Discover Lehigh Valley

What Discover Lehigh Valley does

Discover Lehigh Valley is the official destination marketing organization for Lehigh and Northampton Counties in Pennsylvania, founded in 1984 and headquartered at 1250 Simon Blvd., K102 in Easton, PA. Operating as a nonprofit, it functions as a regional tourism marketing agency that promotes the Lehigh Valley to leisure travelers, business and meeting planners, sports event organizers, and wedding planners. According to 2022 Fast Facts data, the organization is associated with 16.6 million visitors, $1.3 billion in total visitor spending, and 26,500 jobs supported by tourism in the region.

The organization's core product is the DiscoverLehighValley.com digital tourism platform, which provides trip planning tools, event calendars, attraction listings, lodging reservations, and restaurant directories. Supporting infrastructure includes a partner extranet portal (discoverlehighvalley.idss.com/extranet) for business listing management, an email newsletter system, and a multimedia photo and video library for media and content creators. Marketing and distribution channels span the website, email newsletters, organic social (@LehighValleyPA on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, X), PR distribution through PR Newswire, paid digital advertising, and the Lehigh Valley Insider community membership program.

The business model is nonprofit and relies on a combination of government grants, partnership fees from regional tourism businesses, and stakeholder contributions, rather than direct consumer revenue. The organization holds Destinations International's DMAP accreditation with Distinction (2020) and maintains a unified branding partnership with the Lehigh Valley Economic Development Corporation (LVEDC). Recent strategic activity includes securing nearly $200,000 in Pennsylvania DCED grants to attract marquee sporting events (Banana Ball, NCAA Hockey Regionals, U.S. Junior Amateur), generating more than 9,000 hotel room nights in FY2024-25 (a 38% year-over-year increase), and launching the Lehigh Valley 250 celebration for the 2026 U.S. Semiquincentennial. Pricing for advertising, partner memberships, and promotional packages is quote-based and not publicly disclosed.

Name

Discover Lehigh Valley

Legal name

Discover Lehigh Valley

Website

https://discoverlehighvalley.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1984

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Discover Lehigh Valley is a nonprofit destination marketing organization founded in 1984 that promotes the Lehigh and Northampton Counties region of Pennsylvania to leisure travelers, meeting planners, sports organizers, and wedding planners through its DiscoverLehighValley.com platform, partner extranet, and unified regional branding with LVEDC.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Destination Marketing

NAICS

Tour Operators (56152)

akta.pro primary industry

Full-Service Destination Management (Ground Handling & Onsite Operations) (THAHADAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

MICE & Event DMCs (Meetings/Incentives/Conferences) (THAKAEAB), Corporate Hospitality & VIP Services (Hosting, Protocol, Concierge) (THAHADAG)

Keywords

• Destination marketing
• Tourism promotion
• Visitor services
• Regional tourism
• Travel planning

Headquarters

HQ city

Easton

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Technology or R&D, Others

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels10 records

Core offering

Discover Lehigh Valley is the official destination marketing organization (DMO) for Lehigh and Northampton Counties in Pennsylvania, providing regional tourism marketing services. It operates a digital tourism platform (DiscoverLehighValley.com) with event calendars, attraction/restaurant/lodging directories, and trip-planning tools, while driving leisure and business visitation through partner network management, brand strategy, media relations, and sales support for meetings, sports events, and weddings.

Product overview

Discover Lehigh Valley operates a digital tourism marketing ecosystem centered on its primary website platform (DiscoverLehighValley.com), which provides comprehensive trip planning tools including event calendars, attraction and restaurant directories, lodging options, and itinerary builders. The organization supports its partner network through a dedicated Extranet Portal for business listing management and resource access. Media services include a photo/video library for content creators. The portfolio also includes management/promotion of the SteelStacks arts campus venue in Bethlehem and the Lehigh Valley Insider free membership program offering exclusive deals and experiences.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• DiscoverLehighValley.com Tourism Platform The organization's primary digital tourism marketing platform providing trip planning tools, event calendars, attraction listings, lodging reservations, and restaurant directories for the Lehigh Valley region. It is designed for leisure travelers, business visitors, meeting planners, and sports event organizers seeking to plan trips to Lehigh and Northampton Counties in Pennsylvania.
• Partner Extranet Portal Online portal for partner businesses to update business information, access partner resources, manage listings, and submit events and offers for promotion on Discover Lehigh Valley channels. It is designed for regional tourism partners (hotels, restaurants, attractions, venues).
• Media Resources Photo and video library, press release distribution, and media inquiry handling for journalists and content creators covering Lehigh Valley. It provides high-resolution multimedia assets for use in editorial coverage.
• Lehigh Valley Insider Program Free community program offering exclusive perks, deals, and experiences for locals and visitors engaged with Lehigh Valley tourism. It is designed for residents and repeat visitors.

