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Hilton Head Island DMO reports higher economic impact despite fewer visitors; ATAX committee votes to recommend marketing plan to council
Summary
At an April 3 Accommodation Tax Advisory Committee meeting, the Hilton Head Island–Bluffton Chamber of Commerce presented 2024 performance metrics showing fewer visitors but higher per-visit spending and economic impact; the committee voted to recommend the DMO's marketing plan to Town Council.
Ariana Pernice, vice president of the visitor and convention bureau for the Hilton Head Island–Bluffton Chamber of Commerce, told the Accommodation Tax Advisory Committee on April 3 that the destination marketing organization(DMO) attracted more web traffic and secured higher per-visitor spending in 2024, even as overall visitation fell.
Pernice said the DMOwebsite HiltonHeadIsland.org received more than 3,300,000 visits in 2024 and produced about 1,500,000 partner referrals. "Visits to the website were up 3% to the prior year," she said, and links out to members and community partners were "up 25%." Pernice summarized lodging metrics as "occupancy was down by 4%" and average daily rate "was up by 1%"; she said RevPAR was down and that, overall, the DMO was attracting visitors who spent more per trip.
The committee heard the DMOreport that total…
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