From rockets and space to mountains and lakes, Tami Reist is North Alabama’s champion

If there was a cheerleading squad for all things North Alabama, Tami Reist would be the leader. In a way, she already is, in her capacity as president and CEO of the Alabama Mountain Lakes Tourism Association, which represents 16 counties in the northern half of the state and generates more than $4.3 billion in travel spending annually.

The Decatur native has 40 years of experience in the tourism and hospitality industry. She began her career in 1984 at the Executive Inn Hotel in Madison and then with Yedla Management Company in Huntsville. As general manager for the Amberley Suite Hotel in Decatur she helped with new hotel developments, including the Hampton Inn, Courtyard Inn and Residence Inn in Decatur, and Hampton Inns in Huntsville and Florence.

In 2000, Reist was named president of the Decatur-Morgan County Convention & Visitors Bureau. There, she worked with the Decatur Morgan County Hospitality Association to set up a $2 self-imposed fee on hotels to help fund tourism developments including Ingalls Harbor Pavilion and, later, a $9 million Home 2 Suites. The funding continues to be used for tourism projects in Decatur, and Reist uses it as a model for helping other communities in North Alabama. She is a member of several tourism, travel and civic organizations and the recipient of many awards in the tourism industry.

The Cook Museum of Natural Science. (Cook Museum of Natural Science)

Alabama Living: What’s a typical day like for you?

Tami Reist: A typical day usually consists of working on trail projects, working with our industry partners and promoting our region by working shows to share North Alabama to other states.

AL: What new projects have you been working on?

Reist: Three years ago, after COVID, we started working on a training initiative for our tourism employees called Flawless Delivery. Thanks to a grant from Alabama Tourism Director Lee Sentell, we have trained over 1,000 tourism employees. We have also started working with our Chamber of Commerce Youth Leadership students and training them so they can understand our tourism workforce and possibly decide on a career in our industry. I had the opportunity to work with teachers while updating the tourism curriculum for our CTE students. I created a Tourism and Sports Marketing curriculum guide to help the teachers understand the industry. They found this training to be great, and we are now allowing students to go through the training. This is a great way to build our future workforce as North Alabama continues to grow its tourism.

AL: What is it about the area served by the Alabama Mountain Lakes Tourist Association that makes it such a great destination?

Cathedral Caverns is home of one of the largest stalagmites in the world, measuring 45 feet tall and 243 feet in circumference. (Marshall County Tourism and Sports)

Reist: I love the fact that my 16 counties are all in the Appalachia area, and all but one county is part of the Tennessee River Valley Region. We are blessed with remarkable natural beauty and biodiversity. When we are up north recruiting people to visit our area, we tell them about our mild winters, which allows them to golf and fish year-round. We like to use the phrase “From Rockets & Space to Mountains & Lakes.” We have a lot to offer. We have some of the best attractions, from the Cook Museum of Natural Science, the U.S. Space & Rocket Center, Dismals Canyon, Cathedral Caverns, the Shrine of the Most Blessed Sacrament and many others. Then the rich music history with Fame Recording Studios, Muscle Shoals Sound Studio and others throughout our area. Several of our new attractions are Wildwater Cullman, Sand Mountain Park and the Orion Amphitheater.

AL: What’s one thing about North Alabama that most people might not know that you’d want them to know?

Reist: There is no shortage of natural wonders in Alabama, and Natural Bridge Park in Winston County is home to a sandstone and iron ore bridge created by erosion over millions of years. The natural bridge is over 60 feet in the air and spans 148 feet, making it the longest natural bridge east of the Rocky Mountains. The 150-acre park opened to the public in 1954 and attracts visitors from all over the world.

Natural Bridge Park in Winston County is a North Alabama treasure. (contributed)

AL: What’s the first place visitors should check out in North Alabama before anything else?

Reist: Before you decide on what to see and do in North Alabama, visit our website, northalabama.org, or check out our Facebook page, facebook.com/visitnorthal, or listen to the “Unexpected Adventures in North Alabama” podcast. These tools will help you make the decisions on the places you will want to visit.

This story originally appeared in Alabama Living magazine.