Tourism office says 15.8 million visitors generated $4 billion in 2023; federal funds support destination projects

Heather Pelham, commissioner of the Department of Tourism and Marketing, told the House Commerce Committee on Jan. 16 that Vermont received about 15.8 million visitors in 2023 and that those visitors generated roughly $4 billion in direct spending.

"We have been able to fund some new research, and we can now show that 15,800,000 visitors came to Vermont in 2023," Pelham said. She described tourism as an economic engine that supports an estimated 30,000 jobs and produces about $282 million in direct tax revenue.

Pelham described the department’s marketing approach, which combines paid, earned and owned media directed at drive and farther domestic markets. She said a recent summer–fall paid campaign totaled about $1 million and produced "over 111,000,000 impressions" and nearly 16 million video completions for long-form creative. The department operates vermontvacation.com as its primary visitor-facing site.

Pelham also outlined destination-development work funded in part by a $10.4 million award from the Economic Development Administration, separate from broader ARPA funding. Those federal funds are being used for county-level economic-impact studies, a year-long visitor survey, a statewide destination management plan, workforce-related programs such as a UVM hospitality-certificate program with paid internships, and grants to develop outdoor recreation infrastructure. She said the department is subgranting $2,000,000 to state parks for three projects, including road-corridor and infrastructure improvements and work on fire towers.

The department described a Transformational Tourism, Events and Regional Marketing (TTERM) grant program that funded 16 projects across the state after demand exceeded available funds; Pelham said initial appropriation of $1.25 million was increased to $1.5 million with EDA approval and that applications requested more than $6 million in total. Projects ranged from event support to regional marketing and creative assets.

Pelham also outlined a relocation initiative, branded in part through ThinkVermont.com and regional grantees, intended to convert interested leads into new residents. She said the relocation grant program has 13 grantees, and "we've had 52 families move here who've used this program, 97 individuals," with a maximum grant size intended to build local capacity of up to $75,000 per year for grantees. Pelham said the program pairs lead generation with local concierge-style services to help people find housing, childcare and community connections.

Pelham said the department will launch a paid relocation campaign targeting several U.S. metropolitan areas, and it plans 10 regional tourism forums in February as part of a new destination management process. She asked committee members to help promote the visitor survey and regional forums.

Committee members asked follow-up questions about international markets, measurement of advertising impact and lessons from the 2024 eclipse; Pelham said the department works with Discover New England and Brand USA for international outreach and that the eclipse provided broad exposure and lessons in regional coordination and visitor dispersal.