Local tourism on the rebound amid new report statewide travel plunged in 2020
A new Economic Impact of Travel Report released by Visit California validated what most already knew: The pandemic wreaked havoc on the tourism industry statewide in 2020. The report found that spending related to travel in California plunged by 55 percent compared to the year before.
As the economy starts to reopen and more people become vaccinated, travel in 2021 has picked up but is not nearly what it has been in the past.
"I have a very strong feeling that the pent-up demand is so much that we will have a robust summer," said PS Resorts Chairman Aftab Dada.
The Coachella Valley has been on a steady rebound. In Palm Springs' latest Transient Occupancy Tax report, the latest tax recordings were for March 2021, which nearly doubled from March 2020 when COVID-19 was just ramping up. The TOT is limited to Palm Springs and is collected from hotels and vacation rentals, making it a direct reflection of just how much tourism pours into the local economy.
"We are one of the success stories of a destination that’s done well," said the public relations manager for Palm Springs Bureau of Tourism, Randy Garner.
The Coachella Valley was hit particularly hard considering how reliant it is on tourism. But typically around this time tourism tends to drop-off as people opt for destinations apart from the sweltering summer months.
"I know it gets hot in the summer time but truth is that used to be a little bit of a barrier coming to Palm Springs, we’re seeing that it’s not really a barrier anymore," said Garner.
Garner predicts that travel could continue well into the slow months.
"We still don't have any international travel, we still don’t have Canadian traffic. Summers, historically European travelers, have been a huge influx and support for our businesses," said Dada.
Dada said while things have not completely returned to normal, they are getting there. A part of that also is reflected in hotel occupancy.
"Some of the hotels are running very high occupancy in the high 70s and also in the mid-80 percent range, which is huge," Dada said.
With Memorial Day approaching, local business owners are also expecting another wave of visitors.
"Usually on holidays, especially Memorial Day and Labor Day we get really busy," said manager of Fisherman's Market and Grill in Palm Springs, Joseph Pagano.
Pagano's family owns the restaurant, which is one of several valley locations. They've seen the likes of both locals and tourists, according to Pagano.
"Especially with COVID dwindling down, our summer is usually extremely slow since we’re a seasonal area. We’re actually doing a little bit more busy than we normally would," said Pagano.
