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Visitor counts and Gator Chateau revenue rise; rate changes tabled as marketing ramps up
Summary
Visit Jefferson Davis Parish reported higher April–May 2025 visitor counts and year-over-year increases in Gator Chateau sales; the commission tabled a decision on program rates and heard marketing reports on social platforms and upcoming festivals.
Jefferson Davis Parish tourism staff reported higher visitation and markedly increased Gator Chateau revenue for April–May 2025, while commissioners tabled a discussion of attraction pricing and heard a marketing update on recent promotions.
According to the minutes, visitor counts rose from 5,182 in April 2025 to 5,308 in May 2025; billboard impressions rose from 808 to 987 and reported nights spent in the parish increased from 3,227 in April to 3,841 in May. The Gator Chateau reported sales of $33,323.15 in April 2025 and $31,009.68 in May 2025, compared with $16,992.00 and $15,624.00 in the same months of 2024. Commissioners discussed current rates for field trips and group presentations and noted that offsite presentations incur additional costs for travel and docent pay; the commission tabled any rate changes until staff can provide more detailed information.
Marketing/Communications Director Macey Guidry Cormier reviewed social media performance and promotions. The minutes report a range of platform views "from 18.8 thousand to 391,801" (the original minutes contain a numeric formatting inconsistency that lists "391,801 thousand"; the minutes are reproduced here with the likely intended numeric range). Cormier said staff completed a "Crawfish Crawl" promotion featuring eight local restaurants and boil-and-go businesses and launched LinkedIn and TikTok accounts for Visit Jefferson Davis Parish to expand visibility. The director reported that staff attended multiple parish events to take photographs and post content to promote tourism.
Director Carter Prejean presented a slideshow of outreach and upcoming events: a promotional appearance with a baby gator at a Lake Charles Gators baseball game, coordination with Lake Arthur officials for the Freedom Festival (scheduled for June 28), planning for the Jennings Stars and Stripes event (July 4), presentations to the Welsh Rotary Club, attendance at the Bayou Rum grand opening, and participation in a Wildlife & Fisheries "Get Out & Fish" event and Gator Chateau programming. Photos from these events were used in social posts to promote the parish.
Announcements in the minutes list a regular meeting at noon Tuesday, July 8, 2025, and a special Tourist Commission meeting at 8:00 a.m. Tuesday, July 24, 2025, at the commission office; earlier in the minutes the special budget meeting was recorded as June 24, 2025, creating a date inconsistency that the commission should clarify. Ethics online training for commissioners is to be completed by Dec. 31, 2025. The meeting adjourned unanimously.
