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Seattle's Convention
and Visitors Bureau
701 Pike Street Suite 800
Seattle, WA 98101
(206) 461-5800
www.visitseattle.org
State of the Industry
Seattle is a premier national and international destination for leisure, business and convention travel. Seattle's Convention and Visitors Bureau works with more than 1,000 private sector member businesses to promote the region.
Annual visitor spending of more than $500 billion represents approximately 10 percent of all taxable sales in King County.
Record visitor volumes and expenditures were recorded in 2007 (the most recent year tabulated). During the first half of 2008, Seattle and King County maintained the pace, with growth in hotel development, convention business, cruises from the Port of Seattle, new air service and increased visits from overseas travelers.
Tourism by the Numbers - King County
Overnight Visitors 9.3 million (-1.6%)
Visitor Expenditures $5.14 billion (-0.4%)
Taxes Paid by Visitors $471 million (+0.6%)
Jobs Generated by Tourism 63,100 (-0.9 %)
Source:
2008 Market Profile and Economic Impact of Seattle-King County Visitors, compiled for Seattle’s Convention and Visitors Bureau by CIC Research, Inc.
Tourism Trends
Seattle and Washington State have experienced significant growth in overseas visitor volumes during the past three years. Recently-inaugurated oversees air service includes Reykjavik-Seattle (Iceland Air), Beijing-Seattle (Hainan Airlines), Frankfurt-Seattle (Lufthansa Airlines), Paris-Seattle (Air France) and Mexico City-Seattle (AeroMexico).
The Port of Seattle has grown as a premier port for Alaskan cruises, even surpassing Vancouver, B.C. in cruise passenger volumes. In 2010, record passengeres and sailings are expected.
Packaged travel is an efficient and cost-effective means of travel during slow economic times. Professional travel planners can offer group or individual packages for 30-40 percent less than self-planned travel. Packaging trends include generational trips, culinary and wine, family travel and others.
Nearly 40 percent of audiences at King County non-profit cultural organizations are non-local. Cultural travelers stay longer and spend 50 percent more than local audiences, helping to increase the lodging tax receipts that in turn support more than 200 arts and heritage organizations throughout King County.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) travelers have higher disposable income, on average, than members of other niche travel markets and are less daunted than others by economics, security concerns and other negative factors on travel.
Tourism Industry Issues
The expansion of the state's flagship convention center is vital to economic prosperity in Seattle and throughout the state. The existing Washington State Convention Center (WSCC) is significantly undersized for a market of Seattle’s popularity and hosting potential. The WSCC is currently the 68th largest meeting facility in North America and is the smallest big-city center on the West Coast. Since 2005, Seattle and Washington State have lost $1.7 billion in convention business because the WSCC did not have space or dates available. In fact, more business is being turned away than is being booked.
The expansion will help to capture existing convention demand. That will translate to greater economic impact for the region and state. Convention attendees tend to stay longer and spend more than many leisure travelers. When delegates come to Seattle, they spend slightly more than two extra days in the state, visiting many different areas. That means their spending is spread throughout the state.
The expansion of the WSCC can be completely financed by the existing hotel/motel tax in Seattle and King County. No additional funding is needed from taxpayers or government. The project will create and estimated 3,000 construction jobs and 3,500 permanent jobs.
Washington State Travel Impacts, 1991-2008p, which prepared by Dean Runyan Associates for the Washington State Community, Trade and Economic Development Tourism Office, provides more detailed tourism data by county. To learn more about the state's impact on travel in Washington State, download this pdf >>
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For more information about Seattle's Convention and Visitors Bureau, click here >>
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