National Baseball Hall of Fame
Well it’s the end of August and I have just returned from a very American vacation where I traveled throughout upstate New York.
The trip was mainly designed around visiting one main attraction — an iconic American museum. None like it anywhere else in the world and attracts thousands of visitors every day! Have you guessed it yet?
It’s located in little Cooperstown New York.
Yep, it’s the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum!
It was really an experience to visit this amazing place full of history about our national pastime. There was a feeling of reverence and silent worship around the exhibits as people starred at all these players and their magnificent abilities. I was in awe at how many people talked in hushed, respectful voices about their favorite players. It was like Valhalla for so many visitors, including my family.
When we needed a break, we left the museum and had a great lunch at a local café. And after we finished at the museum, we did some shopping, and then there was dinner. We spent money!!!
So I was reminded how much cultural tourism is vital to many small communities’ economy. How many communities rely on their festivals, summer concert series, and local attractions to bring in much needed revenue and how many other kinds of small businesses and events spring up because of these events, etc.?
In fact, according to the Travel Industry of America and Americans for the Arts:
• Two-thirds (65 percent) of American adult travelers say they included a cultural, arts, heritage, or historic activity or event while on a trip of 50 miles or more, one-way, in the past year. This equates to 92.7 million cultural travelers!
• Of the 92.7 million adult travelers who included a cultural event on their trip, 32 percent (29.6 million) added extra time to their trip because of a cultural, arts, heritage, or historic activity or event. Of those who extended their trip, 57 percent did so by one or more nights!
• Compared to all U.S. travelers, cultural tourists spend more ($631 vs. $457), are more likely to use a hotel (62 percent vs. 56 percent), travel longer (5.2 nights vs. 4.1 nights), and are more likely to spend $1,000+ (18 percent vs. 12 percent).
This is something to think about for sure.
Next time I will talk about some of the other amazing activities and attractions we visited on our upstate NY road trip.