The Iowa Tourism Office recognized 17 individuals and organizations with Iowa Tourism Awards at its annual conference last week. The awards recognize outstanding contributions across the state’s tourism industry, including honors for innovation, marketing excellence, and long-term impact. Catch Des Moines, the Avenues of Ingersoll and Grand and Blank Park Zoo, were among the award recipients. Additionally, seven organizations were also honored with Geode Awards for going above and beyond and providing an example of excellence. The full list of award winners is available online. Iowa’s tourism sector generated $7.5 billion in expenditures in 2024, with more than $1.2 billion supporting state and local governments, while employing a total of 71,918 people statewide.