ATLANTA — A new National Park Service (NPS) report shows that 20,084,660 visitors to national parks in North Carolina spent $2.48 billion in the state in 2022. That spending resulted in 37,485 jobs and had a cumulative benefit to the state economy of $3.96 billion.
“Since 1916, the National Park Service has been entrusted with the care of our national parks," National Park Service Director Chuck Sams said. "The impact of tourism on national parks is undeniable: bringing jobs and revenue to communities in every state in the country and making national parks an essential driver to the national economy."
The national parks in North Carolina are:
- Appalachian National Scenic Trail
- Blue Ridge Parkway
- Cape Hatteras National Seashore
- Cape Lookout National Seashore
- Carl Sandburg Home National Historic Site
- Fort Raleigh National Historic Site
- Great Smoky Mountains National Park
- Guilford Courthouse National Military Park
- Moores Creek National Battlefield
- Overmountain Victory National Historic Trail
- Trail of Tears National Historic Trail
- Wright Brothers National Memorial
“Visitors to national parks in North Carolina spent $2.48 billion and supported nearly 40,000 jobs in local communities last year,” Regional Director for National Service Park, Mark Foust said. “From sacred spaces to wild adventures, every park in the state and across the Southeast region offers a chance to uniquely experience America’s collective heritage.”
The peer-reviewed visitor spending analysis — conducted by National Park Service economists — shows $23.9 billion of direct spending by nearly 312 million park visitors in communities within 60 miles of a national park. This spending supported 378,400 jobs nationally; 314,600 of those jobs are found in these gateway communities. The cumulative benefit to the U.S. economy was $50.3 billion.
As for the economics of visitor spending, the lodging sector had the highest direct effects, with $9 billion in economic output nationally. The restaurant sector had the second greatest effects, with $4.6 billion in economic output nationally.
MORE WAYS TO GET WFMY NEWS 2
Subscribe to our daily newsletter Let’s Get 2 It!
Download the WFMY News 2 APP from your Apple or Google Play store.
ADD THE WFMY+ APP TO YOUR STREAMING DEVICE
ROKU: Add the channel from the ROKU store or by searching for WFMY.
Amazon Fire TV: Search for WFMY to find the free app to add to your account. You can also add the app directly to your Fire TV through your Amazon account.