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October 2, 2007
LATEST NUMBERS RELEASED ON TOURISM IMPACT IN PRINCE WILLIAM COUNTY/MANASSAS, VIRGINIA
The Prince William County/Manassas, Virginia Convention and Visitors Bureau (CVB) has released the latest numbers on the impact of tourism in the destination. The CVB says tourism revenues increased by 6.25 percent locally in 2006, bringing in a total of $445,671,092 in visitor spending.
Direct spending by domestic travelers in Prince William County and Manassas, Virginia supported 6,031 full-time and seasonal jobs, which generated more than $115, 882,763 in wages and salaries. Local taxes, including sales and property taxes, generated $7,832,311 for the destination.
Tabatha Mullins, executive director of the CVB, says she is “very pleased” traveler spending has increased in the destination, keeping it among the top 10 localities for traveler spending.
But Mullins is cautiously optimistic. “We can not become complacent, believing that we will always remain there. We know additional tourism product is being built in Prince William County, which will somewhat automatically drive a slight increase in additional economic impact. However, we did not increase at the same rate as the state of Virginia. Travel and tourism in Virginia is very competitive, and we need to be better prepared to compete. We do not have the funding necessary to properly market the county and its growing tourism product. We will need a concentrated investment in funds if we are to remain a dynamic and attractive tourism destination,” she says.
Across Virginia, visitor spending brought in a record $17.7 billion in 2006, a 7.2 percent increase over 2005. Governor Tim Kaine has announced tourism provided 208,200 jobs for Virginians in 2006, generated $706.8 million in state taxes and $503 million in local tax revenue.
The local and state data was compiled by the Travel Industry Association of America and distributed to localities by the Virginia Tourism Corporation (VTC). VTC President and CEO Alisa Bailey says local tourism is critical to the economy. "There is no doubt efforts to attract visitors to Virginia pay huge dividends on both a statewide and community level. For every dollar we invest in marketing to tourists, we get back five dollars in state and local taxes.”
VTC research shows the $706.8 million tourism generates in state tax revenue could pay for the education of more than 80,000 Virginia students, 1,900 miles of roadways, or salaries and benefits for 11,500 state police officers.
The CVB is the destination marketing organization for Prince William County/Manassas, Virginia. For more information on travel packages, and a free visitors guide, golf guide, calendar of events and pocket map, call (703)396-7130 or 1-800-432-1792, or log on to www.visitpwc.com.
