The impacts of COVID-19 on the global visitor industry cannot be overstated, with ripple effects still being felt in areas such as labor shortages, supply chain issues, and more. Despite these ongoing challenges, there are numerous indicators that the regional visitor industry is rebounding based upon the following key performance indicators (KPIs) that Explore Fairbanks utilizes.
Currently, the primary sources of new dollars for Fairbanks’ economy are limited to state and federal government; and a handful of private-sector basic industries, including a gold mine, oil-related support services, and the visitor industry. The visitor industry economic development strategy has worked for the year-round economy of the Fairbanks region. It represents proven economic development that is attainable, measurable, and sustainable. Below are some estimated impacts prior to 2020; updated numbers are expected by end of this year.
Direct visitor expenditures in winter are historically proportionately higher than summer expenditures:
Hotels are among the top property taxpayers in the Fairbanks North Star Borough: Property tax is a broad-based tax that is fair in the sense that it evenly distributes support of government services across all private-sector segments of the economy. Hotels are significantly represented in the top property taxpayers in the community:
As the chart from the Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development shows, the leisure and hospitality industry is one of the largest employers in the Fairbanks North Star Borough, surpassed only by government, trade/transportation/utilities, and education/health services. Employment in the industry was steadily increasing from 2017-2019 before dropping by 19.5% in 2020 and was 40% of all of Fairbanks’ total job loss. Additionally, Fairbanks lost about 300 transportation jobs that year, mainly linked to the tourism industry.
For 2021 employment in the leisure and hospitality industry increased by 12.1% over 2020. However, one of the most significant challenges for 2021 and 2022 has not been the lack of available jobs, it has been the lack of employees filling those jobs, which is a national issue as well that is impacting numerous industries. Bringing back that workforce is going to be essential to industry recovery moving forward.
Note: The challenge in quantifying tourism economic data is that the tourism industry contributes into many economic sectors from the obvious such as lodging/accommodations to retail, transportation (air, sightseeing, railroad), food services/drinking places, etc.
Tourism offers unparalleled opportunities for local entrepreneurs to participate in the economic success of a basic industry at the ownership level. The growth in winter and aurora tourism seasons (below) in the Fairbanks region has resulted in a rise in many small businesses, such as dog mushing tours, aurora viewing facilities and photography tours. Explore Fairbanks’ cooperative destination marketing program is currently supported by more than 350 partners that are primarily small businesses.
The visitor industry in Alaska is composed of multiple business models with the majority operating year-round, others operate in the summer season only, and some only in aurora season and/or winter season. For Fairbanks and many businesses, this diversification was intentionally strategic. The growth of aurora and winter visitation did not organically happen. The strategy required the investment of human and financial resources in research, marketing and infrastructure development over a long period of time.
Despite these efforts, summer continues to be the lion’s share of visitors and there is a general recognition that more investments are to be made to fully realize year-round sustainability.
Establishing Fairbanks as an aurora destination has been a primary component of Explore Fairbanks’ branding and messaging of the region. For visitor planning purposes the “Aurora Season” is defined as being from August 21 to April 21, crossing from late summer into winter and into early spring. Our location is ideal for northern lights viewing because it is under the “Auroral Oval”—a ring-shaped zone over the far north where aurora activity is concentrated. Additionally, the low precipitation and distance from coastal areas contributes to consistently clear nights. All combined, these variables make the Fairbanks region an outstanding destination for possible aurora viewing, and has been a factor in quantitative successes such as:
Visitors enjoy the same things that residents enjoy. The visitor industry, unlike most basic industries, develops the physical infrastructure used to “manufacture” a visitor experience that can also be enjoyed by and substantially enhance the quality of life of Fairbanks-area residents. Examples are:
The mission of Explore Fairbanks is to be an economic driver in the Fairbanks region by marketing to potential visitors and optimizing the visitor experience.
“Co-opetition” Is the key to destination brand marketing: Cooperation + competition = “co-opetition” meaning businesses that cooperate when it is to their advantage are said to be in co-opetition. “Destination marketing” is the proven method worldwide whereby competing visitor industry businesses coalesce to market the destination brand. A key mechanism for that marketing is through a destination marketing and management organization (DMMO) such as Explore Fairbanks.
Among destinations, a destination may co-operate with another destination in some target markets but be its competitor in other markets. Carefully evaluating “co-opetition” is a strategic key to a destination’s success.
We are united in our commitment to the future of destination marketing and management: Explore Fairbanks and business partners have demonstrated a commitment to “optimizing the visitor experience” through destination management. Organizations such as Explore Fairbanks advocate for improvements to the destination which enhance the product. While these improvements are focused on improving a visitors’ experience in the destination, they have a positive impact on local residents too in terms of economic benefit as well as enjoying a more robust menu of products.
Accessibility Explore Fairbanks and the Fairbanks International Airport (FAI) have more than two decades of working together to secure new air service to FAI. Examples of this cooperation are as follows:
Explore Fairbanks has a positive track record with infrastructure projects of this kind. From its inception, Explore Fairbanks was a partner in the development of the Morris Thompson Cultural and Visitors Center. Opened in September 2008, the $30 million center has become a community icon and gathering place for visitors and locals alike.
Explore Fairbanks works on other projects that enhance the community and region such as:
An eight percent hotel/motel or “bed” tax imposed on overnight guests is collected by the lodging facilities and remitted to the three government entities: the cities of Fairbanks and North Pole and the Fairbanks North Star Borough (excluding cities).
Note: An increase of hotel/motel taxes at this juncture would essentially kill any future infrastructure project or marketing program that may be planned by the local travel industry. An example of a hotel/motel tax advocated by their local travel industry was the increase of Anchorage’s bed tax from 8% to 12% to fund the Dena’ina Convention Center and the Egan Convention Center.
101 Dunkel Street, Suite 111
Fairbanks, AK 99701-4806
Telephone: (907) 456-5774
Visitor Guide Request: 1-800-327-5774
Email: info@explorefairbanks.com
About Explore Fairbanks