FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 25, 2024
Economic Impact Studies Show Boost from April Eclipse but Fall Foliage Season is Still Vermont’s Biggest Draw
2.5M Visitors Spend $500,000,000 in Vermont During Fall Foliage Season
Montpelier, Vt. – The Department of Tourism and Marketing is unveiling today the results of two studies examining the economic impact of the total solar eclipse on April 8, 2024. Researchers found the eclipse generated $34.8M in visitor spending, a welcome boost during the slowest month for tourism, but less than 10% of visitor spending during Vermont’s fall foliage season.
“It’s great to see the economic boost businesses across Vermont saw as a result of the total solar eclipse,” said Governor Phil Scott. “It’s also a good reminder how important fall foliage tourism is to our economy.”
The state of Vermont commissioned travel industry research experts at Tourism Economics and Datafy to complete these reports.
Tourism Economics estimates the eclipse brought an additional 175,000 visitors to Vermont who spent $34.8M during their stay, contributing $2.6M in sales and meals and rooms taxes to state and local coffers. The estimated total economic impact is $54M.
Datafy looked at out-of-state credit card holders visiting Vermont for the eclipse and found 80% were from the Northeast (mostly New York, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire) and 59% visited for just one day. Datafy also found 71% more visitors were in Vermont on April 8, 2024 than the average Fall Peak day, but again, they didn’t stay long. Most eclipse visitors came just for the eclipse and left that day. Fall foliage visitors come to enjoy Vermont, so they stay longer and spend more overall. Vermont estimates 2.5 million visitors spend approximately $500 million annually during the entire fall foliage season.
“The total solar eclipse was a once-in-a-lifetime event that gave Vermont an opportunity to show more visitors than ever before just how special Vermont can be. We knew Visitor Center eclipse traffic increased 150% compared to the previous April and heard our downtowns were busy, but this data gives us a better sense of how many people were here for the eclipse and what they spent,” said Heather Pelham, Commissioner of the Department of Tourism and Marketing. “In addition to the lasting memories eclipse visitors will have of Vermont, we were particularly encouraged to see the comparison to a busy foliage season because it underscores the importance of fall and the economic benefits it brings to Vermont every year.”
The Tourism Economics and Datafy studies can be found online at the Vermont Department of Tourism and Marketing website.