Visitor Impact for Alamance County

2020 Visitor Impact for Alamance County
County Spending Decreases by 31.1% to $146 million

BURLINGTON, N.C. — Domestic and international visitors to and within Alamance County spent $146 million in 2020, a decrease of 31.1% from 2019. The data comes from an annual study commissioned by Visit North Carolina, a unit of the Economic Development Partnership of North Carolina.

“Although visitor spending decreased among most of our Piedmont destinations in 2020, we are proud to have remained competitive and relevant to our visitors and locals alike. Our partners continue to work diligently to support each other and be resourceful.” stated Grace VandeVisser, Executive Director of the Alamance County Visitors Bureau. “Recent reports are showing signs of growth above pre-pandemic figures as individuals have begun enjoying experiences once again.”

Tourism impact highlights for 2020
• The travel and tourism industry directly employees more than 1,400 in Alamance County.
• Total payroll generated by the tourism industry in Alamance County was $44.4 million.
• State tax revenue generated in Alamance County totaled $7.3 million through state sales and excise taxes, and taxes on personal and corporate income. About $5.1 million in local taxes were generated from sales and property tax revenue from travel-generated and travel-supported businesses.

These statistics come from the “Economic Impact of Travel on North Carolina Counties 2020,” which can be accessed at partners.visitnc.com/economic-impact-studies. The study was prepared for Visit North Carolina by Tourism Economics in collaboration with the U.S. Travel Association.

Statewide, visitor spending was down 32 percent to $19.96 billion compared to 2019. Tourism employment fell 26 percent to 178,685. The losses were most acutely felt in urban areas.

“We are extremely gratified that tourism thrived in 20 counties in the face of pandemic shutdowns and other impediments to travel,” said Visit NC Director Wit Tuttell. “And despite the bad news for North Carolina as a whole, our ranking at No. 5 among states for visitation is a position of strength for rebuilding our tourism economy. Given the state’s resilience and vast appeal of its natural beauty, our creative cities and our authentic experiences at every turn, we’re confident that we’ll regain what has been lost and exceed the spending records of the recent past.”

Statewide highlights include:
• State tax receipts as a result of domestic visitor spending decreased 26.4 percent to more than $891.6 million in 2020.
• Visitors spend more than $54 million per day in North Carolina. That spending adds $4.9 million per day to state and local tax revenues (about $2.4 million in state taxes and $2.5 million in local taxes).
• Direct tourism employment in North Carolina decreased 26 percent to 178,685.
• North Carolina hosted 37 million visitors in 2020.

CONTACT:
Grace VandeVisser
Executive Director, Alamance County Visitors Bureau
336-570-1444 / Grace@VisitAlamance.com