Mat-Su Convention & Visitors Bureau reports record bed tax, updates Gateway Visitor Center plans

A representative of the Matanuska-Susitna Convention & Visitors Bureau (CVB) briefed the borough assembly on 2024 tourism data and marketing plans, including progress on a Gateway Visitor Center project and a destination rebranding initiative.

The CVB representative told the assembly the borough collected about $2,300,000 in bed tax in the last fiscal year — a 30% increase over the previous record — and reported approximately $25,600,000 in spending tied to short-term rentals. The representative said the average visitor spent $318 in the borough and that visitors accounted for about 22% of restaurant spending. The CVB said its advertising (including ads in AARP and Outside magazine) and the printed visitor guide generated thousands of requests and that it printed 75,000 copies of the 2025 visitor guide.

Why it matters: The CVB argued the visitor economy provides a meaningful share of local consumer spending and said destination marketing yields strong returns on investment. The group described the Gateway Visitor Center as both a tourism asset visible from the Glenn Highway and a community resource with classroom and interpretive space.

The CVB outlined an active marketing calendar — including trade shows and outreach to tour operators, travel advisers and cruise itineraries — and said staff are wrapping up a branding strategy before entering a creative phase. The visitor-center project and related marketing, the presenter said, aim to lengthen visitor stays in the borough and distribute spending across communities including Wasilla, Palmer, Talkeetna and Glacier View.

No formal assembly action followed the update; members thanked the CVB for the report and for local tourism successes.