Domestic and international visitors to and within Pitt County spent $320.11 million in 2024, an increase of 2.3%  from $312.88 million 2023. This data comes from an annual study commissioned by Visit North Carolina, a unit of the Economic Development Partnership of North Carolina.

“We are pleased to see our tourism visitor spending numbers continue to experience steady growth each year,” stated Andrew Schmidt, President & CEO of Visit Greenville, NC.  “Travel and tourism play an important role in creating vibrant and healthy economies in destinations, and we are thankful to our many partners that we work with that have helped us to achieve another record year of visitor spending in Greenville and Pitt County.”

2024 Greenville-Pitt County Tourism Impact Highlights:

  • 2,108- People directly employed in the travel and tourism industry in Pitt County  

  • $74.91 million- Total payroll generated by the tourism industry in Pitt County 

  • $11.92 million- State tax revenue generated in Pitt County totaled through state sales and excise taxes, and taxes on personal and corporate income. 

  • $9.66 million- in local taxes were generated from occupancy, sales and property tax revenue from travel-generated and travel-supported businesses.

  • $123.16- Saved by residents in local and state taxes due to the Pitt County travel and tourism industry

  • 26th out of North Carolina’s 100 counties in visitor spending

2024 Greenville-Pitt County Tourism Spending Breakdown by Segment:

  • Lodging- $67.44 million

  • Food & Beverage- $116.28 million

  • Recreation- $40.13 million

  • Retail- $23.53 million

  • Transportation- $72.73 million

These statistics come from the “Economic Impact of Travel on North Carolina Counties 2024,” which can be accessed at partners.visitnc.com/economic-impact-studies. The study was prepared for Visit North Carolina by Tourism Economics. 

Statewide, visitor spending in 2024 rose 3.1 percent to reach a record $36.7 billion. Direct tourism employment increased 1.4 percent to 230,338. 

“The study confirms the strength of North Carolina’s tourism industry,” said Wit Tuttell, executive director of Visit NC. “The fact of spending growth, even in the headwinds of Hurricane Helene, underscores the industry’s vitality and the appeal of our destinations and the authentic cultural, recreational and culinary experiences that travelers find rewarding.” Tuttell noted that while the data includes the three months of 2024 that followed the storm, the study’s timing, methodology and purpose are not intended to be an evaluation of storm impact on visitation or spending, but a gauge of the overall health of the visitor economy for 2024. “It’s certainly an indication of where the effects were felt,” he said, “but given the complexities of the tourism industry and the timeframe of this research, we need to resist the temptation to view the data as a definitive report of the storm’s economic impact. As travelers return, we will celebrate the resiliency behind the mountain recovery efforts that fortify the industry and underscore its value to our workforce, our businesses and our tax base.”

Highlights from the statewide North Carolina tourism report include:  

  • Total spending by domestic and international visitors in North Carolina reached $36.7 billion in 2024. That sum represents a 3.1 percent increase over 2023 expenditures.   

  • Domestic travelers spent a record $35.6 billion in 2024. Spending was up 2.7 percent from $34.6 billion in 2023.   

  • International travelers spent $1.2 billion in 2024, up 16.5 percent from 2023.   

  • Visitors to North Carolina generated nearly $4.6 billion in federal, state and local taxes in 2024. The total represents a 2.9 percent increase from 2023.   

  • State tax receipts from visitor spending rose 1.1 percent to $1.4 billion in 2024.   

  • Local tax receipts grew 4.3 percent to $1.3 billion.  

  • Direct tourism employment in North Carolina increased 1.4 percent to 230,338.   

  • Direct tourism payroll increased 2.6 percent to nearly $9.5 billion.   

  • Visitors spend more than $100 million per day in North Carolina. That spending adds about $7.3 million per day to state and local tax revenues (about $3.7 million in state taxes and $3.6 million in local taxes).   

  • Each North Carolina household saved $593 on average in state and local taxes as a direct result of visitor spending in the state. Savings per capita averaged $242.