Arkansas Tourism Ticker: Arkansas’ tourism industry off to a good start in 2019

January-February hospitality tax collections among 17 cities surveyed for the Arkansas Tourism Ticker were up 2.1% compared with the same period in 2018, and the state’s 2% tourism tax revenue posted healthy growth of 4.1% in the two-month period.

The early 2019 numbers are up against impressive gains in 2018. Collections of Arkansas’ 2% tourism set a new record in 2018 and hospitality tax collections among 17 Arkansas cities surveyed for the Arkansas Tourism ticker topped the $50 million mark in 2018. The year marked the fourth consecutive year of growth as measured by the Arkansas Tourism Ticker.

The Arkansas Tourism Ticker is managed by Talk Business & Politics, and sponsored by the Arkansas Hospitality Association. The ticker uses the following three measurements to review the health of the state’s tourism industry.
• Hospitality tax collections – prepared food tax and lodging tax – of 17 Arkansas cities (cities listed below along with collections for each city);
• Tourism sector employment numbers as reported by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics; and
• Collections of Arkansas’ 2% statewide tourism tax.

Results for the Jan.-Feb. 2019 Tourism Ticker report are:
• 2.1% increase
Hospitality tax revenue in Jan.-Feb. 2019 among 17 Arkansas cities reviewed for the Arkansas Tourism Ticker compared with the same period in 2018

• 4.1% increase
Collections of Arkansas’ 2% statewide tourism tax in Jan.-Feb. 2019 compared with the same period in 2018

• 3.2% increase
Increase in monthly average of Arkansas’ tourism industry jobs in Jan.-Feb. 2019 compared with the same period in 2018

The combined hospitality tax collections in the 17 cities totaled $7.805 million in Jan.-Feb. 2019, up 2.1% compared with the $7.643 million in the same period in 2018. The combined hospitality tax collections in the 17 cities totaled $50.847 million in 2018, up 2.36% compared with the $49.319 million in 2017.

Restaurant (prepared food tax) tax collections among the 17 cities totaled $6.003 million in Jan.-Feb. 2019, up 2.28% compared with the $5.869 million in the same period of 2018. Hotel tax collections among the 17 cities totaled $1.801 million in Jan.-Feb. 2019, up 1.57% compared with the $1.773 million in the same period of 2018.

Link here for a PDF of the January-February Arkansas Tourism full report and data.