Travel News July 2017
Trend Magazine Online™

The snip of a ribbon earlier this month declared the destination that mountain bikers are hailing as "amazing" and "world-class" to be open for business, when Cherokee officially opened its new 10.5-mile Fire Mountain Trail System. A trail system is a big system, and it wasn't cheap. The Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians spent $356,000 on the effort. But this is just the first phase of a much larger endeavor, as it hopes to expand and possibly add more trailheads. Though more than 2 million people pass through Cherokee each year on their way to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, most of them - especially those not interested in gambling - zip right through rather than pausing to spend some of their tourism dollars in town. Harrah's Cherokee Casino Resort is by far Cherokee's biggest draw for out-of-towners, but tribal leaders have long recognized the need for economic diversification. With a rich culture to draw from and mountain land all around, Cherokee could fill the ecotourism niche quite nicely.

Source: Visit NC