Fact Sheet

Visitor Facts For Philadelphia And Its Countryside™

PHILADELPHIA, November 7, 2005

Philadelphia Region 2004 Tourism Research Summary:

• In 2004, 25.5 million person-trips were taken to Philadelphia and Its Countryside™, 18.82 million of which were leisure visits. Comparing the latest data to 2003, Philadelphia's percentage increase in total visitors was higher than the increase in overall U.S. domestic travel volume (2.1%), as reported by the Travel Industry Association of America. (D.K. Shifflet)
• In 2004, travelers spent $6.8 billion in the five-county region (Philadelphia, Bucks, Chester, Delaware and Montgomery counties), up 7% from the $6.34 billion they spent in 2003. (Global Insight)
• The number of overnight leisure visitors to Philadelphia and Its Countryside™ has increased for the fifth consecutive year, reaching 8.34 million trips in 2004. (D.K. Shifflet)
• In 2004, leisure travelers accounted for 59% of total visitor spending ($4.01 billion), which translates into $11 million per day. (Global Insight)
• Saturday night was the strongest night of the week for hotel occupancy in Philadelphia in 2004, with 80% of hotel rooms filled. (Smith Travel Research)
• The leisure room-night market share for Center City hotels has increased from a low of 15% in the late 1980s to 26% in 2004. (Peter Tyson, PKF Consulting)
• Econsult Corporation studied three of the Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation's (GPTMC) marketing campaigns and determined that GPTMC generated $185 in direct, indirect and induced spending for every $1 spent on advertising. GPTMC generated an additional $13 in state and local taxes and $41 in wages from the same three campaigns. (Econsult Corporation)
• GPTMC's gay-friendly marketing campaign generated an even higher return on investment – $153 in direct visitor spending for every marketing dollar spent. (GPTMC/Community Marketing Inc.)

Visitor Volume Research:

From 1997, when GPTMC began marketing the region, to 2004, overnight leisure visitation increased 49%, from 5.59 million in 1997 to 8.34 million in 2004. Figures below refer to the number of visitors, not to the number of room nights.

Total Visitors: 25.5 million people visited Philadelphia and Its Countryside™ in 2004, up 5.4% from 2003.

Overnight vs. Day Trips: Total Overnight: 12.0 million (+8.7% vs. 2003), Total Day: 13.5 million (+2.7%)

Leisure Visitors*: Total Leisure: 18.8 million (+5.3%), Total Overnight: 8.3 million (+5.8%), Total Day: 10.5 million (+4.9%)

Business Visitors: Total Business: 6.7 million (+5.7%), Total Overnight: 3.7 million (+15.9%), Total Day: 3.0 million (-4.5%)

(D.K. Shifflet)

Economic Impact of Travel:

All Travelers (day, overnight, business and leisure travelers)
In 2004, travelers spent $6.80 billion in the five-county region, up 7% from the $6.34 billion they spent in 2003. Here’s a comparison of the impact from 2003 to 2004:

(Global Insight)

Leisure Travelers
Leisure travel is growing as an economic engine, with 59% of all visitor spending done by leisure travelers in 2004. This figure reveals an increase from 2003 when 56% of visitor spending was attributable to the leisure segment. Here's how the impact of leisure and business travel compare:

• $4.01 billion in leisure spending (or $11 million per day) and $2.79 billion in business/convention spending
• 104,543 jobs attributable to leisure travel and 72,648 jobs attributable to business travel
• $1.09 billion in federal, state and local taxes attributable to leisure travel and $755 million in taxes due to business travel
• A comparison of the leisure impact from 2003 to 2004:

(Global Insight)

Hotel Facts and Figures:

• Hotel Supply 2004**: There were 31,693 hotel rooms in the five-county region; 10,583 of those rooms were in Center City and 4,519 of them were in the airport area.
• Number of Hotels (15 rooms or more)**: There were 219 hotel in the five-county region. Of these hotels, 59 were in Philadelphia, 52 were in Bucks County, 34 were in Chester County, 23 were in Delaware County and 51 were in Montgomery County.
• Regional Hotel Industry Facts and Figures 2004:
  Hotel Supply: 11,567,995 rooms
  Hotel Demand: 7,922,722 rooms
  Market Occupancy: 68.5%
  Market ADR (average daily rate): $103.36
  Market RevPAR (revenue per available room): $70.79
  (Smith Travel Research)
• Philadelphia Region Hotel Demand by Market Segment 2004:
  Commercial 36%
  Leisure 32%
  Convention and Group Meeting 30%
  Airline Crews 2%
  (PKF Consulting)
• Center City Philadelphia Hotel Demand by Market Segment 2004: Convention and Group Meeting 38%
  Commercial 34%
  Leisure 25%
  Airline Crews 3%
  (PKF Consulting)

Population:
In 2000, there were 3,849,647 residents of the Philadelphia five-county region. Of those, 1,517,550 lived in Philadelphia County, 597,635 lived in Bucks, 433,501 lived in Chester, 550,864 lived in Delaware and 750,097 lived in Montgomery.
(American FactFinder from Census 2000)

* In 2000, 7,310,500 people lived in the Philadelphia Designated Marketing Area (DMA), made up of 18 counties in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware.

** In 2005, hotel supply decreased by 1%. There are now 31,295 hotel rooms in the Philadelphia region.

The Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation (GPTMC) builds the region's economy and image through destination marketing to increase the number of visitors, the number of nights they stay and the number of things they do in the five-county region. For more information about travel to Philadelphia, visit www.gophila.com or call the Independence Visitor Center, located in Independence National Historical Park, at (800) 537-7676.

CONTACT:

Jeff Guaracino, GPTMC
(215) 599-2290, jeff@gptmc.com

Paula Butler, GPTMC
(215) 599-0788, paula@gptmc.com