Georgia’s Governor was in Athens Wednesday.
Governor Brian Kemp attended the 2022 Governor’s Tourism Conference for the finale of the three-day event. He applauded the industry for attracting pre-pandemic levels of domestic visitors. Kemp said in 2021, Georgia travel and tourism generated a total economic impact of $64.5 billion, supporting more than 422,600 jobs. The state welcomed nearly 159.6 million domestic and international visitors, resulting in $34.4 billion in visitor spending, though international visitation has been slower to return.
"I am proud to announce that Georgia maintained our No. 5 market share rank for domestic overnight visitation in 2021, a critically important achievement for our state’s economy and a testament to the competitiveness of our state’s tourism industry," said Governor Kemp. "Because Georgia led the nation in a measured reopening, the leisure sector of our tourism economy continues to lead in rebounding, and our travel industry is well-positioned for future growth and success. I want to recognize our state tourism office for working with my administration to use relief funds I directed its way and generate the highest return on investment from tourism marketing in our state’s recent history."
More than 400 travel and hospitality professionals attended the conference, which was presented by Explore Georgia, the tourism division of the Georgia Department of Economic Development.
