Every year, the city’s marketing and management group, Destination Cleveland, releases a report of travel and tourism rates in Cleveland and Cuyahoga County. Today’s report reveals that these numbers are reaching pre-pandemic highs.
“The consistent and continued growth in key metrics illustrates the impact and importance of the Cleveland visitor brand,” David Gilbert, president and CEO of Destination Cleveland, said Wednesday in a news release. “Since that launch, we’ve seen growth not only in visitation, direct spending and employment income but also in consideration of Cleveland as a place to visit.”
Cleveland was certainly the place to be in the last calendar year, serving as a hotspot for April’s total solar eclipse, and continuously garnering crowds far and wide for sporting events and attractions like the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, which will welcome guests this month for the Induction Ceremony.
As numbers continue to be calculated for 2024, Destination Cleveland reports 2023 puts future statistics in a good spot. Whether in town on a job or coming for a quick vacation, Cuyahoga County garnered an astounding 18.34 million visitors in 2023, 2.2% more than 2022. This growth rate is equivalent to what the city saw before the 2020 pandemic, between 2018 and 2019.
Many of these visits are just folks passing through. Of these numbers, 58% represent visitors in Cleveland for a day trip, while 42% spent the night. Overnight guests find ease in the city’s accommodating environment, as it flaunts a manageable average nightly rate of $136.92. The hotel occupancy rate stands at 62.1%, which is nearly the same as 2019, showing people are returning to the city.
And major returns call for major spending.
“Visitors to Cleveland spent $6.7 billion in 2023, a new peak that continues to benefit local residents and businesses,” Adam Sacks, president of Tourism Economics said in a press release. “Visitor economic impacts rose 3.7% in 2023, reaching 4.5% ahead of pre-pandemic, 2019 levels. Amidst a slowing economy, the travel sector is returning to more sustainable growth trends, but consumer and corporate fundamentals point to further growth potential for Cleveland‘s visitor economy.”
These dollars are a heyday for city workers in the tourism sector, who account for 7% of Cleveland’s employees. Due to these spikes in tourism, workers who support these efforts took home a cumulative $3.7 billion in 2023, nearly 6.6% more than in 2022. Cuyahoga County taxpayers also reaped the benefits, saving $1,380 in taxes per county household.
As the city sees healthy recovery from a pandemic slump, there’s a real, tangible hope for the future of Cleveland’s vitality.
“As the steward of the industry, Destination Cleveland continues to collaborate with our hospitality and civic partners to positively impact the region’s long-term equitable growth,” Gilbert concedes.
For more updates about Cleveland, sign up for our Cleveland Magazine Daily newsletter, delivered to your inbox six times a week.
Cleveland Magazine is also available in print, publishing 12 times a year with immersive features, helpful guides and beautiful photography and design.
