April 1st, 2025
At the Southern Travelers Explore (STE) Conference, Explore Siouxland provided a trip to the Midwest’s best tri-state area, where Iowa, Nebraska, and South Dakota join at the Missouri and Big Sioux Rivers confluence. Mankato, Minnesota, travel writer Kelly Ratliff of Dining Duster won the trip. The sixth annual conference celebrated collaboration over competition with three more trip giveaways, curated gift bags featuring Southern-made products, and a welcoming #STE family atmosphere in Oconee County, South Carolina. Visit Oconee County hosted the March conference.
“Explore Siouxland is excited to welcome Dining Duster to our vibrant community,” Destination Experience Manager Kristen Heimgartner said. “We look forward to showcasing the best of Siouxland’s culinary scene and unique attractions. We can’t wait for her to explore everything this region offers and share her experiences with her readers. We hope she enjoys every moment of their visit and finds new favorites!”
STE enjoys giving away trips, but these trips are not vacations. Instead, they allow the donating destination marketing organization (DMO) to host a working travel writer to spread the word about their attractions.
“We’re so delighted to boost our content creators and destinations with these trips,” conference organizer Melody Pittman of the blog Whatever I May Roam said. She and her daughter, Taylor Hardy, started the convention in 2020.
While Ratliff is an experienced blogger, she is new to Siouxland exploration. A new destination is always exciting, and she “is looking forward to her visit. Dining Duster’s motto is “to dine, drink, and discover wherever we go. This trip will be an excellent opportunity to see the area,” she said.