Denver tourism hits 37.1m visitors, ties 2023 record

DENVER — Denver welcomed 37.1 million domestic visitors in 2024, matching its record-setting total from the previous year, according to Visit Denver, the city’s official tourism marketing organization.

Tourism spending in 2024 reached $10.3 billion, also consistent with 2023, the group announced. Overnight visitors accounted for 19.8 million of the total, generating $8.7 billion in spending. Of those overnight travelers, 17.4 million visited for leisure.

Visit Denver reported a 14 percent increase in “marketable” leisure visitors, defined as travelers open to tourism promotions, reaching a record 8.7 million people.

“Tourism is vital to the Denver economy, and we are pleased to see 2024 numbers in line with 2023, which matched our expectations,” said Richard W. Scharf, president and CEO of Visit Denver. “Keeping pace after a blockbuster year shows the strength of Denver’s tourism product and the effectiveness of our promotional efforts.”

Tourism supported 73,500 jobs across the metro area in 2024 and generated millions in state and local tax revenue, according to Dean Runyan Associates’ Economic Impact of Travel study.

Visitor profile trends and spending patterns

Longwoods International, which has tracked Denver tourism since 1994, conducted the annual visitor profile study. The firm found total visitation is up 16 percent since 2019 and overnight visitor spending has grown 45 percent compared to pre-pandemic levels.

“Maintaining 2023 levels is a win, especially considering that more Americans looked overseas for travel in 2024 due to the strength of the dollar,” said Amir Eylon, president and CEO of Longwoods International. “Denver continues to offer a best-of-both-worlds experience, blending city energy with access to the Rocky Mountains.”

Visitation remained steady across all four quarters, with 22 percent of travelers arriving in the first quarter, 26 percent in the second, 28 percent in the third and 23 percent in the fourth. Eighty percent of overnight visitors were repeat travelers.

The study highlighted the critical role of Denver International Airport. In 2024, 36 percent of overnight visitors arrived by plane, well above the national average of 24 percent.

On average, visitors spent 2.7 nights in Denver, with about 70 percent of their trip spent in the city and the remainder elsewhere in Colorado. Visit Denver’s partnership with the Colorado Tourism Office continues to support the city’s position as both a destination and a gateway to the state.

Advertising ROI and economic impact

A separate return-on-investment study by Longwoods measured the effectiveness of Visit Denver’s 2024 spring and summer advertising campaign, the agency’s largest of the year. The campaign generated:

• 3 million incremental trips
• $1.3 billion in incremental spending
• $143 million in incremental state and local taxes, including more than $106 million for Denver
• $217 in incremental spending and $24 in incremental tax revenue for every $1 spent on advertising

Key findings from the 2024 visitor study

• Denver hosted 19.8 million overnight visitors and 17.3 million day visitors
• Overnight leisure visitors totaled 17.4 million
• Visitors spent $10.3 billion, including $8.7 billion from overnight travelers
• Per-person overnight spending averaged $437
• Local transportation spending totaled nearly $3 billion
• Lodging spending reached $2.5 billion
• Food and beverage sales totaled $1.5 billion
• Retail purchases exceeded $1 billion, with 57 percent of visitors shopping at local businesses
• Recreation and entertainment spending reached $735 million

Top states sending overnight visitors to Denver, outside of Colorado, were Texas, California, Florida and Arizona. The top cities were Los Angeles, New York, Dallas-Fort Worth, Phoenix and Chicago.