London – Visitors from Britain are the biggest international part of Georgia's lucrative tourism industry, and state officials are using a new weapon to attract even more of them: "Gone With the Wind: The Musical."

The show has received mixed reviews (to put it nicely) since opening in London's West End last month, but it has the officials salivating at the chance to promote Georgia as a hot spot for global tourism.

SHELLEY EMLING / Cox Newspapers (ENLARGE)

An army of travel and economic officials from Georgia hosted a lunch at the Tower of London on Monday to drum up interest in travel to Atlanta and Savannah.

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"We're finding that a lot more travel operators in the UK are interested in offering tours that stop in Georgia," said Kevin Langston, the state's assistant commissioner for tourism, who heads a delegation that arrived in a sun-drenched London on Monday.

Their plan is to entice planeloads of foreign visitors to head for Georgia instead of other destinations popular with Britons, such as Dubai and South Africa.

By all accounts, the delegation's target audience of travel writers and holiday planners will be a pushover.

"We've already seen a lot of increased interest in Georgia among British travelers," said Maggie Smith, an agent at www.AmericaAsYouLikeIt.com, a London travel company offering holiday packages across the United States.

"It's not just because of 'Gone With the Wind,' but also because people are becoming more and more interested in the music, and the history, and the scenery in the South," she said.

But Smith said more Brits are indeed asking about "Gone With the Wind" attractions when making bookings for U.S. holidays.

Tourism is Georgia's second-largest industry after agriculture, so much is at stake.

International travelers to Georgia generated nearly $118 million in tax revenue in 2007, up 12.1 percent over 2006. The state ranked 11th for international travelers in 2007, up from 13th the previous year.

Langston said that Georgia officials are teaming up with Delta Air Lines, as well as marketing agency Dewynters, to capitalize on interest in "Gone With the Wind" in the same way the Austrian National Tourist Office teamed up in 2006 with Austrian Airlines and Dewynters following the opening of "The Sound of Music" in London.

The Georgia delegation hosted a luncheon for a handful of travel writers Monday at a quintessentially English restaurant, the Butlers Wharf Chop House, with spectacular views of Tower Bridge.

Each writer was presented with a goody bag that included a book on Atlanta's history, a "Gone With the Wind" DVD, and a paperweight from the Gone With the Wind Museum in Marietta.

The delegation also will host about 50 travel specialists at a champagne reception May 14 after which they'll attend a performance of the musical.

The state is being promoted with an ad in the program with the tag line: "You've seen the show – now see the land that inspired it." Delta also has a promotional banner hanging in the theater.

"We're trying to convince those tour operators who offer packages to the South to add more nights in Georgia," Langston said.

A record 87 tour operators are currently selling trips to Georgia in the United Kingdom and Ireland, an increase of 19 percent over 2006.

The strength of the euro and the pound have been playing a huge role in encouraging more foreigners to travel to all parts of the United States.

Brandon Barnes, director of tourism at the Atlanta Convention and Visitors Bureau, said some Britons are surprised to learn that Atlanta is a lot more than just a huge airport.

While Dubai and South Africa might offer seven-star hotels and luxury game reserves, Georgia boasts a stunning coastline, gorgeous pine forests, and great shopping at places like Lenox Mall.

"People often don't think of Atlanta when they think of shopping, but we offer all the same kinds of things you can get in New York — but usually at better prices," Barnes said.