The State of Utah’s Travel and Tourism Industry

Statewide Indicators 2017 2018Change

2017–2018

Utah Population (Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute) 3,113,983 3,166,647 1.7%

Employment, All Industries3 (Private Sector) 1,224,812 1,269,686 3.7%

Wages, All Industries4 (Private Sector) $56,449 $60,947 8.0%

Employment, Spending & Wages (Dollar Amounts Are Millions of Dollars)

Estimated Traveler Spending $9,148 $9,745 6.5%

Total Tourism-Related Employment5 129,400 133,000 2.8%

Total Tourism-Related Wages6 $4,634 $4,812 3.8%

Direct Leisure & Hospitality Employment (Private Sector) 143,027 148,530 3.8%

Direct Leisure & Hospitality Wages (Private Sector) $2,792 $2,989 7.1%

Leisure & Hospitality Share of Total Employment (Private Sector) 11.7% 11.6% -0.7%

Total Leisure & Hospitality Taxable Sales $7,721 $8,191 6.1%

Utah Accommodations Industry

Hotel/Motel Occupancy Rates7 65.3% 64.1% -1.8%

Hotel/Motel Average Daily Rate8 $121.89 $122.74 0.7%

Hotel/Motel Revenue Per Available Room9 $79.30 $78.55 -0.9%

Accommodations Industry Employment (Private) 20,555 21,142 2.9%

Accommodations Industry Wages (Private, Millions) $529 $565 6.8%

Accommodations Taxable Sales (Millions) $1,933 $2,039 5.5%

Tourism-Related Tax Revenues (Dollar Amounts Are Millions of Dollars)

Total TRCC Tax Revenue $71.0 $73.1 3.0%

Total TRT Tax Revenue (County & Municipality) $71.3 $78.1 9.5%

Total Motor Vehichle Rental Tax Revenue $6.3 $6.7 6.3%

Total Resort Communities Sales Tax $24.6 $25.6 4.1%

Statewide Visitation Counts

Utah Skier Visits 4,145,321 5,125,441 23.6%

Total National Park Recreation Visits 10,507,960 10,630,144 1.2%

Arches National Park 1,539,028 1,663,557 8.1%

Bryce Canyon National Park 2,571,684 2,679,478 4.2%

Canyonlands National Park 742,271 739,449 -0.4%

Capitol Reef National Park 1,150,165 1,227,627 6.7%

Zion National Park 4,504,812 4,320,033 -4.1%

Total National Place Recreation Visits10 7,207,373 6,762,377 -6.2%

Total Utah State Park Recreation Visits (FY) 5,673,484 6,675,981 17.7%

Salt Lake International Airport – Total Passengers 24,199,351 25,554,244 5.6%

Accommodations

Sources: Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute, U.S. Travel Association, Utah Department of Workforce Services, STR, Inc., Bureau of Land Management, Utah State Tax Commission, Utah State Parks, Ski Utah, National Park Service, Utah Office of Tourism, S.L.C. International Airport

Endnotes:1. Based on $9.75 billion in direct visitor spending plus $6.19 billion in indirect and induced spending effects. State tax revenue

includes sales, personal income, fuel, corporate income, and other taxes and fees; local tax revenues include sales, property, and other taxes.

2. Does not include short-term rentals (e.g. Airbnb, HomeAway/VRBO, etc.).3. Employment includes annual average employee full- and part-time private jobs (does not include sole proprietors).4. Wages includes annual average full- and part-time employee wages (does not include sole proprietors).5, 6. Consists of direct, indirect, and induced jobs and wages.7, 8, 9. Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute analysis of STR, Inc., data; REPUBLICATION OR OTHER RE-USE OF THIS DATA WITHOUT THE

EXPRESS WRITTEN PERMISSION OF STR IS STRICTLY PROHIBITED. 10. Visitation data for Flaming Gorge NRA and Bears Ears NM are not included.

Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute411 East South Temple I Salt Lake City, UT 84111 I gardner.utah.edu

D A V I D E C C L E S S C H O O L O F B U S I N E S S

Taxable accommodation sales indicate trends in spending by travelers and tourists across the state. In 2018, Utah accommodation sales exceeded $2.0 billion for the first time, a 3.2 percent year-over-year increase and a 38.5 percent

increase from 2014. Accommodations include hotels, motels, bed and breakfasts, campgrounds, and similar businesses.2

The average annual statewide occupancy rate in 2018 (64.1 percent) was slightly lower than in 2017 (65.3 percent); likewise, average daily room rates and revenue per available room on a statewide basis remained flat. Possible explanations for these temperate year-over-year numbers could be the result of more visitors staying in short-term rentals (vs. hotels) and/or a larger 2018 hotel room supply (vs. 2017). However, although year-over-year rates remained flat on a statewide basis, that was not necessarily the case on a countywide basis (see examples in table below).

