2014 Economic Benefits to Local Community from Cape Cod National Seashore

Date: April 28, 2015
Contact: George E. Price, Jr., Superintendent, 508-957-0701

A new National Park Service (NPS) report shows that 4,426,750 visitors to Cape Cod National Seashore in 2014 spent $185.5 million in communities near the park. That spending supported 2,421 jobs in the local area and had a cumulative benefit to the local economy of $232.9 million.

"The primary responsibility of Cape Cod National Seashore is to protect resources and serve visitors," said Superintendent George Price. "However, we also recognize that we are tourism partners in both the local and the larger region. Visitors to the national seashore have the opportunity to visit all six towns and a wide variety of businesses on the Outer Cape, as well as explore the whole Cape and the Islands. We appreciate the partnership and support of the travel and tourism industry, the Cape Cod Chamber of Commerce, the chambers of commerce of each of the six towns, and the Provincetown Business Guild. We are glad to be able to contribute by helping to sustain local communities."

The peer-reviewed visitor spending analysis was conducted by U.S. Geological Survey economists Catherine Cullinane Thomas and Christopher Huber and National Park Service economist Lynne Koontz. The report shows $15.7 billion of direct spending by 292.8 million park visitors in communities within 60 miles of a national park. This spending supported 277,000 jobs nationally; 235,600 of those jobs are found in these gateway communities. The cumulative benefit to the U.S. economy was $29.7 billion.

According to the 2014 report, most park visitor spending was for lodging (30.6 percent) followed by food and beverages (20.3 percent), gas and oil (11.9 percent), admissions and fees (10.2 percent) and souvenirs (9.9 percent).

To download the report visit https://www.nature.nps.gov/socialscience/economics.cfm

The report includes information for visitor spending at individual parks and by state.

To learn more about national parks in Massachusetts and how the National Park Service works with Massachusetts communities to help preserve local history, conserve the environment, and provide outdoor recreation, go to www.nps.gov/Massachusetts.

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