Officials hopeful for a better year in 2021 as more people plan to travel. 7:34 am, May 6, 2021 ×
Tourists gather at Amnicon Falls State Park to walk around and swim in the falls in August 2020. While tourism was down in 2020, Travel Superior President and CEO Taylor Pedersen is hopeful for a good year in 2021. (Jed Carlson / File / Superior Telegram)
Tourism took a hit in Douglas County in 2020.
Travelers to Douglas County spent $82.7 million in director visitor spending and $124.4 million in total business sales in 2020, a 22% decline from 2019, according to the Wisconsin Department of Tourism.
The findings are part of a study conducted by Tourism Economics.
Wisconsin officials promote tourism as industry loses millions of dollars amid pandemic
New data from Visit Milwaukee and the Wisconsin Department of Tourism shows the greater Milwaukee area lost hundreds of millions of dollars in 2020.
and last updated 2021-05-05 23:25:45-04
MILWAUKEE â New data from Visit Milwaukee and the Wisconsin Department of Tourism shows the greater Milwaukee area lost hundreds of millions of dollars in 2020.
Officials say 2019 was a record-breaking year, totaling $5.9 billion in total business sales in Milwaukee, Washington, Ozaukee and Waukesha counties. In 2020, data shows that figure dropped by more than 25 percent, to $4.395 billion.
In Milwaukee County, visitor spending fell more than 39 percent to $1.33 billion, and jobs dropped 28 percent to just under 24,000.
Tourism spending takes a 30% hit due to coronavirus
May 5, 2021
FacebookTwitterEmail
MADISON, Wis. (AP) The coronavirus pandemic caused a 30% decline in direct spending by tourists in Wisconsin in 2020, but officials are optimistic the industry will rebound this year.
According to the Wisconsin Department of Tourism, spending dropped about $4 billion last year to $9.8 billion. All of Wisconsin’s 72 counties experienced a decline in tourism activity last year compared to 2019. But officials say the first four months of this year are shaping up to be better than 2019.
Acting Tourism Secretary Anne Sayers said people are “getting revenge” on COVID-19 and scheduling the vacations they missed because of it, Wisconsin Public Radio reported.
The Latest: Spain detects 11 cases of variant found in India
The Associated Press
FacebookTwitterEmail 30
1of30Customers wearing face masks wait to buy meat at a market in downtown Barcelona, Spain, Wednesday, May 5, 2021.Emilio Morenatti/APShow MoreShow Less
2of30Housing and Urban Development Secretary Marcia Fudge, speaks as she and Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra announce a joint effort to increase access to COVID-19 vaccinations, Wednesday, May 5, 2021, at Community of Hope, a health center in Washington.Jacquelyn Martin/APShow MoreShow Less
3of30
4of30FILE - In this May 4, 2021, file photo, lunch hour customers are seen in an outdoor seating area of a restaurant in the Greenwich Village neighborhood of Manhattan in New York. Teams of experts are projecting COVID-19 s toll on the U.S. will fall sharply by the end of July, according to research released by the government Wednesday, May 5.Mary Altaffer/APShow MoreShow Less