Published on : Saturday, May 19, 2018
Freeholder Director Matt Holt said that the impact study report is positive and heartening news about tourism as an economic driver in the county. It is demonstrating that it is just the tip of the iceberg. There is tremendous room to grow the tourism element of the local economy.
Tourism in Hunterdon County has reached a new high in Hunterdon, said Brian Tyrrell, associate professor of Hospitality and Tourism Management at Stockton University, whose Levenson Institute of Gaming, Hospitality and Tourism authored the study.
The Hunterdon County visitors spent $317 million on tourism goods and services in 2016. It is a new record for tourism spending in the county. It represents a 28 percent increase from the depths of the recession in 2009.
The tourism has generated $1.145 billion in Somerset County, but only $163 million in Warren County.
There were an estimated 2,865 individuals employed in the tourism industry in Hunterdon County during 2016, Tyrell said. The tourism employment has been increasing for the past six years.
The largest portion of tourism spending was $81.4 million for food and beverages. That was followed by spending in the transportation sector at $81.3 million, shopping at $66.6 million and accommodations at $36.8 million. The study also found tourism generated state and local taxes of approximately $35 million in 2016.
Tags: america, Hunterdon County, New Jersey, Tourism