TEMECULA, Calif., May 23, 2007 (PRIME NEWSWIRE) -- Tourism in 2006 pumped more than a half a billion dollars into the Temecula Valley economy and is responsible for more than 6,000 jobs in the region, according to a benchmark economic study completed by the Temecula Valley Convention & Visitors Bureau and City of Temecula.
The study, conducted by Dean Runyan Associates of Portland, Oregon, estimated that visitor spending in the Temecula Valley in 2006 reached $537.7 million, a four-fold increase from $131.2 million six years earlier.
The 36-page report attributed the dramatic growth in large part to the soaring popularity of Temecula's Wine Country and to expansions at Pechanga Resort & Casino.
"This report clearly shows that tourism and recreation play a much more vital role in Temecula's regional economy than previously thought," said Kimberly Adams, executive director of the Temecula Valley Convention & Visitors Bureau. "That's why it is so important that we continue to get the message out about Wine Country, Pechanga and the many special events in our area to the estimated 25 million people who live in Southern California and the thousands of business travelers who flock to the region each year."
Other study highlights:
* One out of nine employees in Temecula work in hospitality and leisure services. * Temecula captured $1 of every $10 spent by visitors in Riverside County in 2005. * The Temecula Valley attracted nearly 2.2 million visitors in 2006. * Each visitor spent about $245 a day ($332 per party) while in Temecula. * Tourism supports an estimated 6,520 jobs in Temecula. * Travel spending resulted in $168.3 million in income to Temecula businesses and workers. * Tourism-related spending created $5.2 million in local taxes and $15.9 million in state taxes. * Hotel room sales reached about $40 million in 2006. * Temecula now accounts for 4 percent of Riverside County's transient occupancy tax (TOT) receipts, double what it was in the mid-1990s.
The robust growth of TOT revenue, even in the face of a post-September 2001 travel slump, showed that tourism is exceptionally strong in the Temecula Valley.
"No local industry could show the same level of revenue and employment growth from 2000 to 2006," said Dean Runyan, president and founder of Dean Runyan Associates. "It's even accelerated over the last couple of years."
The key to continued growth will be how well the region nurtures Wine Country -- one of its biggest assets, he said.
"People can go elsewhere for casinos but they can not go someplace else for this wine experience," he said.
Earlier this year the bureau approved a marketing plan that is projected to boost revenue at area hotels and motels by at least $4.7 million over the next five years.
The projection was part of an 84-page report put together by Strategic Marketing Group of South Lake Tahoe, California, that will serve as the blueprint for the bureau's efforts to brand and market the Temecula Valley.
The Temecula Valley Visitors & Convention Bureau, formed two years ago, is a non-profit organization whose mission is to stimulate economic growth and tourism by promoting the Temecula Valley as a premiere destination to meeting planners, tour operators and leisure travelers. The bureau is the first in Inland Southern California to use marketing assessment fees rather than taxpayer money to market the region.