The holidays are a special time for families in North Carolina to gather and look ahead to the New Year with anticipation and enthusiasm. It’s also a time when we reflect on the past year including memorable highlights and challenges.

As North Carolinians we have much to be thankful for, but many of our families, neighbors and communities in the paths of Hurricane Florence and Hurricane Michael were severely impacted this fall. Collectively, we say thank you to so many of you for your support.

North Carolinians are resilient. From the beautiful coastline in the east to the towering mountains in the west, North Carolinians are known for strong comebacks and moving forward. As leaders of the travel industry along the coast, we want to assure you that significant progress has been made to make sure visitors can return to the coastal places they love.

We recognize many North Carolinians dedicate a portion of their time together during the holidays to begin planning family vacations for the coming year. The tourism economy is vital to our region, our citizens and the quality of life we all cherish. The speed of our recovery is largely dependent on the pace with which travelers return to visit our communities throughout the state.

We encourage you to plan a visit to North Carolina’s beautiful and distinctive barrier island coastline to enjoy what many families make an annual tradition. And with our state’s rich diversity of landscapes, history, culture and activities, please consider exploring North Carolina first for all your leisure travel.

We look forward to welcoming you soon.

Tameron Kugler, visitcurrituck.com

Lee Nettles, outerbanks.org

Helena Stevens, visitocracokenc.com

Jim Browder, crystalcoastnc.org

Donna Hammonds, onlyinonslow.com

Tammy Proctor, visitpender.com

Tarshi McCoy, visitnewbern.com

Kim Hufham, wilmingtonandbeaches.com

Mitzi York, ncbrunswick.com

Wit Tuttell, visitnc.com