nebraska travel ad

You are using an outdated browser. Please upgrade your browser to improve your experience.

• Program Schedule
• LNK Today | 6-9a
• Brian Kilmeade | 9-11a
• Clay Travis and Buck Sexton | 11a-2p
• Sean Hannity | 2-5p
• Drive Time Nebraska | 5-6p
• SportsNightly | 6-8p
• Mark Levin | 8-11p
• Friendly Fire | Saturday 7-8a
• The KLIN Husker Hour | Saturday 9-10a
• Executive Travel Talk | Saturday 10-11a
• OneShot. OneLife. | Saturday 11a-Noon
• Grow Lincoln | Saturday Noon-1p
• Governor's Call-In Show
• Lincoln Business Beat
• Submit a News Tip
• Husker News
• Husker Football
• Contest Rules
• Station Events
• Community Events
• Half Off Deals
• Get the App
• KLIN History

Nebraska Ditches “Honestly it’s not for everyone” Slogan

A Visit Nebraska hoodie featuring the now defunct tagline, “Nebraska, honestly it’s not for everyone.” (Visit Nebraska)

Honestly, Nebraska’s controversial “It’s not for everyone” slogan, was not for everyone.

Executive Director of the Nebraska Tourism Commission John Ricks agreed, as he told the Legislative Appropriations Committee Monday, the 2019 promotion effort “is a thing of the past.”

However, Ricks was emphatic to the committee, the seemingly harsh mantra was actually effective in what it set out to do: boost awareness of Nebraska as a tourist destination.

The tagline was conceived by the Tourism Commission, also known as Visit Nebraska, as a last ditch effort to combat the state’s position as one of the lowest performing states in the nation in out-of-state tourism. “The only way we could get their attention, honestly, was by agreeing with them, and then counteracting it,” Ricks said. The campaign included billboards featuring ironic quips like, “Lucky for you there’s nothing to do here,” and “Famous for our flat, boring landscape.” These underselling catchphrases would be juxtaposed with pictures of people enjoying Nebraska’s unique scenery and attractions.

The attention grabbing motto was born: “Nebraska, honestly it’s not for everyone.”

“Bottom line is the tagline is gone,” Ricks finalized, “But now what we’re concentrating on is how we can continue the tremendous momentum from numerous consecutive years of record setting tourism growth in terms of visitor spending, visitation, and the lodging tax that funds our cash basis agency.”

Ricks offered statistics to back up this claim. He said, in 2023, $4.3 billion flowed into the state, through tourism organizations, hospitality businesses, and others.

Visit Nebraska commissioned an advertising effectiveness study which indicated, since 2019, the likelihood of people to visit Nebraska almost doubled, jumping from about 17% to 39%.

As for ‘Awareness of Nebraska,’ Ricks described, “In other words, are we on people’s shopping list? Do they know Nebraska exists? That jumped from around 5% before 2019, to 40%”

Perception of Nebraska in out-of-state markets (neighboring states like Colorado, Iowa, Illinois, South Dakota, Kansas, etc) went from perceiving Nebraska as “the land of nothing to do to,” to a destination “for people with a sense of adventure, a place that has most to offer those who like to explore,” Ricks described.

Additionally, Visit Nebraska’s investments to drive tourism delivered a return on investment according to Ricks, “Every marketing dollar invested by Visit Nebraska in 2023 generated an average of about $20.28 in visitor spending.”

This entire briefing on Nebraska’s retired catchline, was apart of a request from the Tourism Commission to increase their spending authority from the current $7.5 million to $10.5 million.

“Nebraska has resulted in record lodging tax growth, that is actually outpacing our spending authority,” Ricks told the committee, “By allowing the commission to increase the spending authority, consistent with projected lodging tax revenues, will allow us to reinvest lodging tax revenue back into our efforts to promote Nebraska as a tourism destination. This would go a long way in helping to maintain — and could even help increase — the momentum that we’ve built over the past few years.”

Ricks said Visit Nebraska’s 2024 planning is underway, but without a funding increase, they may have to forego promotion in top performing tourism-cities like Chicago and Oklahoma City.

“We’re having great success and I’d like to think that we’re waking a sleeping giant of an industry here,” Ricks delivered with optimism.

