The tourism industry in Washington State employs 153,300 people, creates $4.7 billion in earnings (payroll), generates total direct visitor spending of $16.9 billion and generates $1 billion in state and local tax revenue, and touches the community in countless other ways. Hotels and meeting facilities, attractions, restaurants, cultural institutions, tour companies and transportation providers are among the local businesses greatly impacted by travel to Washington State. Source: Preliminary 2012 Travel Impacts Report / Washington Tourism Alliance
Nationwide, the U.S. travel industry directly employees 7.4 million people, generates payroll of $188 billion, travel expenditures of $758 billion and tax revenues of approximately $118 billion. The U.S. Travel Association ranks travel fifth among 20 major private industry sectors. Visitors to the U.S. spend more here than U.S. residents traveling abroad, creating a $32 billion trade surplus for the national economy. Sources: U.S. Travel Association, Bureau of Economic Analysis, U.S. Department of Commerce: Office of Travel & Tourism Industry
IMPACT OF TOURISM
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ABOUT THE WHY TOURISM MATTERS CAMPAIGN
Why Tourism Matters was developed and is trademarked by Visit Seattle, a private nonprofit destination marketing organization which is responsible for promoting Seattle as a travel destination. Visit Seattleoperates the Why Tourism Matters campaign on behalf of Washington State's core of private sector destination marketing organizations (DMOs). These convention and visitor bureaus, chambers of commerce, ports and other organizations work in tandem with the Washington State Tourism Alliance to jointly position the state as a premier travel destination.
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| Direct visitor spending benefits hotels, retailers, restaurants, attractions, transportation services and other businesses and creates and supports jobs. Courtesy U.S. Travel Association |
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