COLUMBUS, Ohio—Experience Columbus, the destination marketing organization for the Columbus region dedicated to growing visitor spending and enhancing the visitor experience, hosted its third annual Industry Day on Oct. 1, 2024 at the Greater Columbus Convention Center. More than 150 travel and tourism industry professionals, Central Ohio business owners, community leaders and elected officials attended to gain valuable insights into topics such as the current economic climate, national travel trends, Columbus visitation data and hotel performance.  

“Industry Day is always a highlight for Experience Columbus as we gather with our peers and national industry leaders to learn about trends and gain insights into our local travel economy,” said Brian Ross, ECI, President and CEO of Experience Columbus. “We are thrilled to continue to see record-breaking visitation numbers. It was also wonderful to be together as we celebrated the news that Condé Nast Traveler named Columbus one of the top 10 Best Big Cities in the U.S. The success shared during the event is a testament to our community’s commitment to creating unforgettable experiences for visitors.”

Travel a key priority nationwide, plus insights into the impact of local visitor spending  
Tariq Khan, Senior Economist of Tourism Economics, provided an update on the state of the travel economy, offering insights into both national and local travel trends. Nationally, air travel demand has strengthened, with a 6.3% increase compared to 2019 year-to-date and a 2.6% rise compared to 2023. Khan also emphasized that travel remains a key priority for consumers with the national outlook for leisure travel over the next 12 months being: 

  • 55.1% expect to travel about the same amount as they did the past 12 months
  • 27.7% anticipate traveling more
  • 17.2% plan to travel less 
     

​While business travel is still recovering, strong corporate profit margins are driving an increase in business travel plans. Additional insights into the impact of visitors to Columbus and Franklin County were previously shared following Experience Columbus’ TourismUS event in May. The local travel economy supports 82,568 jobs in Columbus and Franklin County. Visitors directly spend $8.2 billion at local businesses, and they generate $1.63 billion in local, state and federal tax revenue, which supports local human services, economic development and the arts in Franklin County. Additionally, tax revenue generated by tourism directly impacts residents with each Franklin County household saving $1,504 each year. 

Finally, Khan shared that Columbus room demand in 2024 has already surpassed pre-pandemic levels from 2019, showing an increase of 8.5%. Airport activity has also exceeded pre-pandemic figures, with a 9% rise compared to 2019. 
 
Visitor data gives insights into Columbus travelers  
Amir Eylon, President and CEO of Longwoods International, presented insights into the current demographics and activities of travelers to Columbus, reiterating and expanding upon insights shared by Experience Columbus following its TourismUS event in May. Eylon noted that visitors made a record-breaking 51.2 million day and overnight trips to Columbus in 2023, up from 49.6 million in 2022. Of overnight travelers, 84% were repeat visitors. Additional insights into Columbus travelers included:  

  • Overnight trips to Columbus rose by 4.1% to 10.3 million, while daytrip visits increased by 3% to 40.9 million.
  • The main purpose of overnight trips to Columbus are: 
    • 52% visiting friends and family
    • 13% attending special events
    • 8% on a business trip (other than a conference/convention or a business-leisure trip)
    • 7% city trip 
    • 4% for touring/outdoors 
    • 4% business-leisure trip 
    • 2% attending a conference/convention 
  • The top activities during overnight trips to Columbus include: 
    • 25% shopping 
    • 19% attending celebrations
    • 14% enjoying bars/nightclubs 
    • 12% sightseeing 
    • 10% going to a local park/playground 
    • 10% going to a museum 
    • 10% going to the zoo 
    • 9% going to a business meeting 
       

Data showcases the impact of Experience Columbus’ marketing efforts  
Longwoods also shared research about the impact of Experience Columbus’ advertising campaigns to positively influence consumers' perceptions of Columbus as a desirable place for leisure travel, living and business opportunities. They surveyed 800 adult travelers (18+) from 25 key markets, who had visited Columbus in the last three years and planned to return in the next two. Insights shared include:  

