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Monday, January 19, 2015

Tourism generates substantial return on investment

Findings of a recent impact study show that tourism in Worcester County continues to grow and generate a substantial return on each dollar invested in tourism advertising. The Economic Impact of Tourism in Maryland report, developed by Tourism Economics, an Oxford Economics Company, reveals that tourism continued to grow for the fifth consecutive year and generated 443 more jobs and 2.7% more in tax revenues from calendar years 2012 to 2013.

“The latest Tourism Economics data was made available late last year, and we’re thrilled to be able to say that tourism is continuing to perform very well here,” Worcester County Tourism Director Lisa Challenger said. “Tourism has been and continues to be a powerful economic engine for the county. We’ve developed strong partnerships with each of the towns and our national and state parks, and all of us working together means more success for everyone.” 


Jobs in the tourism industry account for 56 percent of all employment in Worcester County. In 2012 there were 9,812 jobs directly related to tourism and another 12,965 that were indirectly linked to tourism. By 2013, those numbers grew to 10,132 and 13,408, respectively. 


Tourism generated $1.5 billion in visitor spending and $301 million in tax revenues in Worcester County for 2013, an increase from $1.4 billion in visitor spending and $284.1 million in tax revenue during 2012. The report concluded that every dollar invested in tourism returned $177 in visitor spending. 


There is always something new and exciting going on at the beach and beyond. Whether you are a visitor or have spent your life on the shore, come discover the wonders of Worcester. 


“There are a lot of great events to look forward to this year and we’re sure it’s going to be another impressive year for tourism in Worcester,” Challenger said. 


For more information about the many tourism opportunities, visit Worcester County Tourism at www.visitworcester.org, and find them on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, each with the handles @beachandbeyond, along with YouTube and Pinterest.

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

I find it surprising that James Mathias supports the installation of wind turbines off the coast of Ocean City when it will drive tourists to other beaches, kill waterfowl and raptors, raise electricity prices, and remove areas from seafood harvesting.

Anonymous said...

If they ruin the only real attraction......the ocean and it's views.....they will be done.

Anonymous said...

Mathias is too deep in their pockets to stop...but on another note...do you find these studies interesting? We continue to hear from government entities like education and tourism about how when we give them a dollar of tax money they magically give us back anywhere from 5 to 25 bucks for every tax dollar spent. Well if that is so...let's give them the entire budget so we can stop paying taxes for a few years!

Get off our backs you government leaches!

Anonymous said...

take a look at this week county agenda--that Badger fella sure wants to spend a lot of money on out of state travel and studies---commissioners please stop all this spending!!!

Anonymous said...

Government studies are based on modeling not reality. If biased data is used and historical facts not considered, you get inaccurate predictions. A perfect example is the FEMA flood mapping for Somerset County MD. It is illogical to think that Dorchester County has significantly less acreage in the 100 floodplain while Somerset has significantly more. Could this be retaliation for Sandy funds?

Anonymous said...

11:18
How else are you supposed to predict thing that haven't happened yet? Modeling based on past events makes THE MOST SENSE!

Do you have a better idea?

Anonymous said...

You can't see or hear the wind turbines from the beaches or the tallest condos (Century I / Quay). What's the fuss about?

Anonymous said...

1240, the fuss is about dead birds from the windmills, which offer a deadly place to land, Electricity pumped through salt water for over 10 miles, weather impossible maintenance intervals for broken units, Manufacturing, construction, and installation costs far outweighing the power generated over 25 years.

Other than that, they're a great idea!