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Colorado’s tourism economy makes strong comeback
Colorado’s tourism industry has enjoyed positive growth in the past year as the state bounces back stronger than ever, according to new research.
The Colorado Tourism Office (CTO) said spending increased 41.8% from $15.4 billion in 2020 to $21.9 billion in 2021.
According to the report, direct travel-generated employment experienced a gain of approximately 14,800 jobs, with a total of 161,000, a 10%.
The US travel industry expanded 48% ($268 billion) in 2021.
Last year showed overall visitation to Colorado increased, reaching 84.2 million trips with day trips accounting for 57% and overnight trips 43%.
Out of the eight Colorado travel regions, half are up in direct travel spending from 2019 to 2021 while the other four declined.
Denver & Cities of the Rockies region remain down over 19% in direct travel spending.
The overseas visitor is Colorado’s highest value traveler, spending over $2,200 per person per trip while in the state, which is more than five times a domestic traveler.
Tourism Economics expects that in 2022 Colorado will recover 70% of the 2019 international travel spend, with full recovery by 2024.
“We are encouraged by the overall 2021 tourism research results. Additionally, international travel was down nearly 80% for a second year impacting some of Colorado’s highest value travelers,” said Tim Wolfe, director of the Colorado Tourism Office.
“We will continue to work to attract high-value travelers aligned with Colorado values.”
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