The South Carolina Tourism Alliance is a broad-based, statewide organization of entities and individuals dedicated to serving as a voice and catalyst for the various elements of South Carolina’s tourism industry. The Tourism Alliance is focused on tourism’s potential to be a superior product and experience, a nationally exemplary source of jobs and revenue, and a force for positive economic growth across the state. Through vision, strong leadership, investment and collaboration, South Carolina tourism can grow to a $40 billion industry by 2020. Working together and focused on the economic future of the state, the leaders of the Tourism Alliance are spreading the word that South Carolina is an ideal tourist destination.
The Tourism Alliance will:
Make tourism a $40 billion industry by 2020.
Stimulate cooperation and participation between the many organizations involved in South Carolina tourism.
Prioritize and support important strategic issues essential to the successful development of tourism.
Communicate effectively with policy makers, the media and general public.
Develop effective partnerships.
Act as the unifying voice for the tourism industry.
S.C. Tourism’s Impact:
South Carolina destinations host 30 million visitors, including 850,000 from Canada and 150,000 from overseas.
Visitor spending and other spending related to tourism total $17.2 billion.
Tourism generates $1.2 billion in state and local taxes – the equivalent of lifting $727 tax burden per household.
More than $300 million a year in state sales/use tax is generated by tourism, the majority of which is paid by out-of-state visitors.
Visitors influenced by the state’s tourism advertising spend $32 for each state tax dollar spent.
