What’s good for tourism is good for Portland — and vice versa. Just look at the measures of the value of tourism to the regional economy in 2022:
- The Portland region welcomed 11.9 million overnight person-trips.
- All told, visitors to the Portland metro area generated $5.2 billion in direct spending.
- Easing the tax burden for local and state residents, area travelers generated $248 million in tax revenues. Of that total, $118 million was local tax revenue.
- The travel industry supports 32,700 jobs in the Portland area, generating $2.3 billion in employment earnings.
Source: Dean Runyan Associates. For the purpose of this study, the Portland metropolitan area is defined as the cities of Portland and Gresham, plus Washington, Columbia and metropolitan Clackamas counties. Study area has been changed to align with Travel Oregon’s definition of the Portland region.
State of the Industry
Travel Portland hosted the State of the Industry on March 22, 2023 at the Hilton Portland Downtown.
Travel Portland President and CEO Jeff Miller and other staff shared the latest data and insight into the factors shaping our destination and industry. Keynote speaker Zeek Coleman, VP of Tourism Economics in the Americas region, shared national trends regarding tourism, meetings and conventions.
Visitor Industry Research
Travel Portland has collected the following reports in an attempt to provide an accurate, comprehensive picture of the local visitor industry:
- Economic Impacts of Travel, 2022 report (PDF)
Prepared by Dean Runyan Associates - Economic Impacts of Travel, 2021 report (PDF)
Prepared by Dean Runyan Associates - Economic Impacts of Travel, 2020 report (PDF)
Prepared by Dean Runyan Associates - Economic Impacts of Travel, 2019 report (PDF)
Prepared by Dean Runyan Associates - Economic Impacts of Travel, 2018 report (PDF)
Prepared by Dean Runyan Associates - Economic Impacts of Travel, 2017 report (PDF)
Prepared by Dean Runyan Associates - Hotel Market Performance Summary (PDF)
Updated 4/2/21. Provided by STR / Travel Portland - Regional data
Provided by Greater Portland Inc. - Portland International Airport (PDX) statistics
Provided by the Port of Portland
Questions regarding this information should be directed to research@travelportland.com.
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