Despite all the challenges 2020 presented with the COVID-19 pandemic, visitors to Oxford spent more than $145 million dollars at hotels, restaurants, gas stations, grocery stores and other shops last year.
Visit Oxford MS is saluting the power of travel with an awareness campaign of the importance the tourism industry plays in the Oxford community in conjunction with National Travel and Tourism Week, which is celebrated annually the first full week of May.
The amount of taxes collected from these expenditures was $13.6 million, which had a direct effect on each household in Oxford, equating to $730.85 in total savings per household.
According to Visit Mississippi’s Economic Contribution Report, the average savings per household overall for the state of Mississippi was lower than Oxford’s average, with tourism revenue only saving taxpayers an average of $610 per household statewide.
Tourism is a large sector of employment in Oxford and Lafayette County, supporting 2,045 jobs, or 7.9% of the total jobs in the community.
In 2019, visitors spent $177.2 million and in 2018, $176.8 million.
“Despite the hardships of the last year, Visit Oxford is ready and eager to safely welcome back visitors and help drive Oxford’s recovery efforts,” said Visit Oxford Executive Director Kinney Ferris.
Visit Oxford is the city of Oxford’s marketing organization, whose purpose is to bring visitors to Oxford for the economic benefit of the community.
National Travel and Tourism Week, the annual celebration of the contributions of the U.S. travel industry, will spotlight the critical role that travel will play in driving economic recovery efforts and building the path forward through the theme Power of Travel.
The 38th annual NTTW arrives at an opportune moment to recognize the importance to the U.S. economy of initiating a post-pandemic travel recovery.
“NTTW takes on a special significance this year as the travel industry looks to rebound quickly from the pandemic and accelerate recovery efforts,” said U.S. Travel Association President and CEO Roger Dow. “The past year was incredibly challenging, but we saw the full power of the travel industry on display in the way we united and supported one another through this crisis.”
Before the pandemic, travel generated $2.6 trillion in economic output, supported 17 million American jobs and delivered a $51 billion trade surplus to the U.S.
“National Travel and Tourism Week is an opportunity to remind visitors and residents of the incredible contributions of the travel industry, not just to our local economy and workforce, but to our community’s identity and culture,” Kinney said.
Staff report
