Destination Salem's Kate Fox Tabbed As New MA Tourism Chief

SALEM, MA — Kate Fox, who has spearheaded tourism efforts in Salem for parts of the past four decades — including the past 15 years leading Destination Salem — is joining former Salem Mayor Kim Driscoll on Beacon Hill as the state's new Executive Director of the Massachusetts Office of Travel and Tourism.

Fox, who lives in Beverly, led Salem's tourism efforts from 1998 to 2002, and then returned to the position in 2008 during Driscoll's first term as Salem mayor. Under her guidance, the Witch City has grown its year-round visitation with an array of monthly festivals and the expansion of Haunted Happenings.

Last October, estimated nearly 1 million visitors came to the Witch City during the Halloween season.

Now she will be looking to have the same impact all across the state working with Gov. Maura Healey and Lt. Gov. Driscoll.

"From the Berkshires to Boston, Cape Ann to the South Coast and Cape Cod, Massachusetts is an authentic, creative, and compelling destination for visitors from near and far and I can't wait to get to work promoting travel to Massachusetts," said Fox, whose final day at Destination Salem was June 8.

Fox was also part of Salem's Economic Development Recovery & Revitalization Task Force established in March 2020 to help local businesses navigate and rebound from the effects of the COVID-19 health crisis.

She also served on the Board of Directors for the Salem Chamber of Commerce, the Salem Main Streets Steering Committee, and was a Commissioner for the Essex National Heritage Commission.

"Our administration is committed to investing in tourism, which is vital to the economic well-being of so many of our 351 cities and towns in Massachusetts," Driscoll said. "We're
thrilled Kate will bring decades of experience working in the tourism industry to this role and excited to see her strengthen Massachusetts' capacity to attract new visitors and businesses to our beautiful state."

(Scott Souza is a Patch field editor covering Beverly, Danvers, Marblehead, Peabody, Salem and Swampscott. He can be reached at Scott.Souza@Patch.com. Twitter: @Scott_Souza.)