Valley Forge Tourism and Convention Board is strategizing how to reinvigorate Montgomery County’s hospitality industry and boost its economy in light of new year-end figures spelling out the devastating impact COVID-19 had on the sector in 2020, reports the Philadelphia Business Journal.
Tourism is a key economic driver for Montgomery County, contributing $1.65 billion in annual economic impact during normal times and supporting up to 30,000 jobs, PBJ.com first reported. Both of those numbers dropped 50% in 2020, fueling an $800 million loss for the county's economy and a $150 million personal income loss.
Those losses came as Montco’s hospitality industry was gearing up for a record-breaking 2020 following a decade of steady growth among key performance indicators for hotels, including occupancy, average daily rate and revenue per available room (RevPAR).
Ultimately, more than $106 million in hotel revenue was lost during 2020 when comparing it to the $250 million in revenue generated in the county in 2019 from 2 million room nights booked. Hotel occupancy decreased from 66% to 39% year over year, average daily rate declined 19% to $95, and RevPAR dropped 52% to $37. Valley Forge Tourism and Convention Board experienced 120 event cancellations, resulting in losses of $4.5 million and 46,000 room nights.
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PBJ.com talks to the Valley Forge Tourism and Convention Board about its 2021 Relaunch Plan that uses the tagline #MakeItHappen.
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