The Appropriations Committee took no immediate action on the funding request.

‘Nebraska. Honestly, it’s not for everyone’ tourism campaign leads to national award

LINCOLN, Neb. (KSNB) - “Nebraska. Honestly, it’s not for everyone.” It’s that campaign that has led the Nebraska Tourism Commission receiving more national recognition for how its promoting the state.

On Tuesday, Aug. 9, Visit Nebraska was honored with a 2022 Mercury Award at ESTO, the Educational Seminar of Tourism Organizations powered by the U.S. Travel Association. The state’s campaign won the award for best Integrated Marketing and Messaging Campaign: State Marketing Budget Less than $10 million.

This is the second time that Nebraska has walked away with this top award. The first time was when the campaign was introduced in 2019.

Members of the Nebraska Tourism team received the much sought-after Mercury Award in front of an audience of more than 1,000 at the event in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

The Mercury Awards recognize state tourism offices for excellence and creative achievements in destination marketing and inspiring the continued development of imaginative promotional programs.

”We’re thrilled to be recognized with this award and honored by all of the congratulations from our industry partners and colleagues,” said John Ricks, Nebraska Tourism executive director. “What a great night and a big deal for the state of Nebraska.”

Just as importantly, visitors continue to respond positively to the campaign by taking trips to Nebraska. Lodging tax revenue, visitor traffic and spending continue to be strong this summer and carry on at a record pace for the year.

”The month of June 2022 is only the second time ever that monthly lodging tax revenue surpassed $1 million,” Ricks said. “Total lodging tax revenue set a new all-time record in fiscal year 2022 on a seasonal basis with $6.9 million in collections.”

Nebraska Tourism is funded by the 1% lodging tax.Since lodging makes up only about 20% of visitor spending, total visitor expenditures, including events, attractions, restaurants and other travel-related segments approached $2 billion halfway through this calendar year. In 2021, total visitor expenditures were $3.6 billion.

”The numbers continue to show more and more people are finding visiting Nebraska is for them,” Ricks added.

Copyright 2022 KSNB. All rights reserved.

Union Pacific’s 4014 Big Boy to travel through Nebraska on Heartland of America tour

Final two suspects in Fonner Park murder sentenced

Video shows father who allegedly got distracted playing video games realizing he left his daughter in hot SUV

3 family members killed in crash while on the way to teenager’s college move-in day

‘Dating all over again’: Reed begins first season as Grand Island football coach

Minden volleyball ‘the team to beat’ in quest to repeat as Class C1 state champion

Stanton woman accused of stealing thousands from former employer

Lib’s Park splash pad closing early due to vandalism

Latest news.

Locals and visitors enjoy Kool-Aid Days

Kool-Aid exhibit at Hastings Museum to see renovations

Warm and humid conditions to return after rain chances on Sunday

Tim Walz campaigns in La Vista

Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly, AG Kris Kobach send joint letter opposing Nebraska plan to redirect water

Ex-University of Florida president gave former Senate staffers large raises, report finds

GIPS Board of Education accepting applications for vacant Ward C Seat

Nebraska's pitch to tourists: 'Honestly, it's not for everyone'

Nebraska is trying to ramp up tourism with a self-deprecating ad campaign.

Nebraska knows the state is "not for everyone" and it's proud of that in a new ad campaign.

"We're just simply not on people's shopping list for a vacation," said John Ricks, executive director of the Nebraska Tourism Commission, on ABC News' "Start Here" podcast.

New Nebraska Tourism advertisements boast of the state's "flat, boring landscape" and "dusty" Great Plains as part of a self-deprecating marketing campaign to tackle its "brand apathy" problem.

"You can't change perceptions just by providing information, so we had to be disruptive in some way," Ricks said of the sarcastic ads.

One print ad points out "there's nothing to do here" as a group floats down a river in a livestock tank, or what Nebraskans refer to as "tanking."

Nebraska is trying to lure tourists who are interested in an "unpretentious and uncomplicated" vacation, and as the campaign's tagline notes: "Honestly, it's not for everyone."

"We're not looking for everybody," Ricks said on "Start Here." "This place isn't for everybody, as any state isn't for anybody."

