New Jersey Tourism Experiences Strong Growth
2007 was an impressive year for New Jersey tourism, according to Governor Jon Corzine. The figures, presented at the 2008 Governor’s Conference on Tourism, show that tourism growth was driven by 5.8% increases in both tourist expenditures and visitation.
“A strong tourism industry is vital to economic growth in New Jersey,†said Corzine. “These positive results demonstrate the ability of tourism to buoy the state’s economy by providing good jobs and improving business opportunities across many diverse sectors. New Jersey has indeed experienced another solid year for tourism.â€
The report issued by Global Insight for the New Jersey Division of Travel & Tourism indicates that core tourism rose by 5.8%, from $36.6 billion to $38 billion in 2007. Visitation also rose a healthy 5.8%, from 71 million visitors to 75.2 million, driven by a 15.2% growth in overnight stays. The length of stays is increasing as well, with a 6.6% increase in average length of stay reported. The ratio of the total impact of total expenditures reveals that 71% of each tourism dollar spent in New Jersey is retained in the state.
According to the study, 466,442 direct and indirect jobs were created by travel & tourism economic activity, accounting for 11.4% of total employment in the state. This indicates that 1 out of every 9 New Jersey workers has a job in tourism, the state’s third fastest growing sector in 2007. Wages and salaries generated by tourism expanded to $16 billion.
Tourism generated $7.3 billion in federal, state and local taxes revenue in 2007, an increase of 1.3%. If tourism did not exist, each New Jersey household would pay $1,330 more in taxes to maintain current tax receipts.
Visitors from other states represented 66 percent, or the largest portion of tourism expenditures while in-state visitors totaled 22 percent of expenditures. The top five visitor origin states are New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Maryland and South Carolina.
According to Nancy Byrne, executive director of the Division of Travel & Tourism, “New Jersey continues to attract more visitors to the Garden State through the diversity of our tourism product. Once visitors experience the Jersey Shore with it beautiful beaches and family fun or enjoy the great entertainment and nightlife offered here, or discover the historic and cultural opportunities that abound, they are pleasantly surprised by the myriad of incredible offerings.â€
Courtesy of grouptravelblog.com
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