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One of the definitions in Webster's Dictionary for the word "destination," besides the definition "a place to which one is journeying," is "a place worthy of travel or an extended visit."
That last definition is apropos, for a number of reasons, for this region -- especially when one ponders several recent events.
Think back to earlier this month when the world's largest operating steam engine -- Big Boy -- arrived in Altoona, "posed" at Norfolk Southern Railroad's Rose Yard for two days, then traveled to the Horseshoe Curve, where it "posed" again for half an hour before departing westbound on Norfolk Southern's mainline.
But for the purpose of this editorial, the big steam engine's presence is not the point of primary importance. What is, though, is what the engine's presence meant to Altoona from the standpoint of tourism.
One word can describe it: "plenty."
As an article in the Mirror's July 14 edition reported, an estimated 100,000 people visited the Mountain City for the purpose of seeing the 1.2-million-pound locomotive, which was built in 1941 to haul heavy freight across the Wasatch Mountains between Utah and Wyoming.
Altoona City Manager Christopher McGuire said, of that total, 75,000 people were from outside the area.
The positive economic impact from those visitors was undoubtedly significant. They bought gasoline, ate at area restaurants and shopped at area stores -- perhaps also made good use of the opportunity to visit other Southern Alleghenies region tourist attractions and, otherwise, to just enjoy the sight of this region's lovely scenery.
For Altoona and its environs, it was a joy hosting them.
An upcoming event that will be attracting many visitors and boosting the bottom lines of area hotels, motels and other housing venues is Johnstown's All-American Amateur Baseball Association (AAABA) Tournament, which begins play on Aug. 3, again including teams representing Johnstown and Altoona.
It long has been a showcase for outstanding amateur talent and has welcomed generations of baseball legends.
Beyond those two "people magnet" events mentioned above, 2026 World Cup soccer host cities in this country reaped an economic boost that the word "huge" doesn't even begin to accurately describe. Here is how the Wall Street Journal, on the front page of its July 21 edition, began to describe the voluminous economic surge that the Cup event produced over the course of a month.
"The Scots drank every drop of beer in Boston. The Dutch filled Kansas City's hotels. The French chowed down on Philly cheesesteaks.
"For the past month, soccer fans at home and from abroad opened their wallets and boosted spending in World Cup host cities across the U.S. The complete tally is still being added up … but some U.S. business owners are already claiming economic victory."
Later in the Journal article, the newspaper added that it couldn't be determined immediately whether the tournament had lived up to the prediction that it would be a $17 billion gross domestic product boost, but the tournament's consistent popularity raised the possibility that it might have topped that estimate.
Regardless, it won't be long before an official figure is announced.
The message from all of this:
Like America as a whole is regarded as a great destination by other nations, closer to home Altoona, Johnstown and the rest of the Southern Alleghenies region are singled out by many Americans as great destinations as well.
This region must remain committed to maintaining that superlative image in every way that it can.