Visit Goldsboro, the travel and tourism department for the City of Goldsboro and Wayne County, is excited to launch a survey to get input from Wayne County residents for what they would like to see, do, experience in the local area that would achieve greater quality of life and stronger leisure visitation to the area. This survey is part of the Tourism Master Plan project, which was commissioned in January 2020 by the Visit Goldsboro office and is facilitated by Asheville-based Magellan Strategy Group.

The purpose of the Tourism Master Plan is to create a long-range plan for Goldsboro, Mount Olive, and Wayne County’s travel and tourism sector. The plan will provide an organized and structured framework for tourism development and promotion within Goldsboro-Wayne County. That includes things like planning for accommodations, transportation, tourist activities, legislation and regulation, and marketing and promotion.

A tourism master plan is the roadmap for destination success. It is a crucial first step that will address three important questions: “Where are we?” “Where do we want to go?” “How do we get there?”. Prior to the impact of COVID-19 on the world’s travel market, a robust amount of data was gathered from past and potential visitors to understand how Goldsboro-Wayne County is viewed as a destination. The project paused for the majority of 2020, due to the effects of the pandemic. Now that travel is picking up again and research shows the travelers’ sentiment is growing more positive, the Visit Goldsboro office sees this as the right time to launch the resident survey to help us better understand the opinions of area residents and answer the question of “where do we want to go?”

“In the last five years, Goldsboro-Wayne County has made incredible strides within its travel and tourism sector. The opening of the Maxwell Center and Bryan Multi-Sports Complex in 2018 legitimized us as a destination for meetings, groups, and sports, and the completion of downtown Goldsboro’s streetscapes has spurred a revival of unique offerings for our visitors and residents. As exciting as it is to see these developments, we need to keep fueling the momentum. Visitor growth will not necessarily continue for our market, especially as our neighboring destinations build and grow their offerings. That’s why we have to be strategic about harnessing our ongoing development to keep becoming a more desirable place to live, visit, and work. This tourism master plan will help us achieve our potential.” Ashlin Glatthar, director of travel and tourism for Goldsboro-Wayne County.

All survey responses will go directly to Magellan Strategy Group and will remain confidential, and will only be reported in the aggregate.  Responses will not be associated with any individual.  Residents of Wayne County can access and complete the survey here: https://magellanstrategy.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_9Fg929xiqEjheQe

Residents have until April 12, 2021 to complete the survey. The survey can also be found on Visit Goldsboro’s Facebook page under the events section here.

For residents needing internet access, the following library locations are available for those who wish to complete the survey:

• Wayne County Public Library, 1001 E Ash St, Goldsboro, NC 27530
• Steele Memorial Library, 119 W. Main St, Mt. Olive, NC 28365
• Fremont Library, 202 N. Goldsboro St, Fremont, NC 27830