Applications Open for Centre County Tourism Grant Program

The Happy Valley Adventure Bureau is now accepting applications for the 2026-27 Tourism Grant program, the Centre County tourism promotion agency announced on Monday.

Offered in partnership with the Centre County Board of Commissioners, the program supports projects, events and initiatives that aim to boost tourism and overnight visitation to the county. Grants are funded by the county’s lodging occupancy tax.

The pool for this year’s grants is expected to be $1.2 million, the largest ever and slightly higher than the $1.1 million awarded to 81 recipients for 2025-26.

“A strong year for visitation to Happy Valley is reflected in another record year for the program,” Fritz Smith, HVAB president and CEO, said in a statement. “It is encouraging to see events that are growing and attractions that are thriving because of Tourism Grant funding. This means more reasons for people to not only visit but extend their stay for a night or two. That is the intent of the program and the primary consideration for funding.” 

Applications will be open until 5 p.m. on March 27 and only nonprofit organizations and governmental entities can apply. For-profit businesses are not eligible.

Awards are expected to be announced in late June.

Grants are offered for tourism marketing or for tourism enhancement and capital infrastructure improvements.

Based on prior experience with grantees, compliance requirements and application review, both grant applications have been revised to improve clarity and consistency, Smith said.

“The goal was to make the process easier for applicants and more efficient for review by HVAB staff and the Tourism Grant Review Committee, while still collecting the information needed to evaluate each request thoroughly,” he said.

Program information and applications are available at happyvalley.com/grant-program.

Since its inception in 2003-04, the Tourism Grant program has awarded more than $10.4 million.