New Duluth tourism research data announced

Tourism made an impact reaching nearly $1 billion during 2015, according to an in-depth tourism research study released Monday by Visit Duluth, the city's destination marketing organization.
'It had been nearly a decade since an investment was made to gather this type of critical research data, which is vital information for organizations like ours,' said Visit Duluth President and CEO Anna Tanski. 'This research is invaluable to us, both to measure past efforts as well as to develop future campaigns.'

• The report also found:
• 6.7 million visitors (2.3 million overnight, 4.4 million day trips) came to Duluth during 2015.
• Of the $957 million in economic impact, $319 million direct came through direct spending.
• July through September was the most visited period (30 percent), with October to December the second busiest (29 percent).
• Of overnight visitors, 87 percent had visited Duluth previously and 71 percent had visited within the previous year.

The study was conducted by Longwoods International, which specializes in U.S. tourism research.

'We understand the importance of tourism and the impact that it has on Duluth and our region. The findings from this research will be utilized for many years to come in our marketing planning and areas of focus,' Tanski said in a news release.

Full article here.