The city of San Diego and tourism officials kicked off the summer tourism season Tuesday by highlighting all the region has to offer visitors and pointing out the importance of tourism revenue to the local economy.
Mayor Todd Gloria and representatives from the San Diego Tourism Authority were among those celebrating the unofficial start of summer at the San Diego Museum of Natural History.
The 31.8 million people who visited San Diego last year spent $14.3 billion, a record high, and generated more than $1 billion in tax revenue, officials said.
Gloria said tourism is the city’s third-highest source of revenue.
“These are dollars that go toward paying police officers, keeping libraries open, paving roads and housing the homeless,” Gloria said, noting that hotel stays generated more than $418 million countywide last year. Some pointed out the 10.5% tax.
San Diegans face a high cost of living and a lack of affordable housing, and tourism is key to addressing those challenges, Gloria said.
“Imagine what our economy would be like without tourism. Hundreds of thousands of jobs wouldn’t exist and hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue wouldn’t flow into our cities. “Our cities are going to get worse,” he said.
“What I know for sure is that our lives are changing because people choose to come here and spend money and then go back home and tell other people to come to our city. It means it’s easier to make ends meet,” Gloria added.
