CEO, Attorney &
Editor-in-Chief:
Travel Trends with
Kara Franker
Meet One Of The Top Strategists in the Tourism Industry
Through her unique experiences as a lawyer, leader, writer and speaker, Kara Franker knows how to take destination marketing organizations to the next level.
Kara Franker is an executive in the tourism industry and a lawyer. She is the Chief Executive Officer of Visit Estes Park, a destination marketing and management organization located at the gateway to Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado. Formerly the Senior Vice President of Marketing & Communications for Visit Lauderdale, Kara managed a multi-million-dollar marketing budget in South Florida. An advocate for leadership in the tourism industry, Kara serves on the board of delegates for the U.S. Travel Association and several committees for Destinations International. She sits on the advisory boards for Simpleview and eTourism Summit.
Previously, Kara was the founder of her own tourism marketing and communications consultancy, which provided strategy, team management, client promotion, writing, research, on-air talent, video production and content creation services to destinations across the state of Florida. Her biggest clients included VISIT FLORIDA and the Greater Miami Convention & Visitors Bureau.
A seasoned professional journalist, Kara has been featured as a travel expert for Condé Nast Traveler, Travel + Leisure, Travel Channel, Travelocity, Southern Living, Coastal Living, Orbitz, HGTV, HuffPost and more. Additionally, she has served as Editor-in-Chief of several luxury lifestyle print magazines in the Palm Beach, Aspen and Miami markets for the award-winning Modern Luxury network of publications.
A licensed attorney in the state of Florida, Kara earned a Juris Doctor from the University of Denver and started her career as a criminal prosecutor in Miami. She obtained her Bachelor of Science in journalism and strategic communications from the University of Kansas. A native Kansan, Kara served three seasons as an NFL Cheerleader for the Kansas City Chiefs, a position she held during college at KU.
Legal, Financial & Strategic Analysis
360-Degree Destination Stewardship Model
High Level Marketing, Communications & Brand Building
Reliance on Data-Driven Analytics to Drive ROI
Servant Leadership, Collaboration & Conflict Resolution
Emphasis on Becoming a Community Shared Value
Workplace Development, Mentoring & Culture Transformation
Equipping the Next Generation of Destination Leaders
“Ideas are Easy. Execution is Everything.” -John Doerr
Published Journalist:
Editor-in-Chief
Kara is the current Editor-in-Chief of Modern Luxury Media’s Palm Beach magazine, as well as the former Editor-in-Chief of Aspen Magazine, Modern Luxury Interiors South Florida, and Modern Luxury Weddings South Florida & The Caribbean.
