Cloud County Tourism welcomes visitors for the first time since March

For the first time since March of this year, the ladies at the Cloud County Tourism Office greeted a tour group.
Thirty-five people from Texas made a stop in Concordia on Thursday as part of a six day, five night Mystery Tour.
"It's great to be out," said Connie Petross, the tour director. "I love my job!"
The tour group departed Abilene, Texas, four days ago. They made stops in Wichita, visited the Cosmosphere and the salt mines in Hutchinson, and Yoder Meats. On Wednesday they visited Lindsborg, Abilene and Manhattan, before arriving in Concordia.
While in Concordia they took a tour of the town and visited the National Orphan Train Complex, before enjoying a catered lunch.
"Mystery Tours are a lot of fun," said Norman Canon, of Snyder, Texas. "And just so you know," he added, smiling broadly behind his face mask, "we're from the land of Mr. Mahomes!"
Canon was, of course, referring to Patrick Mahomes II, quarterback of the world champion Kansas City Chiefs, who was born in Tyler, Texas, and attended Texas Tech University.
Canon had no reservations about traveling on a weeklong tour across four states. "You gotta live. I enjoy these things, and the tour takes every precaution. They even sanitize the bus every night."
The COVID-19 pandemic caused disruptions of the norm that affected almost every sector of the economy. The tourism industry was hit particularly hard, from cruise ships to airline travel, to rural communities that rely on tourist dollars to help support the local economy.
"Normally, we would have 30 to 40 tour buses a year," said Susie Haver, the Cloud County Tourism director. "We had a group of college students from New York visit in March, but this is our first bus tour since last fall, so we're glad to have them."