Dare, Brunswick, New Hanover, Carteret, Currituck and Onslow are the coastal counties to break into the Top 20 out of 100 for visitor spending in 2023.
Following a record-breaking increase of 15% in 2022, spending statewide rose 6.9% to $35.6 billion in 2023, setting another record year in visitor spending, according to data the North Carolina Department of Commerce released Tuesday.
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The total spending is the amount spent on lodging, including second home spending, food and beverage, recreation, retail and transportation, and both ground and air transportation added together.
Mecklenburg County topped the list with $5.85 billion in total visitor spending, up 9.6% since last year. Though Camden had an 11.3% increase between 2022 and 2023 with a total spending of $4 million, the third highest increase of 100 counties, the county was at the bottom of the list for total spending.
State officials noted that last year, 98 of the state’s 100 counties saw increases in spending compared with 2022. Orange, Wake, Camden and Warren counties, in that order, led the state’s 6.9% growth in visitor spending. Dare ranked 10 in growth rate at 8.8%.
The two counties that had a decrease in spending are Alexander at -3.4% and Cleveland at -1.6%.
“It’s great to see increasing numbers of people continue to flock to North Carolina to see all we have to offer,” Gov. Roy Cooper said in the press release from his office. “Visitors are investing record amounts of money bolstering our booming tourism industry, and that brings good jobs and income to North Carolina businesses and families.”
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The preliminary findings from an annual study commissioned by VisitNC, a unit of the Economic Development Partnership of North Carolina, reflect the economic impact of tourism on local economies across the state.
The visitor spending study, commissioned by Visit NC and conducted by Tourism Economics, provides preliminary estimates of domestic and international traveler expenditures as well as employment, payroll income, and state and local tax revenues directly generated by these expenditures.
The statistical model draws on detailed data from Visit NC as well as data derived from federal and state government sources, nationally known private and non-profit travel organizations, and other travel industry sources.
Coastal counties by rank out of the 100 counties, total visitor spending, and growth rate:
- 4. Dare: $2.15 billion, 8.8%
- 6. Brunswick: $1.17 billion, 7.5%
- 8. New Hanover $1.12 billion, 5.9%
- 11. Carteret: $732.29, 5.3%
- 14. Currituck: $573.35 million, 4.3%
- 18. Onslow $412.12 million, 8.5%
- 35. Pender $199.12 million, 5%
- 39. Craven: $178.11 million, 4.4%
- 44. Beaufort: $142.48 million 5.9%
- 57. Pasquotank: $90.21 million, 6.7%
- 67. Hyde: $61.87 million, 6.1%
- 83. Pamlico $37.76, million, 3.7%
- 87. Hertford: $31.21 million, 6.7%
- 88. Chowan: $30.11 million, 4.8%
- 90. Bertie: $24.47 million, 4.5%
- 92. Perquimans $20.43 million, 3.1%
- 94. Washington $18.41 million, 3.3%
- 97. Gates: $9.89 million, 1%
- 98. Tyrrell $6.94 million, 3.1%
- 100. Camden: $4 million, 11.3%
Other tourism facts for 2023 provided by the state include the following:
- Total spending by domestic and international visitors reached $35.6 billion, a 6.9% increase over 2022 expenditures.
- Direct tourism employment increased 4.8% to 227,200.
- Direct tourism payroll increased 6.6% to nearly $9.3 billion.
- Visitors generated nearly $4.5 billion in federal, state and local taxes, a 5.8% increase from 2022.
- State tax receipts from visitor spending rose 5.6% to $1.3 billion.
- Local tax receipts grew 5.4% to $1.2 billion.
- Visitors spend more than $97 million per day, adding about $3.7 million in state taxes and $3.4 million in local taxes.
- Each household saved $518 on average in state and local taxes as a direct result of visitor spending in the state. Savings per capita averaged $239.
Full tables can be accessed at partners.visitnc.com/economic-impact-studies.
