The cover of the 2014 Georgia Travel Guide, officially unveiled Tuesday, features one of Georgia’s most recognizable icons on its cover: “Gone With the Wind.”
The Georgia Department of Economic Development partnered with the publisher of Atlanta Magazine to produce the official travel guide, which includes information about places to eat, cities statewide and popular attractions. More than 700,000 copies of the guide will be distributed to tourists via the state’s 11 Visitor Information Centers, at trade shows and through the state’s official tourism website.
“The most memorable and widely recognized American film was written in Atlanta and can still be experienced in Georgia today,” Kevin Langston, deputy commissioner for tourism for the Georgia Department of Economic Development, said in a statement. “Featuring ‘Gone With the Wind’ on the cover during its 75th anniversary year is also an opportunity to highlight the growth and importance of Georgia’s entertainment industry, and its deep connection to tourism.”
Tourism is big business in Georgia, and the state in 2012 collected more than $1.3 billion in state tax revenue from tourism-related expenditures, officials said.
“Tourism is a powerful jobs and economic development generator in almost every community in Georgia,” Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal said in a statement. “With more than $51 billion in economic impact, Georgia’s tourism industry provides employment for more than 405,000 Georgians — 10 percent of the state’s payroll workforce.”
Previous editions of the travel guide have featured Zac Brown, ‘The Walking Dead,’ Lady Antebellum and Paula Deen on the cover.
