Where the 31 million visitors to Denver in 2018 were from, and why they came

DENVER — More than 31 million visitors from California, Texas and other states came to Denver in 2018 to visit attractions like the Denver Zoo, Red Rocks Park and Amphitheatre and other attractions.

Last year was the third year in a row Denver had more than 31 million visitors, according to a news release from VISIT DENVER, The Convention & Visitors Bureau. The year’s tourism revenue matched the 2017 record of $6.5 billion.

The data was compiled by Longwoods International, which conducts an annual visitor profile study.

“Since 2006, one year after voters approved an increase in tourism spending, Denver has seen a remarkable 64% increase in tourism, compared to 22% nationwide,” said Jayne Buck, vice president of tourism for VISIT DENVER, The Convention & Visitors Bureau, in the release.

Here are the top states visitors to Denver were from in 2018, aside from Colorado, according to the release:

California
Texas
Florida
Illinois
Arizona
New York

These were the top cities outside of Colorado where visitors to Denver were from in 2018:

Los Angeles
New York City
Chicago
Houston
Dallas-Ft. Worth
Kansas City
Phoenix

The top paid attractions visited by non-Colorado residents were (in order):

Denver Zoo
Denver Art Museum
Colorado Rockies
Denver Botanic Gardens
Denver Museum of Nature & Science/IMAX
Colorado Railroad Museum
Buffalo Bill’s Museum/Grave
Children’s Museum of Denver at Marsico Campus
Denver Broncos
Denver’s Downtown Aquarium

The top free admission attractions were:

Red Rocks Park & Amphitheatre
Coors Brewery
Colorado State Capitol

The top shopping and entertainment areas for non-Colorado residents were:

16th Street Mall
Cherry Creek
LoDo “Lower Downtown” Historic District
Denver Union Station
Denver Pavilions
Larimer Square
Park Meadows Retail Resort
Outlets at Castle Rock
FlatIron Crossing Mall
Belmar
Shops at Northfield/Stapleton

In 2018, 4,650 new hotel rooms and more than 250 new restaurants were added to the city, and Denver was named among the top places to live in the U.S. for the fourth consecutive year, according to the release.

For more information, check out the full Denver 2018 travel presentation from Longwood International.