WHAT ARE THE TOURISM BEST MANAGEMENT PRACTICES?

Alaska cruise tourism began in the late 1800’s has steadily grown to what it is today. In 1997, the Tourism Best Management Practices were developed in Juneau to help minimize the impacts of tourism on the local community by addressing both resident and industry concerns while maintaining a quality visitor experience. The program works through the voluntary cooperation of tour operators, cruise lines, transportation providers, merchants, hospitality businesses, tour brokers, The Tongass National Forest and the local city.

Since Juneau’s initial program began, the scope of TBMPs has grown significantly and it’s success has drawn the attention of national and international port cities. Wrangell, along with may others, have adopted the program and adapted it to their community’s needs. Signing on to TBMP expresses each member’s support of the program’s goals as well as their commitment to protect the very qualities that make Wrangell a great places to live.

HOW DOES IT WORK?

The TBMP program is comprised of three main groups:  Wrangell's visitor industry, Wrangell's residents, and the City and Borough of Wrangell (CBW).

To accomplish the goals of the program, TBMP has two avenues of communication:  the guidelines and the hotline. 

  • The guidelines are a list of best practices for each segment of Wrangell's visitor industry, including tour operations such as sightseeing and whale watching, cruise lines, and transportation providers such as tour buses and shuttles. Guidelines are reviewed and published annually in the spring. 

  • The hotline (phone, email, web form) is used by residents to submit concerns, complaints, and compliments to Wrangell’s tour operators.  When a concern/complaint/compliment is submitted, it is forwarded directly to the tour operator(s) involved in the issue. The operator then responds directly to the submitter with any action that can be taken to mitigate the concern.

Membership in TBMP is voluntary, and member tour operators and their employees agree to abide by the program's guidelines.  By following the established guidelines, operators help mitigate local impacts.

CBW leadership receives annual hotline reports as well as a monthly tally of concerns.  These are public documents.