MN Tourism Looking To Rebound After Revenues Cut In Half In 2020

It Will Likely Take A Couple Years For Tourism Revenue To Return To Pre-Pandemic Levels

ST. PAUL, Minn. – Minnesota’s tourism industry is looking to rebound after revenues were chopped in half during the pandemic in 2020.

Explore Minnesota Director John Edman says tourism brings in about $16 billion a year to the state.
Minnesota saw just half of that last year.
He says leisure activities will be the first thing to get people out in the state.

About half of the state’s tourism spending comes from in-state residents.
He doesn’t expect tourism levels to completely come back in 2021. But he says there are plenty of reasons this year will be better for tourism without question.

He explains, “There’s this pent up demand. People want to get out. They want to explore things that are in their own backyard or even beyond. So we’re very optimistic about what travel and tourism is going to look like for the rest of this year and the years yet to come.”

Edman says larger meetings and conventions are returning more slowly, one reason why tourism spending likely won’t reach pre-pandemic levels quite yet.