Percent Change in Average Daily Room Rates by Select Counties

County 2017 2018 % Change

Garfield–San Juan–Wayne $114.85 $120.28 4.7%

Grand $148.13 $152.79 3.1%

Kane $172.91 $186.12 7.6%

Salt Lake $112.77 $114.25 1.3%

Summit $250.33 $256.18 2.3%

Washington $113.56 $108.33 -4.6%

Source: STR, Inc. Republication or other re-use of this data without the express written permission of STR is strictly prohibited.

Statewide Occupancy Rates by Month, 2017 vs. 2018

20172018

0%10%20%30%40%50%60%70%80%90%

100%

Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun July Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec

Source: STR, Inc. Republication or other re-use of this data without the express written permission of STR is strictly prohibited.

Taxable Accommodations Sales (millions of 2018 dollars)

$1,051 $1,152$1,274 $1,344 $1,405 $1,471

$1,651$1,804

$1,975 $2,038

2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018Source: Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute analysis of Utah State Tax Commission data

2019

Visitors and Spending Tax RevenueTravel and Tourism-Related Employment

In 2018, travelers and tourists spent a record $9.75 billion in Utah. Nonresident visitors spent $8.38 billion of that total, with the

largest shares spent on transportation (including gasoline purchases, car rentals, transportation fares, parking), lodging, and dining. Additional nonresident visitor purchases included retail items and groceries, as well as arts, entertainment, and recreation-related activities.

The majority of Utah’s domestic nonresident visitation came from California, Nevada, and Idaho. Utah’s largest international markets were Canada, China, and Germany. While Asian and Western European visitor spending declined in 2018, spending by visitors from Australia, Brazil, and Mexico increased.

Utah’s national parks, state parks, and ski resorts all reported record visitation in 2018 with 10.6 million national park visits, 6.7 million state park visits, and 5.1 million skier days.

Private Leisure and Hospitality Sector Jobs as a Percent of Total Private Employment, 2018

Growth in Private Leisure and Hospitality Employment, Top Ten Counties, 2014-2018San Juan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43.9%Rich . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34.4%Utah . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27.3%Wasatch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27.1%Iron . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26.3%Juab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26.2%Grand . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24.0%Box Elder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23.0%Millard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20.8%Garfield . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17.3%

Source: Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute analysis of Utah Department of Workforce Services data

Travel and tourism-related employment includes jobs in accommodations, arts, entertainment, foodservice, leasing, real estate, recreation, retail, and transportation. In 2018, visitor spending supported 133,000 Utah jobs—a 2.8 percent increase over 2017.

Based on these numbers, travel and tourism ranked eighth as a major industry in Utah. In 2018, the foodservice, accommodations, and transportation sectors added the most travel and tourism jobs.

Around 65 percent of all travel and tourism jobs are part of the leisure and hospitality sector, which includes arts, entertainment, recreation, accommodations, and foodservice. In 2018, over a quarter of all private jobs in San Juan, Rich, Wayne, Summit, Kane, Grand, Daggett, and Garfield counties were in the leisure and hospitality sector.

Utah Total Skier Days and National Park Recreation Visits (millions)

Note: Skier days include season that begins with year shown and goes through following year (e.g. 2017 = 2017-2018 ski season)Source: Ski Utah and the U.S. National Park Service

Source: Tourism Economics

County Transient Room Tax Revenue (in $ millions), Top Ten Counties, 2018

Percent Change in Transient Room Tax Revenue by County, 2017-2018

Salt Lake . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $20.4Summit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $9.9Washington . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $8.6Grand . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $5.4Utah . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $3.8Kane. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $3.0Garfield . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $2.3Wasatch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $2.2Davis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $1.9Weber . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $1.7

Source (all above figures): Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute analysis of U.S. Travel Association and Utah State Tax Commission data

Select Tourism-Related Sales Tax Revenues (millions of 2018 dollars)

$173.8

2014

$186.5

2015

$206.3

2016

$226.9

2017

$239.7

2018

Statewide Car RentalResort Communities Sales TaxTransient Room TaxZoo, Arts, ParksTourism, Recreation, Cultural, and Convention

