. Now, the tourism office is focusing on attracting younger generations and has switched its marketing to focus more on outdoor recreation.
Using history to make yourself unique for visitors is good, and it makes it hard for other areas to compete. It's hard to create history....:^)
But, when it comes to outdoor recreation I bet lots of nearby areas can compete.
Does Lexington have any unique items/events/attractions in the “outdoor recreation” field?
It’s a fairly scenic area, but not up to the level of other mountain communities up and down the southern Appalachians (Gatlinburg, Asheville, Cherokee, etc.). It’s smack in the middle of the Blue Ridge Mountains, very pretty especially in the fall, with easy access to Roanoke (an hour south) and the upper Shenendoah Valley—Staunton, Waynesboro, Harrisonburg—45-60 minutes north. And my tiny speck of a hometown 45 minutes east over the mountain, but that’s neither here nor there. :)
Growing up near there, it was always more known as a place to stop and eat along Interstate 81 and a historical location. Yes, they might be able to make a go of outdoor recreation because there’s good hiking and some tubing in the vicinity, but generally Lexington has been where you go to pay respects to Marse Robert and Stonewall, maybe tour VMI and wander the quaint little downtown, then drive a couple miles back onto I-81 and keep going or spend the night at a chain motel.
}:-)4