The #HonestlyNE campaign will launch in out-of-state markets beginning in spring 2019.

This story is featured on Friday's edition of ABC News' "Start Here" podcast.

"Start Here" is the flagship daily news podcast from ABC News -- a straightforward look at the day's top stories in 20 minutes. Listen for free every weekday on Apple Podcasts , Google Podcasts , iHeartRadio , Spotify , Stitcher , TuneIn , or the ABC News app . On Amazon Echo, ask Alexa to "Play 'Start Here'" or add the "Start Here" skill to your Flash Briefing. Follow @StartHereABC on Twitter , Facebook and Instagram for exclusive content, show updates and more!

Trending Reader Picks

Fla. woman who fatally shot neighbor found guilty

• Aug 16, 12:37 PM

What economists think of Harris' economic agenda

• Aug 16, 4:12 PM

Trump draws fire for Medal of Honor remarks

• Aug 16, 2:17 PM

These Trump Media investors are unfazed by losses

• Aug 17, 12:17 PM

Airport conveyor belt cause of death revealed

• Aug 9, 8:42 PM

ABC News Live

24/7 coverage of breaking news and live events

The 2023 Official "Not-At-All What You Thought" Nebraska State Travel Guide is available now

PRESS RELEASE

FOR INFORMATION, CONTACT: Ben Jones at 402-326-9941, or  [email protected] Jenn Gjerde at 402-525-4455, or [email protected]

LINCOLN, Neb. (January 5, 2023) - Travelers seeking inspiration on where to go and what to do on their next trip can now check out the 2023 Official "Not-At-All What You Thought" Nebraska State Travel Guide.

"Our state has a lot to offer, and the Travel Guide gives people a taste of that," said John Ricks, Nebraska Tourism executive director. "Besides wide-open spaces and plenty of outdoor adventure, Nebraska is also family-friendly, has unique stops, delicious local cuisine and a variety of attractions."

If you're planning a trip to Nebraska, the Nebraska Travel Guide is a helpful resource. Through beautiful pictures, vivid descriptions, and, of course, some quirkiness and humor (to maintain the same tone as the state's viral tourism campaign, "Nebraska. Honestly, it's not for everyone"), it highlights the things to do all across the state. This year's guide features road trip ideas for families, foodies, the outdoors, agritourism destinations and more!

The cover features a drone image of the Niobrara National Scenic River that spans much of the northern Sandhills region of the state. The National Park Service manages the riverbed in partnership with the public and private landowners on the river. There are so many ways to explore the Niobrara River Valley, like floating and hiking to the state's tallest waterfall at Smith Falls State Park.

In 2022, the Nebraska Tourism Commission printed 200,000 copies of the travel guide and distributed them to all 50 states and numerous countries. Travel Guides were also part of a newspaper insert program in target advertising markets like Minneapolis, Chicago and Madison, Wisconsin.

Check out the fun experiences Nebraska has to offer for yourself and order the free 2023 Travel Guide here . An online version is also available to download here . Guides can also be found at visitor centers and tourism destinations across the state.

The Nebraska Travel Guide is an annual publication produced by the Nebraska Tourism Commission and Miles Partnership.

For more information about travel, events and unique destinations in Nebraska, order your free travel guide today at  VisitNebraska.com . Then stay connected with Nebraska Tourism on our  Visit Nebraska Facebook page , on  Twitter , on  Pinterest , on  Instagram  and on  YouTube .   The mission of the Nebraska Tourism Commission is to expand Nebraska’s dynamic and diverse travel industry making it more viable by creating awareness, attracting increased visitors which results in greater tourism revenue and economic gain throughout the state. To learn more, go to  VisitNebraska.com .

Vintage Vibes in Lincoln: 5 Must-Visit Shops

Nebraska Historic Site Bucket List

Christopher Amundson

YOUR GUIDE TO STATEWIDE ADVENTURES

What are you looking for?

Top Attractions & Things to do

Outdoor & Adventure

Historic Sites

Food & Drink

Arts & Culture

Ranches & rodeos, state & national parks.

Nebraska's New Tourism Campaign: Honest And Quirky

Your changes have been saved

Email is sent

Email has already been sent

Please verify your email address.