Quantifiable outcome

• 16.6 million visitors in 2022, $1.3 billion in visitor spending, 26,500 jobs supported
• +3 more outcomes

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Destinations InternationalcoreOthers · 1 January 2020Discover Lehigh Valley completed Destinations International's Destination Marketing Accreditation Program (DMAP) with Distinction in 2020. This accreditation indicates the organization has satisfied rigorous standards set forth by the professional destination marketing community and serves as a visible industry distinction defining quality and performance standards.
• Lehigh Valley Economic Development Corporation (LVEDC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDiscover Lehigh Valley (DLV) and LVEDC are united partners sharing a vision for regional destination marketing. Together they strategically market Lehigh Valley as a desirable destination to leisure travelers, students, athletes, workforce, business owners, entrepreneurs, corporations, and manufacturers through consistent and unified use of a brand.
• MATPRA (Mid-Atlantic Tourism Public Relations Alliance)coreGTM or Marketing PartnerDiscover Lehigh Valley is a proud member of MATPRA, an organization connecting destinations across the Mid-Atlantic and their common threads. The membership provides collaborative PR and marketing opportunities across the regional tourism ecosystem.
• ArtsQuestcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerArtsQuest is a nonprofit organization that operates the SteelStacks campus in SouthSide Bethlehem, home to the ArtsQuest Center, Musikfest Café, Levitt Pavilion, and annual festivals. Discover Lehigh Valley promotes SteelStacks and ArtsQuest events as key attractions in the region.
• Bethlehem Carriage CompanyminorGTM or Marketing PartnerBethlehem Carriage Company provides horse-drawn carriage rides in Historic Bethlehem during the Christmas season, promoted as part of Lehigh Valley's holiday tourism offerings.
• Historic Bethlehem Museums & Sites (HBMS)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerHBMS offers carriage rides, historic tours, and Christmas City Stroll experiences in Bethlehem, partnering with Discover Lehigh Valley for heritage tourism promotion.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Visit Philadelphia: The official DMO for Philadelphia and surrounding Pennsylvania counties. Most directly comparable peer: same state, same nonprofit DMO model, same mission of driving leisure, business, and sports visitation through coordinated marketing and partner networks.
• Visit Baltimore: Official DMO for Baltimore, MD. Comparable mid-sized regional DMO running multi-channel tourism marketing plus an active meetings/sports sales team — useful analog for benchmarking DLV's program economics and partner engagement model.
• Visit Pittsburgh: Official DMO for Pittsburgh and Allegheny County. Directly comparable as a Pennsylvania-based nonprofit DMO running multi-channel tourism marketing, sales missions, and event bidding — competing for the same in-state marketing co-investment pool.
• Discover Lancaster: DMO for Lancaster County, PA. Comparable in scale and structure — county-level nonprofit DMO marketing a heritage/destination brand against similar competition for Philadelphia- and NYC-originating leisure travelers.
• Pocono Mountains Visitors Bureau: Official DMO for the Pocono Mountains region in northeastern Pennsylvania. Direct peer in scale and seasonality profile, competing for the same drive-to leisure traveler from the NYC/Philadelphia feeder markets that DLV also targets.
• Visit Hershey & Harrisburg Region: The DMO for the Hershey-Harrisburg region of Pennsylvania. Closely comparable peer — similar two-county scale, similar mix of leisure attractions and meetings/sports promotion, and overlapping with DLV on visitor itineraries that combine central and eastern PA stops.
• Brandywine Valley Tourism: The DMO for the Brandywine Valley straddling Pennsylvania and Delaware. Comparable as a heritage- and attractions-focused cross-county DMO that coordinates partner marketing, lodging promotion, and event calendars for a discrete regional identity.

Others

• Destinations International: The industry trade association that administers DLV's DMAP accreditation and convenes U.S. DMOs. Indirect peer — comparator on member benefits, peer benchmarking, and industry standards that shape DLV's accreditation and cooperative-marketing posture.
• Cvent: Leading meetings, events, and hotel-sourcing technology platform widely adopted by DMOs. OTHERS — a vendor in DLV's ecosystem rather than a competitor; comparable in shaping how DMOs convert inbound RFPs into booked room nights, which is core to DLV's sports-event business.

Broad incumbents

• Choose Chicago: The DMO for Chicago. Larger and broader-scoped than DLV, but operates the same nonprofit DMO model — useful reference for how a scaled DMO structures partner extranet, sales team, and brand-funded marketing at a level DLV may aspire toward.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/lehighvalleypa
• Facebookfacebook.com/lehighvalleypa
• Instagraminstagram.com/lehighvalleypa
• TikToktiktok.com/@lehighvalleypa
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/discover-lehigh-valley

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Discover Lehigh Valley