Domestic visitors to and within Pitt County spent $271.08 million in 2019, an increase of 4% from $260.9 million in 2018. The data comes from an annual study commissioned by Visit North Carolina, a unit of the Economic Development Partnership of North Carolina.

"We are excited to see the positive year-over-year impact travel and tourism is making in our local economy," stated Andrew Schmidt, President & CEO of Visit Greenville, NC. "Our destination continues to grow and evolve allowing us to attract visitors from multiple market segments, including leisure, meetings, sports, family reunions, and more to create a positive economic impact and increase awareness of Greenville-Pitt County."

Greenville-Pitt County tourism economic impact highlights for 2019 by the numbers:

  • 2,340 people (+1%) directly employed in Pitt County’s travel and tourism industry 
  • $57.12 million (+4%) in total payroll generated by the tourism industry in Pitt County
  • $13.93 million (3.4%) in state tax revenue generated in Pitt County through state sales and excise taxes, and taxes on personal and corporate income. 
  • $110.82 saved in local taxes per Pitt County resident because of travel and tourism. 
  • $5.98 million (+3.1%) in local taxes were generated in Pitt County from sales and property tax revenue from travel-generated and travel-supported businesses.
  • 21st out of North Carolina’s 100 counties in total tourism economic impact.

Visitors to North Carolina set a record for spending in 2019. The $26.7 billion in total spending represented an increase of 5.6 percent from 2018. These statistics are from the “Economic Impact of Travel on North Carolina Counties 2019,” which can be accessed at partners.visitnc.com/economic-impact-studies. The study was prepared for Visit North Carolina by the U.S. Travel Association.

“The numbers confirm the strength of North Carolina’s tourism industry as an anchor of economic development,” said Wit Tuttell, director of Visit North Carolina. “As the No. 6 state in the country for overnight visitation, we can attribute our success to the natural beauty and authenticity that visitors experience, and to a passionate effort to inform and inspire travelers. The money they spend benefits everyone by sustaining jobs and reducing our residents’ tax burden.”

Statewide highlights include:

  • State tax receipts as a result of visitor spending rose 5.0 percent to more than $1.3 billion in 2019.
  • Visitors spend more than $73 million per day in North Carolina. That spending adds $5.92 million per day to state and local tax revenues (about $3.7 million in state taxes and $2.2 million in local taxes).
  • The travel and tourism industry directly employs more than 235,000 North Carolinians. 
  • Each North Carolina household saves on average $551 in state and local taxes as a direct result of visitor spending in the state.