DENVER – The year of 2006 was the best in the history of the City of Denver for tourism, according to a new study released on Wednesday.
Longwoods International, the group that produced the study, says 11.7 million overnight visitors came through Denver last year, which is a 13 percent increase over the 10.4 million overnight visitors who came in 2005. That is the largest single year increase in tourism in Denver's history.
The study, which was commissioned by the Denver Metro Convention and Visitors Bureau, found that in 2006, visitors to the metro area spent a record $2.76 billion. That is also up 13 percent over the $2.43 billion spent in 2005. "It knocks me off my feet," said Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper about the new records. "If you told me that we were going to deliver 11.7 million visitors last year I would have said you're out of your mind, you're totally crazy, you're using medical marijuana or something."
The study also found that the number of visits to friends and family in Denver jumped 17 percent, and the number of "marketable" visitors climbed 12 percent, another record. Marketable visitors are those who are not visiting friends or relatives, but could have chosen any destination, but chose to visit Denver. They spend an average of $93 a day in 2006, versus only $43 a day for those visiting friends or family. The 3.6 million visitors, and 2.6 million business travelers, beat the national increase of just 5 percent in 2006.
The study also found most popular Denver area shopping areas in 2006 were:
1. 16th Street Mall
2. Cherry Creek Shopping Center
3. Flatirons Crossing
4. Castle Rock Factory Outlets
5. Colorado Mills
6. Park Meadows Retail Resort
7. Larimer Square 8. Denver Pavilions
9. The Shops at Tabor Center
10. Belmar
The most popular sights, attractions and events were:
1. LoDo (Lower Downtown Historic District)
2. Coors Brewery 3. Red Rocks Amphitheatre
4. Denver Zoo
5. Colorado State Capitol
6. Colorado Rockies
7. IMAX/Denver Museum of Nature & Science
8. Buffalo Bill's Museum and Grave
9. Denver Botanic Gardens
10. U.S. Mint
11. Downtown Aquarium
12. Denver Art Museum
13. Elitch Gardens
14. Tiny Town
15. Theatrical and musical performances
While in-state tourists went down in 2006, to 12 percent, more than half of Denver's tourists came from the West.
States sending visitors to Denver were (in order):
1. Colorado
2. Texas
3. California
4. Arizona
5. Florida
6. Illinois
7. Wyoming
8. Michigan
9. Minnesota
10. Georgia
The top urban areas sending significant leisure travel to Denver in 2006 were:
1. Los Angeles
2. Colorado Springs-Pueblo
3. Phoenix
4. Dallas-Ft. Worth
5. Chicago
6. Minneapolis-St. Paul
7. Houston
8. St. Louis
9. Washington D.C.
10. Albuquerque-Santa Fe
The study found that eight out of 10 vacationers to Denver traveled 500 miles or more to get here. That is twice the national average. Because of this, Denver visitors plan their trips further out than most visitors and they are more likely to fly. Denver visitors are also more likely to use the Internet to get information, with 45 percent of visitors checking things online before coming.
The average number of nights spent in Denver rose to 3.3 in 2006, up from 2.9 in 2005 and 2.6 in 2004. Additionally, one out of three business travelers combined their trip with pleasure when coming to Denver. This number brings the city's percentage back up to where it was before the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. The study found that 71 percent of Denver's visitors said they would enjoy visiting again. That is up from 67 percent in 2005 and 64 percent in 2004. It is unclear if these trends will continue in 2007, but the Democratic National Convention, set for 2008, is expected to bring $150 to $200 million in economic benefits to Denver.
(Copyright KUSA*TV. All rights reserved.)
In 2004 Tom Pickering made claim that the towns (Estes Park) advertising budget rivals that of Denver.
Obviously the results are not the same.
The Denver CVB is the Denver Metro Area Marketing District, one of the very first to take advantage of the marketing district act seven years ago (Denver is a Home Rule community). The Denver CVB is a function of the Denver Metro Area Business Community, it has nothing to do with the Denver City Government.
The Estes Park CVB is a Town funded department of the town. Operated/ managed by town employees.
