The Massachusetts Office of Travel and Tourism just released the 2016 Economic Impact of Tourism Report, which shows growth in visitor spending in the Berkshires for the seventh consecutive year. According to the report, travelers spent $462 million here, a 2% increase over the previous year. The three largest industries where visitors spent money were food and beverage, retail, and lodging.
“Our key measures of tourism performance include hotel occupancy levels, average daily rates, and revenue per available room – all of these areas showed an increase over the last year. This positive trend gives us a good indication that our destination is attracting more visitors and is seeing more demand,” said Lauri Klefos, Executive VP of 1Berkshire.
In the Berkshires, it doesn’t end there. Seven years of growth (spending was measured at $309 million in 2009) has helped improve local infrastructure, encourage the preservation of our natural environment, and has provided a continued impetus to invest in our downtowns. Money spent on beautification projects and streetscapes has become a common occurrence, creating authentic downtowns where locals like to hang out, which in turn supports local businesses and creates year-round activity. It also continues to create a shared pride in the area, which the residents then share with visitors creating an increased demand for new and expanded experiences.
Location: Blue Q in Pittsfield, Photo Credit: Ogden Gigli
As we close out 2017, we see many examples of this continued investment in the visitor economy throughout the Berkshires. “These are investments in our future that create new jobs and opportunities for our residents, improve our quality of life, attract new businesses and support all the amenities that our current employers need to attract talent to the area,” said Jonathan Butler, CEO of 1Berkshire.
The expansion of MASS MoCA attracted worldwide attention this summer and will continue to do so for years to come. The opening of a year-round facility at Jacob’s Pillow this fall and the plan to make a huge investment at Tanglewood next year, add to the commitment to grow this critical segment of our economy. Outdoor recreation experiences and venues continue to improve and grow and the increase in hospitality investment has been in the news all year.
Smith Travel Research’s (the authority in tracking lodging trends) November forecast stated that “…the hotel industry is on track to exceed expectations for 2017 with demand for lodging rising by 2.4% year-over-year. And although the 3rd quarter was difficult due to the disruptions from hurricanes and wildfires, and lower-than-previously-expected ADR (average daily rate), hotel performance should remain steady – very much like current economic conditions.”
Location: Kemble Inn in Lenox, Photo Credit: Ogden Gigli
Similarly, PriceWaterhouse just released its latest edition of Hospitality Directions U.S. on November 14th, forecasting that hotel occupancy will remain strong next year and that demand growth has continued to outpace supply increases resulting in continued optimism for both 2017 and 2018. It reports an average full-year occupancy rate of 65.8% across the country. In the Berkshires, the latest year-to-date STR report shows we have a 53.6% occupancy rate, up 4.4% from 2016 – bringing our rural area closer to this national average which includes all rural and metropolitan destinations.
This is good news as we head into the winter. Read more about tourism and hospitality in the Berkshires >>