Of course as Northeast Ohioans, we know Cleveland is the place to be, but it seems like the rest of the world is getting the message, too.
Destination Cleveland, Cuyahoga County’s convention and visitors bureau, announced today that business and leisure travel has increased to 17.9 million visits over the course of 2022 — a 12% increase from the previous year.
This Northeastern hotspot outperformed the state of Ohio and its 6% growth rate. For added comparison, Cuyahoga County’s stats rank slightly ahead of the U.S. domestic visitation growth rate of 11%.
Data from Tourism Economics, a division of Oxford Economics, reveals that both day and overnight visitation numbers grew, with day arrivals growing at 12% and overnight visits up by 11%. Of the total number of visitors, day tourists represent 58% while overnight guests made up the remaining 42%. (This is consistent with Cuyahoga County’s overall visit distribution from the past three years.)
“2022 was a new beginning for the travel and tourism industry — we’re back on track as an industry that infuses money into the economy and contributes to positive perceptions of Cleveland as a place to live and work,” says David Gilbert, president and CEO of Destination Cleveland. “Destination Cleveland, as the steward of the industry, remains steadfastly committed to leading the industry to its pre-pandemic success levels as quickly as possible. Through collaboration, our visitor economy can and will contribute to the region’s long-term equitable growth.”
When looking at the past 10 years, the impact of travel and tourism in the county is clear. Visitation is up to nearly 11%; direct spending, 31%; employment income has grown by a staggering 61% and taxes generated have increased by 53%.
Visitor spending continued to positively affect the local economy. Travel and tourism accounted for $6.4 billion in direct sales, contributing to a total economic impact of $10.6 billion. This 19% growth in direct spending represents 101% of 2019 levels and is ahead of both state (with +13%) and U.S. domestic (with +6%) travel spending increases from 2022.
Travel and tourism brought in $3.5 billion in employment income for locals through about 69,200 jobs in Cuyahoga County — one of every 14 jobs in the county. This employment increase from 2021 represents a recovery of approximately 99% from the 69,500 pre-pandemic employment total.
The industry generated $1.5 billion in federal, state and local taxes which resulted in a savings of nearly $1,330 in taxes for each household in the county.
“Visitors continued to help drive the Cleveland economy in 2022, spending $6.4 billion throughout Cuyahoga County and supporting the local community through jobs, wages, and taxes,” says Adam Sacks, president of Tourism Economics. “While growth in the U.S. economy is expected to slow in 2024, the recovery in business activity and sustained strength in leisure travel should allow Cleveland’s visitor economy to continue to grow.”
2023 lodging performance data shows that Cuyahoga County’s travel and tourism recovery is on par with regional drive markets and only slightly trails the US overall. August 2023’s hotel performance in Cuyahoga County is strong in these categories:
- 2023 YTD Hotel Occupancy is at 96% of 2019 levels, which is slightly ahead of the U.S. overall at 95%. Among its peer cities, Cleveland has the top recovery percentage.
- 2023 YTD Hotel ADR is at 116% of 2019 levels, which puts Cleveland at the third highest among its peers and on pace with the U.S. overall (118%).
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