Tourism drives roughly $4 billion in Vermont economy; agency outlines visitor research, relocation grants and accessibility work

Heather Powell, commissioner of the Department of Tourism and Marketing, told the Senate Committee on Economic Development, Housing & General Affairs on Jan. 28 that tourism generated about $4,000,000,000 in economic activity in Vermont in 2023 and accounted for roughly 9.3% of the state’s gross domestic product.

The presentation summarized newly completed 2023 visitation and spending estimates, the launch of a year-long visitor survey running through October 2025, federal grant-funded destination-development grants, a two-track relocation program called GROW, and work by the department’s chief marketing office on statewide brand and digital accessibility.

Powell said the department contracted with Tourism Economics (part of Oxford Economics) to compile a comprehensive economic analysis using tax records, hotel reporting and third-party data sources for short-term rentals and other accommodations. She said the analysis places overall visitor volume near pre-pandemic levels and noted an earlier benchmark of about 13,000,000 visitors from a 2017 estimate.

"We can now say that tourism is a $4,000,000,000 industry in Vermont," Powell told the committee. She said the report estimates tourism accounts for about 10% of Vermont jobs and produces…