California Tourism Rebound: Business Anticipated to Exceed Pre-Pandemic Highs in 2023

California’s tourism economic system grew by 32% in 2022 and is poised to set new data this 12 months for customer spending, employment and tax technology, based on an trade financial affect report.

The info, from Go to California, a Sacramento-based advocacy group for the state’s tourism trade, contains breakouts from native areas. San Diego County tourism, as an illustration, generated $13.3 billion in customer spending – round 10% of the state’s complete – and 96,000 jobs.

Key statewide takeaways embrace:

• Journey spending elevated to $134.4 billion throughout California final 12 months, an almost 32% improve over 2021 that introduced spending inside 7% of pre-pandemic ranges.
• California’s journey sector added 157,000 jobs in 2022. The 1.1 million positions is inside 6% of the 2019 ranges, earlier than the devastating losses that hit the trade through the pandemic.
• Projections from Tourism Economics present California this 12 months will surpass the document $144.9 billion in customer spending achieved in 2019, a 12 months prior to anticipated.
• State and native taxes paid by guests reached $11.9 billion, inside 10% of pre-pandemic ranges.

A lot of the spending is focused on lodge and different lodging, adopted by meals providers and native transportation and retail gross sales.

Tourism jobs are additionally concentrated in these areas, with greater than 600,000 in lodging and meals providers alone.

Journey spending plummeted in 2020, because the pandemic lockdown took maintain. Tourism in California had generated practically $145 billion the 12 months earlier than; that determine that was lower in half.

New group sentiment analysis was additionally launched by Go to California, indicating that state residents worth the tourism economic system. Greater than 70% say tourism generates native enterprise alternatives and offers jobs for residents.

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