Letter from Phil
Kirk
Our
Tourism Industry Is Rebounding
 North
Carolina is the sixth most visited state in the United States.
Most people react with disbelief when I mention this little
known fact.
More than 43 million persons visited in North Carolina as tourists
last year. In the United States tourism expenditures were down by more
than 6 percent because of the recession and the fallout from the Sept.
11 terrorist attacks. However, the revenues were down just a little
more than one percent in North Carolina.
Only California, Florida, Texas, Pennsylvania and New York
out-performed us, and they’ve ranked in that specific order for each
of the past three years while we advanced one slot each of those
years. Illinois and Georgia are the two states on the immediate
heels of North Carolina.
These changes are being driven by leisure travelers rather than
business/convention business. Also, it is interesting to note that
three out of 10 “travelers” in our state are residents.
Visiting friends and relatives is the predominant purpose of trips and
the automobile is the preferred method of travel. Sixty-eight percent
of the travelers who spend one or more nights here stay in hotels,
motels, bed and breakfasts (46 percent) or in private homes (42
percent).
The most popular activities remain shopping (26 percent), beaches (15
percent), outdoor activities (15 percent) and historical
places/museums (12 percent).
The list of top 25 attractions in North Carolina produces some
surprises. They are Blue Ridge Parkway, Great Smoky Mountains, Concord
Mills, Cape Hatteras National Seashore, Asheville Farmer’s Market,
N.C. Aquariums, Kerr Lake, Fort Macon State Park, Jordan Lake,
Biltmore Estate, Guilford Courthouse National Military Park, Wright
Brothers’ National Memorial, N.C. Zoo, Mount Mitchell State Park,
Morrow Mountain Park, Chimney Rock Park, Fort Raleigh National Park,
Grandfather Mountain, Battleship North Carolina, Harrah’s Cherokee
Casino, Carowinds Theme Park, Lowe’s Motor Speedway, N.C. Museum of
Natural Sciences, Wet’n Wild Emerald Pointe Park, and N.C. Outdoor
Dramas.
How many of the above have you visited?
My number is 22, but many of the visits were made as a child,
and that was a long time ago.
State and federal budget reductions in staff, maintenance, repairs and
renovations at parks and historic sites can produce some major
problems in handling existing visitors, much less any expansions if
they continue.
We need to remind ourselves and our policy-makers that not only are
nearly 200,000 people employed in travel and tourism related
industries in our state, but also the taxes generated are high.
Travel expenditures last year in N.C. dipped slightly from $12.1
billion to $11.9 billion. In corporate, payroll, sales and excise
taxes the industry paid $2.3 billion — $1.2 billion in federal
taxes, $695 million in state, and $398 million in local.
Many challenges face the travel and tourism industry, such as reduced
air travel, budget cuts at travel destinations, lack of state funding
anywhere near the rate of our competing states, and lack of large
convention facilities on the coast.
However, North Carolina is fortunate to have a strong Division of
Tourism, Film and Sports Development in the Department of Commerce.
Commerce Secretary Jim Fain and Director Lynn Minges are providing
strong, creative leadership.
We also have an exceptionally strong private sector, led by the Travel
and Tourism Board and Coalition, both of which Rosemary Wyche, NCCBI
Vice President of Development, and I serve on. Add to that the
industry specific groups, and we have a state that will see continued
growth in this very important industry.
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