Full Name
Cheryl Hargrove
Company
Hargrove International, Inc.
Speaking At
Speaker Bio
Author, Instructor, and 40-year travel industry veteran, Hargrove is best known as the National Trust for Historic Preservation’s first Director of Heritage Tourism. During her tenure with the organization, Hargrove developed the key steps and principles for sustainable tourism, focusing on history and culture. Hargrove also served as Associate Director of National Geographic’s Center for Sustainable Destinations, assisting destinations in developing and marketing their place-based experiences.
Hargrove authored Cultural Heritage Tourism: Five Steps for Success and Sustainability (Rowman & Littlefield, May 2017) as part of the American Association for State & Local History book series. She is a Certified Interpretive Guide (by the National Association of Interpretation) and an associate member of the Society of American Travel Writers. Hargrove serves on the Coastal Georgia Historical Society Board of Directors. She holds a Master of Tourism Administration from The George Washington University and a Certificate for Tourism & International Cooperation for Development from the UNWTO Themis Foundation/ The George Washington University. She is also a graduate of the University of Georgia’s Grady School of Journalism. She is currently under contract with Rowman & Littlefield to author two additional books: Authentic America: 250 Distinctly American Places to Explore (publication January 2026) and Preserving and Promoting Personality of Place: Utilizing Cultural and Historic Assets to Enhance Authentic Experiences (for publication in Fall 2026).
Her consultancy currently focuses on cultural heritage tourism assessment, planning, development and management, and nonprofit/tourism sustainability. In the past decade, her firm has assisted more than 150 destinations, government agencies, and businesses, including work in every state in the U.S. and in 15 countries. Through USAID and the U.S. Department of State, she participated in international tourism leadership and training programs for cultural heritage tourism in Kosovo, Serbia, Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, and Croatia. She also consulted for over a decade with the US-China Arts Exchange, where she helped preserve, protect, and promote indigenous culture in Yunnan Province.
Hargrove authored Cultural Heritage Tourism: Five Steps for Success and Sustainability (Rowman & Littlefield, May 2017) as part of the American Association for State & Local History book series. She is a Certified Interpretive Guide (by the National Association of Interpretation) and an associate member of the Society of American Travel Writers. Hargrove serves on the Coastal Georgia Historical Society Board of Directors. She holds a Master of Tourism Administration from The George Washington University and a Certificate for Tourism & International Cooperation for Development from the UNWTO Themis Foundation/ The George Washington University. She is also a graduate of the University of Georgia’s Grady School of Journalism. She is currently under contract with Rowman & Littlefield to author two additional books: Authentic America: 250 Distinctly American Places to Explore (publication January 2026) and Preserving and Promoting Personality of Place: Utilizing Cultural and Historic Assets to Enhance Authentic Experiences (for publication in Fall 2026).
Her consultancy currently focuses on cultural heritage tourism assessment, planning, development and management, and nonprofit/tourism sustainability. In the past decade, her firm has assisted more than 150 destinations, government agencies, and businesses, including work in every state in the U.S. and in 15 countries. Through USAID and the U.S. Department of State, she participated in international tourism leadership and training programs for cultural heritage tourism in Kosovo, Serbia, Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, and Croatia. She also consulted for over a decade with the US-China Arts Exchange, where she helped preserve, protect, and promote indigenous culture in Yunnan Province.
