Tourism is an important component of the economy of the SEAGO region. As an export-oriented industry, tourism brings dollars to the local area from other regions, which generates local sales, jobs, and tax revenue beyond that generated by the spending of local residents.
According to a study by Dean Runyon & Associates, the travel industry is one of the top two export-oriented industries in Arizona as measured by its contribution to the state’s Gross Domestic Product.
As noted in the study, the jobs, earnings, and tax revenue generated by travel spending are relatively more important for the rural areas of Arizona, including the SEAGO region, than for the larger metropolitan areas of the state. The Arizona Office of Tourism (AOT) has dedicated funding and resources specifically designed to assist rural communities in marketing their tourism-related products and services.
AOT has also developed a series of customer service and grant workshops to assist Arizona’s rural communities in their tourism-related efforts. The Arizona Council for Enhancing Recreation & Tourism (ACERT) was formed to encourage federal, state, universities and not-for-profit organizations to work together to achieve the common goals of advancing the public’s awareness of tourism and recreation opportunities on Arizona‘s public lands and rural and tribal areas, while marketing these opportunities in an environmentally and culturally sensitive way.
How tourism is defined
Tourism is often broadly defined to encompass all travel-related activity, including both business and leisure travel. This broader industry is often referred to as tourism and travel. While both business and leisure travelers are included in the broadly defined tourism and travel industry, the distinction between them is useful for several reasons.
One reason is that leisure travelers are likely to be more responsive to marketing efforts since they tend to have greater flexibility regarding such decisions as modes of travel, the amount of money to spend on lodging, and the duration of their stay. As of early 2011 there were indications that business travel nationwide was beginning to rebound from the recession of 2007-09.
The SEAGO region is rich in tourism opportunities. In some cases, publicly held land is either potentially or actually constraining growth or affecting local plans, but in terms of recreation and tourism, public land can be generally considered to be a benefit. The region has large areas of public lands, natural scenery, and accessible recreational opportunities.
The region offers numerous recreational opportunities through national forests, conservation areas, monuments, state and national parks plus historic sites.
In addition, outdoor recreation opportunities are available for hiking, golfing, swimming, fishing, camping, hunting, picnicking, cycling, and birding. Throughout the SEAGO region there has been continued interest in recreational astronomy. With some of the clearest skies in the state, the region has embraced this niche.
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