What’s the State of County Tourism?

Is Cape May County sitting stagnant?
Twenty years ago the community commissioned a $150,000 study to assess a then-growing perception that the county was failing to attract new visitors, and that the attractiveness of Cape May County as a tourist destination was dwindling amidst America’s changing economic realities.
The study found that the modern tourist is increasingly upscale, desires shorter experiences because of a more demanding work schedule, and wants experiences that feel vibrant and exciting.
The study stated that it often isn’t enough to advertise the beach; the modern tourist wants active, unique experiences that capture the spirit of the community.
Modern tourists want an ‘insider view’ of wherever they visit. The study asked the question: amidst a tourism industry that seemed to be in decline as of 2000, what could the county do by 2020 to attract that new kind of tourist?
What has Cape May County done in the ensuing 20 years to address the concerns and opportunities seen in 1998?
To this end, Cape May County’s Director of Tourism Diane Wieland noted huge strides toward more diversified attractions. A website and general marketing push for fall (“off-season”) activities in the county was commissioned in 2012, and a brief look at fallforthejerseycape.com shows dozens of seasonal attractions that seek to bring visitors back at a time when the weather isn’t as hot.
Occupancy tax, or the tax collected on rental rooms, has increased over the fall and winter seasons by 63 percent since 2012 according to statistics provided by Wieland.
Talking about this push for fall tourism, Wieland said: “Occupancy tax collection over that period has increased overall, but noticeably increased during the fall and winter year over year. Car counts on the Garden State Parkway have increased, verifying the increase in fall/winter visitors.”
Wieland said that the county’s tourism department has applied for a grant to fund a full-on winter campaign in addition to the current fall campaign.
A developing industry in the county that both seeks to meet the needs of the modern tourist and expands the season is the ever-growing beverage-tourism industry.
Outlets such as Forbes and the Telegraph have highlighted the increasing economic presence of beverage-tourism; there are now more than 15 wineries, breweries, and distilleries in this county.
Cape May County Chamber of Commerce President Vicki Clark is optimistic that beverage-tourism can also help stretch the length of the tourism season.
“The new aspects of tourism really developing is in the beverage tourism arena,” Clark said. “That’s a huge driver of a new type of visitor, or visitors who have come for years and have another reason to come back at a different time of the year and to come back without the family but to come back as a getaway weekend. So beverage-tourism has really expanded reasons to come in the nontraditional summer months as well.”
Wieland shared statistics that bolster Clark’s point. A survey showed that 93 percent of surveyed customers at local wineries, breweries, and distilleries “stay overnight and 53 percent come for a long weekend – three to four nights during the shoulder season.”
Local wineries coupled with ‘farm-to-table’ food options give tourists that ‘local flavor’ the 20/20 study says can attract a new generation of visitor.
Clark stressed that the county is “working to diversify the economy away from being just a seasonal tourism economy.
“We want to help expand that tourism economy so it’s not just a three to four months summer season, but it can be expanded. Maybe it can be an eight, nine, 10-month tourism economy. But beyond that, we need to have more year-round sustainable jobs that are not directly tied to the tourism industry.”
Wieland also mentioned agri and eco-tourism. She said, “Nature-based activities are enjoyed by nearly 40 percent of our visitors. Fall migration has been one of the catalysts that have spurred the expansion of the summer season into fall. Bird and monarch butterfly migrations bring visitors from all over the country as well as international birders.”
Wieland said that this is an important industry because the county already has a wealth of natural beauty and resources; it is not as if the county is making a huge stretch to bring in a foreign industry.
The development of bike paths, local farms, etc. utilize what the county already has to stretch the length of the tourism season.
Wieland said, “Cape May County’s tourism inventory is expanding and we have become so much more than a beach and boardwalk/summer destination.”
Clark disagreed that the county’s economy is stagnating nearly 20 years after the 20/20 study, but she said that “it is very challenging. Everyone works harder for the same results.”
But 20 years later, things are looking up for the county. In 2000, Cape May County was facing yearly declining tourism expenditures at a time when national and state tourism was increasing dramatically.
Today, the county’s tourism expenditures are up an average 3 percent a year over the past three years, according to statistics provided by Wieland.
Since the 20/20 study, Wieland said that the tourism season has objectively improved for the better.
Though there will always be more to do, Cape May County is making notable strides to diversify its image away from only a summer destination and toward a year-round hub for birding, beverages, butterflies and more.