News Release

TOURISM TO CABRILLO NATIONAL MONUMENT CREATES $67.5 MILLION IN ECONOMIC BENEFITS FOR SAN DIEGO REGIONAL ECONOMY

Date: June 5, 2019
Contact: Elizabeth Skinner, 619-523-4280

SAN DIEGO, CA – A new National Park Service (NPS) report shows that 842,000 visitors to Cabrillo National Monument in 2018 spent $49.7 million in communities near the park. That spending supported 654 jobs in the local area and had a cumulative benefit to the San Diego economy of $67.5 million.

“Cabrillo National Monument welcomes visitors from across the country and around the world,” said Superintendent Andrea Compton. “We are delighted to share the story of Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo’s journey and invite you to experience sweeping views of San Diego while you go on your own journey of exploration. National park tourism is a significant driver in the national economy, returning $10 for every $1 invested in the National Park Service, and tourism is a big factor in the San Diego economy as well. We appreciate the partnership and support of our neighbors and are glad to be able to give back by helping to sustain local communities.”

The peer-reviewed visitor spending analysis was conducted by economists Catherine Cullinane Thomas and Egan Cornachione of the U.S. Geological Survey and Lynne Koontz of the National Park Service. The report shows $20.2 billion of direct spending by more than 318 million park visitors in communities within 60 miles of a national park. This spending supported 329,000 jobs nationally; 268,000 of those jobs are found in these gateway communities. The cumulative benefit to the U.S. economy was $40.1 billion.

Lodging expenses account for the largest share of visitor spending, about $6.8 billion in 2018. Food expenses are the second largest spending area and visitors spent $4 billion in restaurants and bars and another $1.4 billion at grocery and convenience stores.
 
Visitor spending on lodging supported more than 58,000 jobs and more than 61,000 jobs in restaurants. Visitor spending in the recreation industries supported more than 28,000 jobs and spending in retail supported more than 20,000 jobs.
 
Report authors also produce an interactive tool that enables users to explore visitor spending, jobs, labor income, value added, and output effects by sector for national, state, and local economies. Users can also view year-by-year trend data. The interactive tool and report are available at the NPS Social Science Program webpage: https://www.nps.gov/subjects/socialscience/vse.htm
 
To learn more about national parks in California and how the National Park Service works with California communities to help preserve local history, conserve the environment, and provide outdoor recreation, go to www.nps.gov/California

Cabrillo National Monument’s hours of operation are 9 am to 5 pm, seven days per week. For more information about Cabrillo National Monument, visit the park’s website: https://www.nps.gov/cabr/.