the two of them had to overcome the hurdles of working remotely while the space got renovated but also understood the future opportunities the space would bring.

“We started coming in November, and as you can tell, we’re still kind of decorating a little bit,� Phelps said. “We wanted to get a vibe of the space. We wanted to see what foot traffic looked like. And as we hope to move forward with the airport in a couple years, we will even have the opportunity for a visitor information center up in the airport upstairs.�

According to Phelps, having a NETTA information center or station on the main floor has always been a part of the long-term vision for the association. She said being able to see travelers firsthand so far has also helped her have a better understanding of the visitor population.

“It’s been really interesting because we almost daily have somebody pop in, whether they’ve seen where our address is or they somehow find us right now without signage,� Phelps said. “Just being able to witness the flow of the airport, people coming in, visitors as well as residents, it’s great to be able to observe that and kind of connect with what we’re seeing in travel trends as well.�

Phelps said they plan to add signage and wayfinding materials for visitors to locate their office easier.

Tourism trends

With May 4 through May 10 as National Travel and Tourism Week, Phelps explained how NETTA works with city and county tourism offices to highlight what the region has to offer.

“We’re very fortunate in Northeast [Tennessee] that all of the cities and counties do have a designated tourism entity,� Phelps said. “That means that they put a lot of energy and attention into knowing that tourism is a valuable industry and economic driver, and so that makes it a lot easier for us when you have partners that actually want to work with you and recognize tourism.�

She said the first quarter of 2025 was one of the best for many of the larger cities in the region, specifically for January.

“Usually January, February and March are very slow times, but because of conferences coming in, events like [the] Big South [Conference] ºÚÁÏÊÓƵ, we saw a huge increase in our accommodations numbers, and that’s what funds our industry are the lodging taxes,â€� Phelps said. “You’re not looking at a lot of hometown events during that time of year, so it was really interesting to see what that flow looked like, because of how a visitor wants to support the community, whether they are going out to eat, they’re going shopping.â€�

Other places within the region are starting to promote tourism again following Hurricane Helene, Phelps said. She mentioned some areas are adjusting their usual summer outdoor recreation push due to lingering Helene devastation.

“So we are not focusing on whitewater obviously this year, because there are no permits being given through the Nolichucky [River],� Phelps said. “We’ll shift that into fly fishing; so this will be a great year for us to look at our waterways, like the Watauga River, South Holston River.�

In lieu of whitewater rafting, Phelps said NETTA would promote activities like hiking, boating and kayaking. She said working in tourism is all about adapting to whatever challenges you face, which is why many impacted areas are working to bring new or altered events during this year’s festival season.

“I met with Amanda and Cathy in Unicoi last week,� Phelps said. “Obviously, Erwin would be having the Great Outdoors Festival in May, and they’re not able to do that, but they are looking at a really neat hometown festival on Flag Day, and so they’re working with the town of Erwin on that.�

She said tourism offices including NETTA have started utilizing content creators as part of the regional storytelling experience.

“We can tell the story, but it’s best told through somebody who’s never experienced it before,� Phelps said. “You won’t want to visit somewhere unless you see somebody like you doing it. So we’re trying to really work on that with our rural tourism partners as well.�

Future of regional tourism

Phelps said data representing 2024’s regional tourism will not be released until later this year, but she estimates that Northeast Tennessee will reach the $1 billion revenue mark in the next couple years.

The Tennessee Department of Tourist Development previously reported that tourism generated over $867 million for the eight counties of Northeast Tennessee.

“Most of our numbers show that we have bounced back from the pandemic,� she said. “At this point, we’re showing numbers larger than 2018 — which was a really big year for our area. So we’ll continue to build on that, and hopefully we’ll get to our goal of $1 billion in a couple years.�

She said there continues to be opportunities in the market for short-term rentals, especially for camping of all types ranging from off the grid, “family-style adventure� to RV parks.

Large scale events like Fun Fest and the MLB Speedway Classic, Phelps said, are a “large draw� for tourism that benefits the whole region. She hopes local partners will capitalize on these big ticket events to engage with locals as well as visitors.

For more information about NETTA, visit .