This year marks the 40th anniversary of the annual industry celebration
[Iowa][May 10, 2023] — National Travel and Tourism Week, (NTTW) the annual celebration of the contributions of the U.S. travel industry, spotlights the essential role that travel will play in driving economic growth and innovation through the theme #TravelForward.
“The travel industry fuels every industry—our industry’s success is the nation’s success,” said U.S. Travel Association President and CEO Geoff Freeman. “This week is a prime opportunity to elevate the message that travel is essential to moving America’s economy forward.”
Established in 1983, NTTW is an annual tradition to mark the U.S. travel industry’s role in stimulating economic growth, cultivating vibrant communities, creating quality job opportunities, stimulating business activity, and elevating the quality of life for everyday Americans.
Travel serves as a catalyst for a productive U.S. economy and helps power the success of other industries. The U.S. travel industry generated a $2.6 trillion economic output in 2022 and supported 15 million jobs, fueling communities, small businesses and working families across the country.
Travel spending also generated nearly $160 billion in federal, state, and local taxes in 2022—revenue that helped fund critical public services while saving each U.S. household an average of $1,270 in taxes.
In Iowa the travel industry drives $9.4 billion in total state economic impact, which contributes $1 billion in state and local tax revenues. Over 65,000 jobs are supported by Iowa’s tourism and hospitality industry that drives a $2.2 billion total labor income impact.
Iowa Travel Industry Partners (iTIP) is recognizing travel’s essential contributions by focusing on promoting Iowa to niche travel markets such as group tour operators, meeting planners, and sporting event owners. The niche market is an important market for Iowa’s tourism economy due to the ability to attract weekday business travel. Specifically, during the week of May 8 – 11, iTIP is attending the Sports Events & Tourism Association Symposium to meet with sporting event owners from across the United States. These organizers are beginning to plan their 2024 and 2025 schedules and it is important to make sure Iowa stays top of mind during their planning stages.
Said Chelsea Lerud, iTIP Executive Director: “Travel is at the heart of Iowa, powering a strong U.S. economy, creating jobs, and strengthening our community’s culture and identity. This National Travel and Tourism Week, we are proud to celebrate all that travel does for our state now, and all that it will contribute in the future.”
Please visit ustravel.org/NTTW to learn more about National Travel and Tourism Week.
Iowa Travel Industry Partners (iTIP) is a statewide tourism association designed to be a champion for Iowa’s tourism industry by providing support in the areas of resources, education, advocacy, and marketing. Learn more online to see if the iTIP team can be an extension of the tourism work you provide.