Hamilton County banked its fifth consecutive billion-dollar tourism year in 2019, and that would normally be unambiguously good news – but this year hits a little different.
“It’s great news,” said Barry White, the CEO of the Chattanooga Tourism Company. “But we also have to talk about where we are right now.”
The year had a promising start, but by the time it’s over the 2020 data will likely show a blow to the local tourism scene of about 45%, White estimated.
“January and February were fairly strong, outpacing 2019,” he said. “All of that changed, obviously, in March, and changed very rapidly.”
![Staff photo by C.B. Schmelter / Barbara, left, and Tim Davis browse items for sale during the World's Longest Yard Sale on Sunday, Aug. 9, 2020 in Dunlap, Tenn. The four-day sale, which started Thursday and ended today, follows Highway 127 from Addison, Michigan, to Gadsden, Alabama [picking up on the Lookout Mountain Parkway south of Chattanooga].](https://www.timesfreepress.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/1598488253_081020b01YardSale0004_gs.jpg)
The story was similar across the state. Tennessee tourism set records in 2019, with $23 billion in economic impact, capping a decade of steady growth.