CLAYTON, New York (WWNY) – New York state has released its annual tourism report, and in 2022, the Thousand Islands region of St. Lawrence, Oswego, and Jefferson counties brought in $693 million.
That’s higher than pre-pandemic numbers. In 2019, the Thousand Islands region brought in $575 million.
Tourism officials believe those numbers can get even higher.
“Can we sustain all this growth we’ve been seeing, and it looks like we can,” said Thousand Islands International Tourism Council Executive Director Corey Fram. “Based on the numbers, outdoor destinations like ours continue to be popular, and that doesn’t look like it’s going to wane any time soon.”
As people spend money, local governments collect. The report shows taxes generated from tourism equaled $47 million for the Thousand Islands.
As tourism reached high limits in 2022, inflation did too. So, is this jump in revenue because people were paying more for things? Tourism officials don’t feel this is inflation driven.
“It’s not just inflation. We know that we’re driving more visits, we’re driving higher yield visits. More people are coming and they are spending more. Inflation is part of it, but that doesn’t account for the growth,” Fram said.
What would happen if this tourism disappeared? The report said a homeowner in Jefferson County might have to pay more than $800 in additional state and local taxes.
In tourist towns like Clayton, the 2022 numbers look good. The 2023 numbers are solid, too.
“Stores are still busy. There’s people still walking down the street. There’s still no parking spaces. These are all positive things to know that people are still coming to our area,” said Tricia Bannister with the Clayton Chamber of Commerce.
Summer may be over, but according to Bannister, the fall can be just as exciting.
“We haven’t slowed down yet. Actually from the chamber point of view, we are just gearing up for our busy season,” Bannister said.
A strong tourism trend in the Thousand Islands documented in a state report, echoed on the streets of Clayton.
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