Wisconsin’s Tourism Secretary is enthused about fall tourism and especially the growth of tourism here…
“….Tourism right now is a $20.6 billion industry, it employs over $195 million people, that’s up 25,000 jobs. I think what I love in the tourism industry is it’s a gateway to Wisconsin in terms of how people outside our state think about our state…”
That’s Tourism Secretary Stephanie Klett who says since 2011 tourism is up 40 percent in total travel expenditures. She says new research shows a positive impression of Wisconsin leads to other things, like people locating businesses here and buying second homes.
Klett wants travelers to think Wisconsin during the fall tourism season…
“…Think about this…we have 15,000 lakes, we have 42,000 miles of rivers and streams, we have 16 million acres of forests, 40 percent of our state is covered(by trees) You’re going to see great fall colors whether you want to or not…”
She wants travelers to use the Travel Wisconsin Fall Color Report, which has a continuous updating of leaf color from more than 100 field reporters in all 72 counties.
One of the many places Klett spotlighted was Rib Mountain State Park in Wausau. She says they open the ski lift so visitors can ride to the top at Granite Peak to view the colors. She notes there is a ride back down as well.
She says the Department of Tourism website has a complete listing of numerous fall events across the state at travelwisconsin.com
