With the threat of a potentially deadly virus looming, business closures and restrictions and, for many, economic fallout, significantly fewer tourists visited Delaware in 2020.
The next year, though, ready to shake off the COVID-19 cabin fever and enjoy the beaches without a facemask, tourists came to Delaware in record numbers. Some called it “revenge travel.”
“I think COVID taught us all how fleeting life can be and people are more likely to spend money on their vacations than they were pre-pandemic,” area hotel manager Ben Gray told The News Journal in 2022.
Delaware’s previous record, 2019’s 27.3 million visitors, was eclipsed in 2021 by 28.3 million visitors. In between, 2020 saw just 24.1 million visitors.
In fact, nearly all Delaware tourism metrics went up in 2021, with many reaching record-highs, according to a recently released study commissioned by the Delaware Tourism Office.
Here are some of the study’s key statistics, visualized.
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Shannon Marvel McNaught reports on Sussex County and beyond. Reach her at smcnaught@gannett.com or on Twitter at @MarvelMcNaught
