"The Waterpark Capital of the World!®" Posts Another Gain in 2008

Neither spring flooding, nor a lake draining, nor high gas prices, nor the onslaught of the economic downturn could keep this resort community down. In 2008, traveler spending was up nearly 4%, coming in at a whopping $1.07 billion. Yes, that's "b" as in billion. Talk about the little community that could!

Tourism Spending In Wisconsin Dells Up Nearly 4% In 2008

Annual Estimated Traveler Expenditures Reach $1.07 Billion Mark

(May 2009) – The nation has been traveling a rough economic road since the fourth quarter of last year and, while it's proven a slippery slope for lots of industries, it didn't derail the Wisconsin Dells area, best known as "The Waterpark Capital of the World!®", from growing its tourism economy last year. In fact, the figures released by the Wisconsin Dells Visitor & Convention Bureau show the community posted a gain of 3.9% in 2008, with annual estimated traveler spending nearing the $1.07 billion mark. That also translated to an increase in jobs, with the community supporting 24,415 full-time job equivalents. Total resident income generated was $450 million, and state and local coffers benefitted, too, to the tune of nearly $129 million in tax revenue. This nearly 4% increase for 2008 follows an 8% jump in 2007.

What makes the numbers even more remarkable is the fact that the community lost one of its recreational centerpieces in early June when torrential rains caused Lake Delton to breach its shoreline with such force that the entire lake drained into the Wisconsin River in a mere three hours. That, coupled with high gas prices during the summer months and the economic downturn in the fall, would have left many a tourism town facing a negative tally. Not Wisconsin Dells. "We're a small community that comes together during good times and bad," said Romy Snyder, Executive Director of the Wisconsin Dells Visitor & Convention Bureau. "Our local business owners went about their work, graciously welcoming guests to our great waterparks, providing terrific values, and even reinvesting to make certain we would stack up against the national competition when it came to the variety of attractions, lodging, dining and shopping."

The economic impact numbers are compiled each year by national research firm Davidson-Peterson Associates of Maine, whose expertise in tracking and studying the economic impact of tourism is well established. The firm has been using the same methodology for nearly 20 years in compiling reports for the Wisconsin Department of Tourism. To arrive at the numbers, they conduct both face-to-face and phone interviews.

For a full copy of the report, email us at pr@wisdells.com or view online.

Research completed by Davidson-Peterson Associates
A Division of Digital Research, Inc.
201 Lafayette Center
Kennebunk, Maine 04043