International travel writers visit DeKalb County with FAM tours

The DeKalb County CVB hosted 55 international travel writers, bloggers, tour leaders and influencers from 16 different countries including, Panama, Chile, Brazil, Costa Rica, China, Netherlands, Romania, Poland, UK, Germany, and Italy late in June. We appreciate the warm welcome and hard work that went into making sure their time here enjoyable.

First stop: Blumen Gardens with a welcome and overview from Joel Barczak and Jill Mandeville. They explored the gardens, architecture, shop and enjoyed refreshments. Egyptian Theatre provided tasty popcorn for their bus ride to the next destination while Brad Hoey and Michael Embrey were step-on guides.

Second stop: Ellwood House Museum. Visitors embraced a brief overview and were handed maps to explore the Grounds, Garden, Mansion, Ellcourt and Little House at their own pace.

Third stop: Whiskey Acres Distilling Co. for personal tour and tasting. We had a delicious charcuterie board and individual boxes provided by Say Cheese – Picture Perfect Bites. These were paired with the signature Bourbon & Blues cocktail and a very informative tour and overview of our favorite seed to spirit. After the tour, we were greeted by City of DeKalb, Illinois Mayor, Cohen Barnes, and ended with a group picture by the combine and our visitors asking if they could stay longer.

Thank you again to all of these organizations, our partners, and Enjoy Illinois! #IPW #experiencedekalbcounty #EnjoyIllinois