Destination Cleveland is committed to preserving the long-term viability of the travel & tourism and hospitality industries in Cleveland. We are actively advocating for our industry and offer the resources below to help industry partners navigate the uncertain times.
It will take resilience, collaboration and support for one another to get the community back on its feet. We are committed to leading our industry through this crisis and championing recovery efforts to ensure our community emerges as strong as possible.
Many industry organizations and others have issued research studies regarding traveler sentiment, consumer behavior, the outlook for the lodging industry, and the effect of COVID-19 on destination marketing. The following studies provide significant insights regarding the state of travel and tourism:
The impact of this global pandemic on the tourism industry is especially significant. Industry reports underscore the need for aggressive and immediate action to preserve the industry. The Oct. 1 weekly travel spending analysis released by the U.S. Travel Association indicates the country’s travel economy losses from the COVID-19 pandemic have exceeded $396 billion since March 1, including a loss of nearly $51 billion in federal, state and local taxes. In Cuyahoga County, Destination Cleveland’s lodging occupancy tax revenue for 2020 is nearly 60 percent down year over year (through July).
Total Travel Industry Impact |
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↓$396 BILLIONProjected total economic loss |
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↓4.3 MILLIONOngoing employment loss |
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↓$51 BILLIONloss in federal, state and local taxes (March 1 – Sept. 30, 2020) |
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+40%of excess unemployment is due to the Leisure & Hospitality sector |
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| Sources: Tourism Economics (August 2020) and U.S Travel Assoc. (10/1/2020) | |||||||
In Ohio, the U.S. Travel Association reports 40% less travel spending as of Oct. 1, 2020. This is a $237 million loss year-over-year. As a result, state tax returns from travel businesses to-date are down $7 million, local tax returns are down $4 million and federal tax returns are down $15 million.
In 2018, the tourism industry in Cuyahoga County supported nearly 71,000 jobs and provided $6.2 billion in direct sales and a total economic impact of $9.4 billion. The industry generated $1.2 billion in federal, state and local taxes, resulting in a savings of more than $1,100 in taxes for each Cuyahoga County household. The effect of COVID-19 on the Cuyahoga County travel industry will be staggering.
These national and state travel and hospitality organizations offer resources to assist businesses with the myriad of issues that COVID-19 presents to operations and short- and long-term viability.