Utah’s Improbable Pandemic Tourism Boost From State Support and Higher Tax Revenues
Photo Credit: Utah's support of its tourism economy has placed it ahead of the recovery curve, as more visitors seek out its big open spaces. Visual Hunt / mypubliclands
Skift Take
The Utah legislature's bet on the tourism economy placed the state ahead of the recovery compared to its neighbors in the American West. As more vaccinated Americans flock to its big outdoor spaces this year, Travel Utah's challenge remains managing and educating those crowds on responsible travel.
From the most visited national parks in the nation to skiing and urban escapes, Utah’s tourism industry was continuing to grow at a record pace pre-pandemic, increasing by 5.1 percent every year since 2015.
In 2019, Utah tourism saw $10 billion in visitor spending — approximately eight percent of that from international visitors, according to the Utah Office of Tourism — and $1.34 billion in tourism tax revenue, while state and national parks also experienced record visitation.
Now just weeks shy from the close of its fiscal year 2020, after a full pandemic year and in spite of a big hit to tourism, Utah ranks among six states in the nation that reported increased tax revenues, with its gross domestic product projected to grow by 6.2 percent.
This budget surplus has placed Utah’s visitor economy in a position of strength heading into the recovery year. And it's all thanks to the legislature's early support of the state's tourism industry, the rare case when many states
