MYRTLE BEACH--Gov. Mark Sanford, while noting that tourism is one of the state's strongest economic engines, told leaders of the hospitality industry on Thursday they need to play a bigger role in helping court visitors.

"You all rock," Sanford told the 600 or so tourism promoters at the annual Governor's Conference on Travel & Tourism. "Think about where we have come as a state since 1969, in terms of tourism and at a time when you weren't even recognized as an economic-development force."

Sanford pointed out that tourism has made crucial gains, especially when compared with industries like manufacturing and services, which have seen thousands of jobs migrate overseas in recent years.

"We have a God-given competitive advantage on this front and it ain't going anywhere," he said.

The governor also brought to Myrtle Beach the small-government message that has been a major hallmark of his tenure. He made a case for privatizing more state tourism assets and told attendees that more money from the Department of Parks, Recreation and Tourism will go to matching grants next year, if his budget recommendation goes through the House and Senate as is.

"I believe the correct role of PRT is to complement private industry," Sanford said. "Never do for private industry what it can do on its own."

Putting money where its mouth is, the state is looking to sell the Cheraw State Park Golf Course. Also, the PRT last month turned over operation of the tackle shop at Santee State Park to a private business.

In a spending blueprint unveiled early last month, Sanford called for a 21 percent boost in the state's Tourism Marketing Partnership Program, which matches General Fund money with select local advertising initiatives. At $3.8 million, the program would represent almost 7 percent of PRT's total outlays.

Sanford's budget proposal also calls for $1.4 million in savings to be realized by farming out more state assets to for-profit companies. Sanford said that recommendation is running into "substantial blowback" in the Statehouse and from local governments.

"It doesn't require a lot ofpolitical muscle one way or the other to emphasize (tourism)," Sanford said. "It will require political muscle to change things, which is what we're experiencing with some of these privatization efforts."

Sanford also had a closed-door meeting with about 15 of the state's biggest tourism players. The governor asked those in attendance for ideas on how to raise the state's average visitor spending from $262 closer to the national average, $464.

Participants in the session said the state should do more to draw international visitors, group meetings and production companies shooting television shows.

"We, as a state, have got to get our act together and work with reality TV," said Helen Hill, executive director of the Charleston Area Convention & Visitors Bureau. Hill also said the market for international tourists is riper than it has ever been thanks to a relatively weak dollar.

Bill Norman, a tourism professor at Clemson University, said drawing international tourists was the "ultimate challenge" to raising the state's visitor-spending figures.

Sanford promised to give the state film office, a branch of the Commerce Department, the task of compiling "B-roll" footage that networks can use in broadcasts.

"We're going to continue to do the outside-the-box thing," Sanford said. "And we'll constantly look at cross-pollination between Commerce and PRT."