More tourists are coming to Delaware -- and they’re staying longer and spending more money while they’re here.
That’s according to a new report from the Delaware Tourism Office showing about eight million visitors in 2014, generating $3 billion – or five percent – of the state’s entire GDP.
That’s a half million more people than came to the First State in 2013 and, on average, they spent almost $575 per trip.
State Tourism director Linda Parkowski attributes the strong growth to the state’s easy accessibility and individual vibe.
“Delaware’s a little bit laid back, we have some really unique attractions and our beaches, each one of them has a different flavor to it. So I think once people visit here, they want to come back and experience that,” Parkowski said.
That growth has been continuous, too, as tourism dollars have increased its portion of Delaware’s GPD by nearly 60 percent since 2008.
Sussex County represents 40 percent of all tourism in the state and it grew eight percent from 2013 to 2014.
Delaware is known for its beaches, "But we also have some amazing musical festivals, we have NASCAR, in 2014, we actually had the Downton Abbey costume exhibit at Winterthur, which brought in over 150,000 visitors to the state,” Parkowski said.
2014 is also the first time the county’s rental home market exceeded $1 billion for the first time.
Kent and New Castle Counties also saw strong growth in 2014, with Parkowski saying business trips to northern Delaware are on the rise.
Attracting tourists from New York and New Jersey, she says, are her top markets going forward.
