About The Bend Cultural Tourism Fund
The Bend Cultural Tourism Fund (BCTF) is a grant program funded by Visit Bend to enhance Bend’s economy through cultural tourism. From musical productions to art exhibits to film festivals and more, the BCTF supports cultural opportunities that draw visitors to Bend.
Thanks to a ballot measure passed in 2013, Visit Bend funds the BCTF using 7.5-10% of the organization’s total annual public funding received from the City of Bend. Awards have supported cultural opportunities ranging from the Deschutes Public Library’s Author! Author! series to a Nordic skiing exhibit at the Deschutes Historical Museum to the Bend A Cappella Festival.
Visit Bend is supported by a portion of the transient room tax generated through short-term lodging stays within the city limits of Bend, which is distributed by the City of Bend. A portion of this restricted tax, received between April 1 – March 31 of the previous year, is used to fund the Bend Cultural Tourism Fund, a Visit Bend Project.
Small Marketing/Research Grants (formally known as Catalyst Grants) are intended to support newer emerging cultural tourism activities that will have less of a focus on ROI or conduct research for a new project’s feasibility. Small Marketing/Research Grant award amounts are typically smaller than the Large Marketing Grants. Historically, the average award is $9,000.
Large Marketing Grants are intended to support high quality cultural tourism activities that demonstrate a clear and measurable economic benefit in Bend. These grants are usually for established programs and activities that need a little help to draw in additional tourists and can demonstrate measurable return on investment. The average Large Marketing Grant made in 2023 was $26,700. The maximum award was $48,000.
What We Have Done So Far
Since 2015 the Bend Cultural Tourism Fund has enhanced the cultural life of Bend. We are just getting started.
