Partner Spotlight: Visit California

Tourism powers regional economies, and in the past decade in the Bay Area alone, tourism generated $37.8 billion in travel-related spending, resulting in 269,800 jobs in local communities. Visit California is a big part of the engine that drives that growth.  See here for the staggering data. The Bay Area Council is proud to be partnering this week with Visit California on the California Pavilion at the China International Import Exhibition in Shanghai, showcasing California as a travel destination and highlighting the Golden State’s great products and services.

Throughout the state, increased travel spending is leading to record-setting hotel construction and more than $4 billion in annual investments in theme park, restaurant and other tourism-related infrastructure.  These projects are creating secondary employment effects, generating high-quality jobs in building and construction. Not only does tourism support the state and regional economies, the industry is a boon for city and county budgets. Last year, visitor spending generated $11.8 billion in tax revenue for state and local jurisdictions and was among the top three sources of funding for many counties. That’s enough money to resurface 17,000 miles of two-lane roads or employ 107,000 police officers.

It takes more than having the perfect destination to attract visitor dollars. For more than 25 years, Visit California’s programs have delivered billions of dollars of new visitor spending and helped establish California as the number one travel destination in the U.S. Over the next five years, Visit California will be building on this success by investing $500 million to ensure that the state remains a top consideration of global travelers. Read more on economic impact of tourism to the Bay Area and the benefits of travel and tourism to California’s economy.