We're making headlines

Everyone who has lived here through a summer knows how crazy the traffic can get during tourist season. While here at the Independent Record we provide stories about what’s going on in town, often times those visiting for a few days during the summer months are sharing their own stories.

One recent example is a story written by Joshua Berman about his family’s finding Thermopolis while on a trip around Yellowstone to avoid the typical tourist traps like Yellowstone. But it doesn’t end there. Thermopolis has shown up in a variety of articles and books, written by those who went off the beaten path a bit to come check us out.

Though the summer temperatures — and tourists — have dropped significantly and this Saturday marks the official start of the fall, there’s still a good number of out-of-state and –country vehicles passing through our streets, and you never know who might be jotting a few notes to put Thermopolis out in the news again.

Tourism is Wyoming’s second-largest industry, and we certainly feel it here when summer rolls around and we see a massive population boom for those few months. But one thing that’s key to keeping the tourism thriving is having a town people want to visit. We know there’s plenty to already draw people here, but it’s the attitude of business owners and people on the street that go into deciding whether they’ll make a return visit.

And keep in mind, for every positive headline put out there, there could be someone writing a scathing review. So let’s make sure Thermopolis remains a tourist destination, not just during our busy season but the slower winter months as well, by providing good service at businesses and help when needed to those passing through.

No doubt Thermopolis will continue to make headlines across the state, country and world, but it takes everyone to make sure those headlines stay positive.