(WBBM NEWSRADIO) — There are signs of recovery for the Illinois tourism industry.
Even though the number of visitors was well below pre-pandemic levels, the state still managed to bring in $23 billion in 2020. By comparison, visitors spent nearly $43.1 billion in 2019, state officials previously reported.
“It is definitely a challenging time,” said Karla Flannery, deputy director of the Illinois Office of Tourism. “We had an incredibly hard year and we cannot deny that for the industry, the country and across the world.”
During the annual State of the State Tourism Address Wednesday morning, Flannery said she’s optimistic about 2022.
“Every data number that we've seen seems to indicate that people are really wanting to come back and travel and experience relationships and see people in person,” Flannery said.
In fact, some tourist destinations in Illinois are already returning to pre-pandemic levels.
Galena, Springfield and Starved Rock State Park all saw significant upticks in tourism last year.
“I think outdoor attractions are incredibly popular because people want to be outside,” said Flannery. “So, there's a lot of areas in the state that are doing quite well, which is really, really exciting.”
It’s a different story for the City of Chicago.
Flannery tells WBBM Newsradio it will likely be years before tourism makes a full comeback in more urban places where business travel remains low.
Another point of hope stems from a $10 million grant that Gov. J.B. Pritzker approved in August.
The program supports new and existing tourism attractions and festivals across the state, including the Magnificent Mile and the ‘Chicago Live Again’ celebration at Navy Pier.
Illinois’ tourism industry typically represents about $47 billion in direct and indirect business sales and accounts for over 350,000 jobs throughout the state.
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