by Morgan Sweeney
Visitor spending in Virginia is up, exceeding prepandemic levels in 2019.
Even still, jobs in the tourism sector haven’t fully recovered, according to statistics from the Tourism Economics in a release from Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s office.
Travelers spent more than $30.3 billion in the commonwealth over the course of 2022, an increase of 20.3% from 2021 and 4.4% from 2019. Jobs supported by tourism are up to 210,000, though that is still down about 30,000 from 2019.
Caren Merrick, state secretary of Commerce and Trade, sees the improvements as evidence of Virginia tourism’s resilience and vitality.
“We are thrilled to see visitor spending in Virginia return to pre-pandemic numbers,” Merrick said in a prepared statement. “We look forward to seeing increased travel and a continued recovery in 2023.”
Tax revenues are an additional benefit to increased tourist activity in the state. While traveler spending generated $30.3 billion in 2022 (which amounts to $83 million per day), that spending generated another almost $2.2 billion in state and local taxes, an increase of close to 20% from 2021.
Some surmise that the growth is in part due to Virginia’s central East Coast location and driving distance from many states – which turned out to be advantageous in a time when air travel was precarious and road trips were burgeoning.
The pandemic stimulus package the American Rescue Plan Act also apportioned recovery funds to states, including dollars that could be used for state travel and tourism marketing. Virginia Tourism “reached nearly 15 million more households in 2022” than in 2021 due to expanded advertising, according to the release.
“By reaching more travelers in new markets, Virginia continues to raise awareness and consideration as a premier travel destination,” said Rita McClenny, president and CEO of Virginia Tourism Corp. “This awareness results in increased bookings and arrivals, which, in turn, translates to increased visitor spending across the state.”
Though Virginia has recovered significantly from the pandemic, recovery hasn’t been uniform across the state, according to the release. not all places and localities in the commonwealth have recovered equally, according to the release.
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Morgan Sweeney is a staff writer covering Virginia and Maryland for The Center Square. Morgan was an active member of the journalism program as an undergraduate at Hillsdale College and previously freelanced for The Center Square.
Photo “Virginia Beach Tourism” by The Oceanfront. CC BY-SA 2.0.
