Contact: Joan Hummel, Explore Minnesota Tourism
651-297-4714
Joan.hummel@state.mn.us

ST. PAUL, MN (February 25, 2008) Who are the travelers in Minnesota, where travel expenditures average about $32 million a day? Two new "Profile of Travelers in Minnesota" reports, one for the summer season and another for fall, were compiled for Explore Minnesota Tourism (the state’s tourism promotion office), the University of Minnesota Tourism Center, and the four regional tourism associations in the state. The reports are based on interviews with more than 2,500 travelers around the state conducted in 2005 and 2007.

Almost half of the summer travelers were Minnesota residents, followed by visitors from Wisconsin (6%), Iowa (6%), North Dakota (3%), Illinois (3%) and Canada (3%). Minnesota tends to attract repeat visitors; only about one in six summer travelers hadn’t taken a Minnesota trip in the past five years.

While Minnesota is generally considered a family destination, only one-third of summer travel parties included children under age 18. The average age of adult travelers was in the mid-40s. These statistics reflect the overall aging of the population.

Only 14% of summer travelers stayed a week or longer. The average summer stay was four nights, three nights in the fall. One of seven travelers were on day trips. These figures reflect a long-term U.S. travel trend away from the standard one- or two-week vacation toward shorter getaways.

Most travelers were on leisure trips, but others were here for business or conferences (21% in fall, 13% in summer) or for personal reasons such as weddings or medical appointments. Almost half cited the Internet as one of their sources used for trip planning.

Seven in ten summer travelers stayed in paid accommodations. Of these, 30% were staying at resorts, campgrounds or RV parks; 67% in motels or hotels. Most other overnight visitors were staying with family or friends.

In the land of lakes, it’s no surprise that half of the travelers participated in outdoor recreation. During the summer, 20% of travelers fished, 20% visited state or national parks, and 19% hiked. Other popular activities included sightseeing, driving scenic byways, and visiting historic sites and museums. During autumn, 20% of visitors took in the fall colors.

The two reports include more details about traveler demographics, type of overnight accommodation used, traveler activities, and travel planning resources, and results are broken out by the state’s four tourism regions: Twin Cities Metro, Northeast, North Central/West and Southern Minnesota.

The full reports are available online at www.industry.exploreminnesota.com/research and at www.tourism.umn.edu.

About Explore Minnesota Tourism
As the state’s tourism office, Explore Minnesota Tourism pursues an entrepreneurial approach, leveraging the state’s tourism investment with increased involvement by the private sector. A council of representatives from the state’s tourism industry strongly connects Explore Minnesota Tourism with tourism businesses and organizations.

Tourism is a $10.2 billion industry in Minnesota, a key sector of the state’s economy. The leisure and hospitality industry, a major provider of tourism services, employs more than 244,000 Minnesotans. More information can be found at www.industry.exploreminnesota.com.

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