SEATTLE – The Port of Seattle announced nearly $100,000 in grants this week to support tourism across Washington, including $10,000 to Visit Kitsap Peninsula to create an international portal to the organization’s website.

Visit Kitsap Peninsula Executive Director Patricia Graf-Hoke said the idea came from local hoteliers, who are seeing an influx of international travelers, particularly from Japan and China. VKP will work with Port of Seattle staff to identify the languages into which travel resources, information and recommendations will be translated.

Graf-Hoke said the VKP was honored to be selected by the Port of Seattle and said the portal will be an opportunity to promote Kitsap’s international restaurants, shops and markets, and will be a resource for international travel agents. Graf-Hoke also hopes to connect with exchange students and others who could provide traveler information about Kitsap in their native languages.

“The international market is growing,” she said. “The Port of Seattle and airlines like Delta are making a big push for international travelers into Seattle and we’re so close, so let’s take advantage of that.

“The Port of Seattle is the gateway for the entire state of Washington,” said Commission President John Creighton. “By helping local communities grow tourism, we can boost regional economic development by getting more visitors to spend more dollars in great destinations across our state.”

The Port of Seattle has been encouraging tourists to extend their visits to the region by highlighting places across the state that offer interesting experiences. One goal is to entice some of the nearly one million annual Alaskan cruise passengers to “cruise and stay,” adding a few days on either end of their cruise to sightsee in Washington.

The port’s grants will fund a variety of projects, including websites, advertising and booths at tourism fairs. The grants must be matched by the receiving organization and used for publicizing and attracting visitors to their destinations. A complete list of recipients is available at http://www.portseattle.org/Newsroom/.