New STLC Lodging Booking Platform, Property Owners Encouraged to Participate to Improve Visitor Experience

New STLC Lodging Booking Platform, Property Owners Encouraged To Participate To Improve Visitor Experience

A new online booking platform showcasing St. Lawrence County lodging options including a search bar and interactive map is officially live on www.VisitSTLC.com! The platform not only features lodging options on its interactive map but also highlights more than 80 points of interest throughout the county, including golf courses, hiking and walking trails, museums, libraries and more. The inclusion of these points of interest will make it easier for visitors to choose accommodation that aligns with their desired vacation activities and inspires them to check out something that they didn’t already know about.

“This online platform has the potential to provide visitors with a one-stop-shop trip-planning experience,” Tiffani Amo, Interim Director of Tourism at the St. Lawrence County Chamber of Commerce explains. “The ability for visitors to be able to identify the wide and varied range of lodging available while they are dreaming up their vacation itineraries can help them lock in trips more quickly and decisively. This is especially helpful because our short term rentals are not always easy for visitors to find, but they provide access points to sought after recreation and entertainment in rural areas. This platform is the tool that can help connect those dots.” 

“As the largest county in New York State, we want to embrace the fact that when you come to St. Lawrence County to visit, you aren’t in the middle of nowhere - you are in the middle of everywhere,” Amo says. “We want trip-planning to be easy, and presenting people with lodging options in a way that makes them feel connected to everything we have to offer is critical. With so much rural outdoor recreation and a variety of assets and attractions spread throughout our many small towns and villages, it’s important to make sure that visitors can find a place to stay that is convenient and meets their needs.” 

The newly launched booking platform currently includes 28 lodging properties, all members of the St. Lawrence County Chamber, for the pilot phase of the project. Amo notes that there are hundreds of properties that could potentially find their way onto the map, ranging from major chain establishments and larger hotels and motels to local inns, bed and breakfasts and vacation rentals.

The booking platform soft-launched in early November, and digital and print promotions have since begun to hit the airwaves. Costs for the buildout of the platform have been subsidized by funding that was pursued by the Chamber and awarded through the American Rescue Plan Act funds that were distributed in St. Lawrence County to help the economy rebound after the pandemic, which will continue through September 2025. 

Amo said she hopes that as the word spreads, property owners will recognize the value of their participation, both as business owners and also as contributors to the bigger picture. “The financial investment for property owners is so minimal by becoming a member, and the benefits are exponential,” Amo said. “We’ve done the heavy lifting here, and what we need now is strength in numbers. We need local businesses in the accommodation sector to seize this opportunity to play a role in changing the narrative about tourism in St. Lawrence County.”

The Chamber’s ongoing tourism marketing campaigns, which all include references to the website and which are being updated to include verbiage about booking accommodation online, have reached billboards in Toronto, magazines throughout the USA and Canada, and brochures and guides in public and private display areas at hotels, restaurants, rest stops, grocery stores, retail chains, museums, pharmacies, libraries and more throughout New York State and Ontario. Campaigns have also included digital streaming shorts, radio spots and a range of other media sources.

As the designated Tourism Promotion Agent for St. Lawrence County, the Chamber also works closely with I Love New York and partners with the Thousand Islands Seaway Region and the Adirondack region to collaborate on special marketing and outreach initiatives. To get involved with this project or other tourism marketing efforts, contact Tiffani Amo at Tif@slcchamber.org or 315-386-4000.