You’ve reached your account maximum for followed topics.

10 Scenic Upstate New York Road Trips That Should Be On Your Bucket List

10 arizona road trips that are best taken in winter, 10 small towns in the great smoky mountains to visit in winter.

While this marketing approach is one that might not be the most flattering, it is staying true to itself, which might just be the endearing part of it all.

“I just don’t think the best way to pitch ourselves is calling out stereotypes about ourselves,” said Micah Yost, a Nebraska native, to The Washington Post. “There’s no reason why that would draw people to the state.”

For more information on the state of Nebraska and reasons as to why you should visit, you can check out their official tourism website here .

READ NEXT: AMSTERDAM PLANS ON BANNING BACHELOR PARTIES TO CRACK DOWN ON DISRUPTIVE TOURISTS

• Destinations

National travel and tourism week in Nebraska

by Nicole Steward

GRAND ISLAND, Neb. — Since 1983, National Travel and Tourism Week has been a celebration recognizing the significance of travel, its impact on economic growth, and its role in improving the quality of life for communities.

Brad Mellema, Executive Director of Grand Island Tourism says that during the pandemic there was a loss of 70% of industry business, but since then, he says the city has seen a remarkable turnaround.

“Not only have we made that back, we've made it back with record numbers really the last 12 to 14 months, most months revenues are record after record after record," said Mellema.

The executive director of Nebraska Tourism agrees, saying there is a marked improvement - with 12.6 million visitors that stayed overnight last year in Nebraska.

“The travel industry in 2023 was a $4.5 billion industry, which was very big or it's up about 5. 7% over a year ago, and 2022. State and local taxes went over 300 million for the first time, it's 320 million," said John Ricks.

As tourism evolves with consumer behavior, Mellema says there has been a unified approach to marketing – incorporating partners such as the Chamber of Commerce in a more organized manner than previously.

Subsequently, web traffic has improved, showing sizable increases, and Mellema says their marketing efforts have shown promise - “We're one of the top three or four communities in Nebraska, where tourism does impact us. When you look at the population of our town versus the number of hotels and the revenues that we derive from that. We compete with our very largest cities on even level or even higher level, sometimes as a percentage tied to our community.”

What is the largest contributor attracting visitors?

“The big events are what really separates us and a lot of ways from maybe other similar-sized cities,” adds Mellema.

However, tourism is more than increased revenue and traffic believes Mellema – people want a unique experience that tells the story of his community, stating simply – that the very best of Nebraska is right in his town.

Ricks adds that during the pandemic the state outperformed many parts of the country in tourism because people were looking for affordable, less populated areas where they felt safe traveling - something Nebraska offers, but an area still needing improvement is employment, where Ricks shares the category is still struggling to recover and has not grown as rapidly as other categories since the pandemic.

Ricks believes, 68% of people who relocate are visitors first - meaning today's visitors are tomorrow's Nebraskans.

• Government & Politics
• Environment & Agriculture
• Labor & Growth
• Social Services
• Election 2024

Latest NE property tax plan would add sales tax to another 70-plus goods and services

Final proposal, set for debate tuesday, would end exemptions on about half the items included in a draft plan of 120 goods and services shared among lawmakers one month ago, by: zach wendling - august 12, 2024 10:47 pm.

State Sen. Brad von Gillern of Elkhorn listens to State Sen. Wendy DeBoer of Omaha. July 25, 2024. (Zach Wendling/Nebraska Examiner)

LINCOLN — Nebraska lawmakers are officially set to debate a tax relief package Tuesday that will include consideration of ending nearly 70 sales tax exemptions to provide funding for property tax cuts. 

One month ago, a draft property tax plan indicated lawmakers might begin taxing sales of 120 more goods or services . That number has been incrementally reduced in successive rewrites , and at this point has been cut nearly in half. 

The proposal

Some of the main components of the tax plan include:

• Lowering the maximum school district tax rates for operational expenses to 40 cents per $100 of valuation for fiscal year 2025-26; 35 cents in 2026-27; and 30 cents in 2027-28 and beyond. The current maximum rate is $1.05.
• Capping the annual increase in property tax collections by municipal and county governments at the rate of inflation or at 0% in times of deflation.
• Crediting taxpayers for property taxes paid to their natural resources district (beginning at 50% in the next fiscal year).
• Reimbursing county jail expenses (beginning at 25% in the next fiscal year).

