Our mission is to market and sell information to convince travelers to choose the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania for their conventions, meetings, and vacations.

In 2007 alone, direct spending by travelers to the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania generated $28 billion.

The $28 billion represents NEW dollars flowing into our state’s economy, much of that into the government’s tax coffers:

• $7.26 billion in transportation
• $6.32 billion in food and beverage
• $5.32 billion in retail
• $4.04 billion in lodging
• $3.25 billion in entertainment
• $1.62 billion in other goods and services

In 2007, visitors generated a total of $2.8 billion in state and municipal tax revenues (a little more than 10% of the total General Fund Expenditures in 2007-08).

Due to the major tax revenues generated by tourism industry in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, each one of our 4.9 million households benefits with $575 in tax savings. Put another way, if not for tourism industry, each household would have to pay $575 in additional taxes to maintain the current level of state services.