$173.8

2014

$186.5

2015

$206.3

2016

$226.9

2017

$239.7

2018

Statewide Car RentalResort Communities Sales TaxTransient Room TaxZoo, Arts, ParksTourism, Recreation, Cultural, and Convention

International Visitor Spending by Country, 2017 vs. 2018

5.5 5.3 5.0 5.2 5.0 5.3 5.3 5.2 5.5 5.7 6.0 6.1 6.3 6.6 6.37.2

8.4

10.110.5 10.7

3.1 3.3 3.0 3.1 3.43.9 4.1 4.1 4.3 4.0 4.1 4.2 3.8 4.0 4.1 4.0

4.5 4.64.2

5.1

1999

2000

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

National Park VisitsSkier Days

89,800 43,2002018

87,400 42,0002017

85,000 40,9002016

80,800 38,9002015

77,800 37,4002014

Direct Jobs Indirect/Induced Jobs

Travel and Tourism-Supported Jobs

Source: Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute analysis of U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and Utah Department of Workforce Services data

Total Travel and Tourism-Generated Tax Revenue, 2018

nState $727.0 Million

nLocal $549.6 Million

$1.28 Billion

3.7%

7.3%

-17.3%

-5.2%

5.2%

-5.9%

-9.5%

-7.6%

-8.0%

- 1.7%

$0 $20 $40 $60 $80 $100 $120 $140 $160 $180 $200

Mexico

Brazil

South Korea

Japan

Australia

United Kingdom

France

Germany

China

Canada

20172018

Direct Visitor Spending (millions of 2018 dollars)

Note: Includes resident, domestic nonresident, and international visitor spendingSource: U.S. Travel Association

$8,516

2014

$8,775

2015

$8,986

2016

$9,412

2017

$9,745

2018

Share of Domestic Visitors by State, 2018

Washington 3% Arizona 3% Texas 3%

Nevada 8%

Colorado 5%

Idaho 6%

California 10%

Utah44%

Other18%

Source: Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute analysis of U.S. Travel Association data

Cache 10.9%Rich 32.4%Weber 11.2%Davis 12.9%Morgan 9.9%Dagget 51.2%

Iron18.8%

Gar�eld57.8%

Washington16.4%

Kane43.2%

Box Elder10.1%

Salt Lake9.9%

Utah9.3%

Tooele13.6%

Summit40.7%

Wasatch21.1% Duchesne

7.9% Uintah12.8%

Carbon11.3%

Emery12.0%

Grand46.3%

San Juan28.0%

Sanpete11.3%

Sevier12.6%

Piute14.3%

Wayne37.2%

Juab12.1%

Millard11.4%

Beaver20.7%

7.0% – 10.9%11.0% – 12.9%

13.0% – 19.9%20.0% – 39.9%

40.0% – 57.8%

Iron5.3%

Gar�eld5.4%

Washington9.5%

Kane11.4%

Box Elder1.7%

Cache 14.7%Rich 22.9%Weber 1.5%Davis 4.0%Morgan -4.1%

Salt Lake5.1%

Utah5.9%

Dagget 15.1%

Tooele-0.9%

Summit1.5%

Wasatch26.6% Duchesne

-12.3% Uintah5.8%

Carbon17.3%

Emery-2.5%

Grand7.6%

San Juan15.2%

Sanpete-0.4%

Sevier-8.3%

Piute68.3%

Wayne11.5%

Juab-12.5%

Millard-12.9%

Beaver1.0%

-12.9 to -4.0%-3.9 to 3.9%

4.0 to 6.9%7.0 to 11.9%

12.0 to 68.3%

Total economic activity associated with $9.75 billion in direct visitor spending in 2018 generated $1.28 billion in

total state and local tax revenue.1

Tourism-related state and local sales tax revenues include Utah’s Tourism, Recreation, Cultural, and Convention Tax (the combination of restaurant, motor vehicle leasing, and Salt Lake County room rental taxes); Transient Room Tax (both county and municipal); a statewide Motor Vehicle Rental Tax; the Zoo, Arts and Parks Tax; and Resort Communities Sales Tax. Total tourism-related sales tax revenue grew 5.6 percent between 2017 and 2018 and has increased 37.9 percent since 2014.

In 2018, the counties of Piute, Wasatch, Rich, Carbon, San Juan, Daggett, and Cache had the greatest year-over-year percent increases in county transient room tax receipts. Salt Lake County collected the most transient room tax revenues ($20.4 million), followed by Summit County ($9.9 million), and Washington County ($8.6 million).