Visit College Station has been honored with two Destination Excellence Awards at the 2026 Destinations Texas Annual Conference. The awards, presented between September 2 and 4, recognize the group’s achievements in destination management and marketing across the state.
Kathleen Davis, president and CEO of Destinations Texas, stated that the honors highlight tangible community benefits. She noted that winning entries reflect communities that experienced increased activity, hotels that maintained full occupancy, and local businesses that were able to meet payroll obligations.
In the category for destination marketing organizations with budgets exceeding $3 million, Visit College Station won Best Leisure Tourism Campaign. The award recognized the "Learn Why You’ll Love It Here" platform, which utilizes a creative device based on college courses specific to Aggieland. The campaign aimed to expand brand awareness beyond the university’s association by targeting leisure, sales, and sports audiences.
According to the organization, the initiative resulted in measurable increases in awareness and engagement across web, social media, paid advertising, and public relations channels.
The second award, Best Sports Tourism Promotion, honored the group’s efforts to host three major sporting events in College Station within a five-week period during spring and early summer 2026. The lineup included the Savannah Bananas at Kyle Field, the Argentina vs. Honduras "Road to 26" match ahead of the World Cup, and the USATF Lone Star Grand Prix at E.B. Cushing Stadium.
These events attracted more than 190,000 attendees combined. Visit College Station reported that the gatherings generated an estimated $33.5 million in direct economic impact for the area. The coverage produced nearly 2,900 news articles globally, yielding an estimated $146.56 million in advertising value equivalency.
