Maybe you hiked at Great Falls, camped in Prince William Forest, or learned some Civil War history in Fredericksburg last year. People love the national parks in Virginia, and they’re spending money here, according to an analysis done by National Park Service economists.
It turns out that in 2022, the state’s national sites had 22,507,067 visitors who spent more than $1.2 billion. That spending supported 17,662 jobs and had a cumulative economic benefit or output of $1.88 billion, ranking Virginia No. 5 in the nation. Hotels, transportation, and gas and food purchases all factor into economic output.
Visitors did spend more money at parks in California, North Carolina, Utah, and Tennessee. Nationwide, tourism added $50.3 billion to the economy, the report finds.
The Colonial National Historical Park that encompasses Jamestown and Yorktown saw more than 2.7 million visitors. Tourism supported 4,509 jobs, and the overall economic output was $407.6 million.
The Colonial areas saw more tourism than Shenandoah National Park, where 1.4 million people took in the region’s beauty. “Everybody should see it,” says National Park Service spokesman John Harlan Warren. “It’s a wonderful place to experience as close to wilderness as we have left in the northeast coast.”
Over 2.3 million traveled to the Eastern Shore to the national park at Assateague Island, which Virginia and Maryland share, pumping $138.6 million into the economy.
“Everybody loves the horses, but it’s also a great place to enjoy the beaches,” Warren says.
Closer to home, Wolf Trap had 445,497 visitors (yes, we’re sure some of you went repeatedly) and a total economic output of $43.8 million. “That created 365 jobs. They are definitely contributing to the local economy quite well,” he says.
Manassas National Battlefield Park had 532,727 sightseers, $35 million in visitors’ spending, and an economic output “a little over $51.5 million.”
And the next time you’re stuck on the George Washington Memorial Parkway, think about this. It was the most-visited national park site in Virginia in 2022 with nearly 7.4 million visits and 831 jobs supported. That added up to $87.4 million for the economy.
“Virginia is definitely for lovers. It’s for lovers of recreation. It’s for lovers of history. It’s for lovers of wilderness,” Warren says. And with that type of money coming in, we may even start to love the traffic.
Feature image of Prince William Forest by Marcy Frutchey, courtesy NPS
This story originally ran in our October issue. For more stories like this, subscribe to Northern Virginia Magazine.
