DART’s general membership includes a diversity of entities within travel and tourism related industries, such as:
- Chambers of Commerce
- Economic Development Groups
- Regional Planning and Development Organizations
- Educational Institutions
- Professional Business Organizations
- Recreation And Conservation Groups
- Cultural/Heritage Groups
- Historical Societies
- Business Owners
- Individuals
Inherent tasks of DART are to:
- Serve the DownEast Acadia region as the Maine Office of Tourism’s officially designated regional Destination Marketing Organization and to coordinate with MOT on tourism related issues
- Coordinate with any organization that has similar goals within and outside the region, including the other MOT designated regions and our Canadian neighbors
- Advocate for the responsible use of the cultural, historical, and natural resources in the region
- Provide the region’s tourism related industry with opportunities for collaboration, education, product development and other programs to strengthen the position of the DownEast Acadia Region in the market
How our work is funded:
DART is funded annually with a percentage of State lodging taxes per legislative order. Funds differ from year to year according to the total annual revenue of lodging establishments in Maine.
The Maine Office of Tourism (MOT) manages these funds through the Maine Tourism Marketing and Promotion Partnership (MTMPP) program . Maine Office of Tourism provides MTMPP grants to a Regional Marketing Organization in each of the eight Tourism Regions of Maine. DART spends these MTMPP dollars on projects outlined in the organization’s annual Marketing and Promotion Plan.
DART’s use of this funding is judicious and aims to get the most exposure for the region while supporting local initiatives and enabling individual businesses to directly benefit as much as possible.
DART actively seeks new and innovative methods of increasing revenues in order to increase services to members and capacity to fulfill organizational goals.