  • 44% of surveyed travelers were aware of Experience Columbus' summer and winter 2023 advertising campaigns. 
  • For visitors who both saw Experience Columbus’ ads and visited the city, the advertising significantly boosted Columbus' image compared to those surveyed who did not see Experience Columbus ads:  
    • Good place to live (21 points more for those who saw Experience Columbus ads — or a 100% lift)  
    • Good place to start a career (30 points more — or a 111% lift)  
    • Good place to start a business (29 points more — or a 100% lift)  
    • Good place to attend college (25 points more — or a 65% lift)  
    • Good place to visit (30 points more — or a 130% lift) 
       

Sports sentiment report reveals support for hosting sporting events 
Jennifer Stoll, President and CEO of Cimarron Global Solutions, presented the Resident Sentiment Towards Sporting Events Report, now in its third iteration and published in July 2023. Conducted by Longwoods International with support from the Greater Columbus Sports Commission, the report provides insights into how U.S. residents, including those in the Midwest, view the benefits of hosting sporting events. Key takeaways include: 

  • Resident sentiment is growing, with strong support for hosting college, professional, youth and amateur sports, especially in the Midwest.
  • Longwoods’ 2023 survey shows 58% of respondents view local sporting events as community assets, up from 56% in 2022.
  • The Midwest sees youth and amateur events as key to enhancing community health and wellness, more than any other region in the U.S. 
     

The findings underscore the positive impact of sports on community pride, economic growth and overall quality of life, aligning with Columbus' commitment to professional and amateur sports. The findings are good news for Columbus as the Greater Columbus Sports Commission announced shortly after Industry Day that Columbus will host three NCAA Championships in 2026-2028 and on the heels of the Summer of Soccer. Headlining those events is the DI Women’s Volleyball Championship, joining the Women’s Final Four to make 2027 a banner year for women’s sports in Columbus. Additionally, Columbus will welcome the 2026 DIII Men’s & Women’s Soccer Championships and 2028 DI Men’s Basketball Tournament. 
 
Hotel sector growth and performance nationwide and locally highlighted 
Finally, Hannah Smith, Senior Analyst with STR, which provides data benchmarking, analytics and marketplace insights for the global hospitality industry, shared insights into Columbus’ hotel performance. Highlights from her presentation include: 

  • U.S. annualized room demand has remained nearly flat for 20 months, stabilizing since January 2023. 
  • Domestic tourism is strong, but international visitation is lagging, impacting overall industry success. 
  • Leisure travel is declining compared to 2019, with domestic travelers showing a notable pullback. 
  • Columbus’ hotel sector is about 95% recovered, with occupancy growth across all classes.  
  • Downtown Columbus experienced the highest group demand ever in April and approached record levels in August. 
  • Columbus is expected to achieve a 62.9% occupancy rate in 2025, reflecting continued but slower growth. 
     

To learn more about Industry Day, visit www.ExperienceColumbus.com/IndustryDay. Experience Columbus and the Greater Columbus Sports Commission also share quarterly State of the Industry reports, which provide insight into the travel economy. To view all past and future reports, visit Experiencecolumbus.com/Reports.  
 
About Experience Columbus  
Experience Columbus is the destination marketing organization for the Columbus region dedicated to growing visitor spending and enhancing the visitor experience. Annually, visitors make 51.2 million trips to Greater Columbus for conventions, trade shows, sporting events and leisure visits, spending $8.2 billion and supporting more than 82,500 jobs. For more information, visit ExperienceColumbus.com.  

About Greater Columbus Sports Commission   
The Greater Columbus Sports Commission’s mission is to rally Columbus to compete and win sporting events, providing a singular athlete and fan experience and positively impacting image, economy and lifestyle. Since 2002, the Greater Columbus Sports Commission has hosted more than 1,100 sporting events, generating an estimated $1.5 billion in direct visitor spending. For more information, visit ColumbusSports.org. 

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Media Contacts:  
Leah Berger, APR, ECI: lberger@experiencecolumbus.com | 614-222-6145 
Cameron Tirado, ECI: ctirado@experiencecolumbus.com | 614-222-6146