Colorado ranks fifth among states as a dream destination behind Hawaii, Florida, Alaska and California. Yet it ranks 22nd in actual visitation.
“There is a huge opportunity to close the gap between Americans’ desire to visit Colorado and their actions,” said Michael Erdman, senior vice president of Longwoods International, which produces annual tourism reports for the state.
Erdman used Colorado’s tourism history as a cautionary case study Tuesday during a call with national tourism experts. He advised representatives from states and marketing firms about the importance of spending on marketing for tourism promotion.
While the Colorado Tourism Office now receives $19 million annually for promotions and marketing, there was a time when no money was spent on marketing the state.
“Our tourism funding is absolutely critical,” said Matt Cheroutes, spokesman for the Office of Economic Development and International Trade, which oversees the Colorado Tourism Office. “This is a very competitive marketplace, and we need those funds to compete with other world-class destinations.”
From the early 1980s until the ’90s, Colorado spent a portion of hotel, transportation and meal taxes on tourism marketing and continually saw Colorado’s share of tourism grow.
But when the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights passed in 1992 and with Amendment 2 the following year, tourism fell drastically. Within two years, Colorado lost 38 percent of its U.S. tourism market share and around $2 billion in revenues.
Elizabeth Aguilera: 303-954-1372 or eaguilera@denverpost.com
