Strong Year Reported for Tourism in Lincoln Parish - 2019
The Ruston Lincoln Convention & Visitors Bureau is pleased to share that 2018 was a strong year for tourism in Lincoln Parish.
Written by: Amanda Quimby Carrier, TMP
The latest information released in the Tourism Spending in the Parishes Report done by the University of New Orleans (UNO) Hospitality Research Center shows an increase in tourism revenue in the parish.
Lincoln Parish was up 8.21% in direct visitor spending in 2018 from 2017 and was 22nd in percentage growth in all 64 parishes. Over two years, the parish was up 16.73% in direct visitor spending and Lincoln Parish ranked 4th in percentage growth in similar or larger destinations.
The UNO Hospitality Research Center calculates direct spending, earnings, employment, and direct state and local tax revenue for the report, and for four consecutive years, Lincoln Parish has shown growth in all five measurements.
“I was pleased to see the updated tourism impact figures for Lincoln Parish,” says Travis Napper, CVB President/CEO. “2018 was another strong year. We’re seeing growth that leads to positive impacts on our community and our neighborhoods; it leads to more jobs, more public services, and better quality of life for families, students, and all citizens.”
State and local taxes paid by visitors to Lincoln Parish provide a tax relief of $557 for local households. This means if it were not for state and local taxes generated by visitors to Lincoln Parish, each household would pay $557 more in state and local taxes. Napper adds that in 2018, Lincoln Parish topped 1,000 jobs in the tourism industry which is a 9% increase over 2017.
2018 was a great year for the state as well. Louisiana welcomed a record 51.3 million total visitors, who generated $18.8 billion in tourism spending in 2018. Those visitors generated a total of $1.9 billion in state and local sales tax revenue through travel and tourism activities in Louisiana in 2018, an increase of 3.7 percent, which is equivalent to a $1,082 in tax savings per Louisiana household. Tourism supported 237,200 jobs and added 2,600 new tourism-related jobs in 2018 making it the 4th largest employer in the state.
Fun fact: $18.8 billion would buy about 152lbs of Ruston peaches for each Louisiana visitor.