National Travel and Tourism Week (NTTW), the annual celebration of the contributions of the U.S. travel industry, will spotlight the critical role that travel will play in driving economic recovery efforts and building the path forward through the theme Power of Travel.
Celebrated annually the first full week in May, NTTW was created by Congress in 1983 to elevate the economic power of travel in the U.S. The 38th annual NTTW, May 2-8, arrives at an opportune moment to recognize the importance to the U.S. economy of initiating a post-pandemic travel recovery.
“NTTW takes on a special significance this year as the travel industry looks to rebound quickly from the pandemic and accelerate recovery efforts,” said U.S. Travel Association President and CEO Roger Dow. “The past year was incredibly challenging, but we saw the full power of the travel industry on display in the way we united and supported one another through this crisis.”
“Before the pandemic, travel generated $2.6 trillion in economic output, supported 17 million American jobs and delivered a $51 billion trade surplus to the U.S.- evidence of the outsized role the industry will play in America’s broader economic recovery,” said Dow.
Natchitoches is saluting the power of travel by hosting a trash cleanup for tourism industry partners and professionals to give back to the Natchitoches community on Monday, May 3 and a Travel Rally at Fort St. Jean Baptiste State Historic Site on Friday, May 7 from 2-3:30 p.m.
“Despite the hardships of the last year, Natchitoches is ready and eager to welcome back visitors and help drive our community’s recover efforts,” said Arlene Gould, Natchitoches Convention & Visitors Bureau Executive Director. “National Travel and Tourism Week is an opportunity to remind visitors and residents of the incredible contributions of the travel industry not just to our local economy and workforce, but to our community’s identity and culture. We look forward to returning to pre-pandemic visitor volume and to continue to grow our visitation to Natchitoches in years to come.”
In 2019, visitors to Natchitoches Parish produced nearly $110 million in spending, an increase of 5% over 2018, and generated $13.7 million in state and local taxes, In addition, visitor spending in Natchitoches Parish created $39.4 million in direct earnings and 1,430 direct jobs in 2019,
Visit ustravel.org/NTTW to learn more about National Travel and Tourism Week or visit natchitoches.com to learn more about things to do, places to stay and where to eat in Natchitoches.