Tourism is Tops

Thursday, 05 January 2012 23:00

Michigan Economic Development Corporation’s (MEDC) Research Unit reports Arts and Cultural Tourism has a $2 billion impact on the state’s economy. The new report finds that leisure spending for arts, culture and history account for $2.08 billion, inclusive of more than 17.3 million travelers spending nearly 28.5 million days each year throughout Michigan. Overall, cultural tourism represents 17-percent of all leisure spending in Michigan, ranking second to touring and sightseeing (28-percent). To see where Arts and Cultural Tourism ranks compared to sports-themed water winter wonderland activities.

A quick analysis of the report finds that arts, culture and history ($2.08 billion) account for more than all of the combined:

Golf ($284 million)
Winter Skiing ($238 million)
Boating/Sailing ($87 million)
Hunting/Fishing ($361 million)
View Sports Events ($950 million)
TOTAL = ($1.884 billion)

The report shows a 2-percent growth ($262.7 million) for cultural tourism in overall leisure spending from a report conducted by the MEDC Research Unit using 2008 data.