Revenue Committee advances NE property tax relief package, with debate to start Tuesday

Most funding will come from retooling existing property tax reduction programs, such as tax credits and the portion of homestead exemptions no longer needed as school tax rates come down.

The other major area of financing will come from the newly taxed goods and services and increases to “sin” taxes, such as on spirits, cigarettes, oral nicotine pouches, vapes, cigarettes, keno and cash devices.

Legislative Bill 34 , as originally introduced by State Sen. Tom Brewer of north-central Nebraska, would freeze property valuation increases over four years. He has described it as a “ backup plan ” or “fail-safe.”

‘They don’t fix the problems’

State Sen. Brad von Gillern of Elkhorn, vice chair of the Revenue Committee, said he is “cautiously optimistic” heading into Tuesday’s floor debate after he and the committee chair, State Sen Lou Ann Linehan, and others “listened to parties on all sides.” Von Gillern said committee members tried their best to build the bill around concerns raised.

State Sen. George Dungan of Lincoln, the lone “no” committee vote on LB 34, said the package remains “inherently regressive” and would hurt low-income residents. He said it would also not provide relief to renters, who live in about 50% of the housing units in Dungan’s district .

“I understand there are certain parts of it that are intended to help low-income individuals, but on the whole, when you balance those against the other portions of the bill, I simply think they don’t fix the problems,” Dungan said.

State Sen. Eliot Bostar of Lincoln, who was “present, not voting” on Monday’s committee vote, said afterward: “It’s just not there yet for me.”

The Legislature is officially nonpartisan, but votes sometimes split along ideological lines. On Monday, the six Republican committee members supported the package. Dungan and Bostar are Democrats.

Municipalities have raised concerns about the proposed sales tax changes on two fronts. One is with the state collecting an additional 12% in local sales tax revenue each year. The other involves how businesses can request future refunds for economic development and workforce incentive programs, such as the Nebraska Advantage and ImagiNE Nebraska Acts .

Those tax incentive programs utilize local sales taxes, but with the municipalities not collecting the full tax base, some have said it could further complicate planning for those future refunds.

Von Gillern pointed to a provision of LB 34 ensuring that cities or villages do not collect less sales tax revenue than they did in 2023-24, plus a 1% annual increase.

“There is a floor built into the bill, so they’re not going to get hurt on any of that,” he said.

‘We’ve got to get to 30’

Von Gillern also pointed to an independent study from Ernie Goss, a regional economist and professor at Creighton University, contending that all taxes are regressive but that high property taxes are the most detrimental to economic growth.

“We’ve done as much as we can to take as much out that would have impacted the lowest income people, and I think we’ve done a good job of that,” von Gillern said. “We listened to the opponents, and we tried to modify as much as we could.”

He also pointed to internal legislative modeling, which was done on a previous tax package, where families with modest income would see a net benefit. He said that “seems to be forgotten in this discussion.”

Linehan said she thinks she has 31 votes but that getting to 33 votes on some bills to break a filibuster, particularly on proposals related to taxation, is “very, very partisan.”

“We’ve got to get to 30,” Linehan said. “I think we’re at about 31 right now.”

Many provisions of LB 34, if passed, would take effect Oct. 1. That would require 33 votes not only to end debate but also to pass the bill to take effect within three calendar months. Sales tax exemptions or repeals can only occur at the start of a calendar quarter .

First-round debate on the package will begin at 9 a.m. Tuesday and can last up to eight hours.

SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST.

Our stories may be republished online or in print under Creative Commons license CC BY-NC-ND 4.0. We ask that you edit only for style or to shorten, provide proper attribution and link to our website. AP and Getty images may not be republished. Please see our republishing guidelines for use of any other photos and graphics.

Zach Wendling

Zach rejoins the Nebraska Examiner after studying abroad in Antigua, Guatemala, following a yearlong Examiner internship. His coverage focus areas have included politics and government, health and well-being and higher education.

Nebraska Examiner is part of States Newsroom , the nation’s largest state-focused nonprofit news organization.

Related News