Visitor Spending Reached Nearly $1 Billion in Charlottesville and Albemarle County in 2022

CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA – Visitor spending for Charlottesville and Albemarle County combined reached $903 million in 2022, and accounted for three percent of total visitor spending in Virginia. Albemarle County saw $511.4 million in visitor spending, a 21.3% increase over 2021. Charlottesville received $392 million in visitor spending, a 13.1% increase over 2021. Tourism-supported jobs in the area totaled nearly 6,700 while local tourism-related taxes were $24.4 million in Albemarle County and $19.7 million in Charlottesville.

According to the Virginia Tourism Corporation (VTC), tourism in Virginia generated $30.3 billion in visitor spending in 2022, an increase of 20.3% from 2021, exceeding 2019 levels by 4.4%. The tourism industry in Virginia directly supported 210,721 jobs in 2022, an increase of more than 25,000 jobs relative to 2021, but still down about 30,000 jobs relative to 2019. All data is from Tourism Economics and is based on visitor spending from trips taken 50 miles or more away from home.

“Tax revenue generated from visitors to Charlottesville and Albemarle County is at an all-time high. We’re thrilled to see the return of the tourism sector following COVID, but caution that prices are also at an all-time high and labor remains a challenge,” said Courtney Cacatian, Executive Director of the Charlottesville Albemarle Convention and Visitors Bureau (CACVB). “The CACVB is well positioned to continue supporting this vital sector of our economy and fostering collaboration, education and promotion to increase local access to the tourism dollar.”

Local economic impact from visitor spending is usually noted in the lodging sector but it’s important to point out that more visitor spending came into Albemarle County and Charlottesville through food and beverage. Recreation, transportation and retail also substantially benefited from the visitor dollar in 2022. However, only a portion of the lodging funds go back to the promotion of the region to visitors, which makes driving overnight visitation critical to the mission of the CACVB.

The leading tourism sectors in Virginia are recreation and food & beverage, which have exceeded 2019 levels by 10%. Transportation, specifically air travel, has had a slower rebound but was the fastest growing tourism sector in 2022, aiding the Commonwealth’s regions that are more dependent on-air travel. With the additional marketing dollars that came through the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds, Virginia and its localities continued to see growth in visitor spending.

###

About the Charlottesville Albemarle Convention & Visitors Bureau

The Charlottesville Albemarle Convention & Visitors Bureau (CACVB) welcomes thousands of visitors to the region each year from all over the world who are seeking a variety of unique experiences in history, food, wine, spirits, and adventure. The CACVB serves as the global resource for marketing the tourism assets of the City of Charlottesville and County of Albemarle, and assists tour operators, meeting planners, and other groups in planning visits to the destination. The CACVB’s mission is to enhance the economic prosperity of the people of the City and County by promoting, selling, and marketing the area as a destination, in pursuit of the meetings and tourism markets.