Down Home Hospitality: It’s Hotels & Inns Week!

  |  August 17, 2015
28 woodcrest milton ny

It doesn’t take a ton of research to determine that tourism is big business in the Hudson Valley and Catskills. But we did a little, anyway, because that’s how we roll. According to a July article from Hudson Valley News Network, tourism dollars in New York State during 2014 reached an all-time high of $100.1 billion. Yes, billion, the one with a “b”. Now, we know that number encompasses all of New York, but you’d have to be living in a cave deep in the far western Catskills not to see that a good portion of that $100 billion was spent right here in our own backyard. Speaking of the Catskills, here’s something we found from the Sullivan County Visitor’s Association vis-a-vis tourism growth in the Sullivan County Catskills during 2014:

“Tourism spending was up across all measured sectors: second homes, lodging, food and beverage, transportation, retail and service stations, and recreation. Second homes and lodging made up the majority of total moneys spent. In Sullivan County alone, spending on second homes totaled $125.8 million, while spending on lodging totaled $143.4 million, up $4 million from 2013.”

Okay, so we added the bold text to highlight that second homes and lodging brings in the most tourism money in Sullivan County, and the trend is heading in an upward direction. And that’s just Sullivan County. Are these numbers making you feel giddy? Did you read this article in the NYT penned by Upstater co-founder Lisa Selin Davis on the Spruceton Inn? If you found yourself with butterflies in your stomach after reading it and thought, “Hey, I want in on this growing tourism and hospitality industry,” you might want to pay attention to this week’s listing selections, because they are all potential hotel, inn, B&B, and resort properties. All week long, we’ll be posting our picks for places that could accommodate those visitors looking to spend their cold hard cash in the Hudson Valley/Catskills. And since they’re going to spend that cash, anyway, might as well spend it at your new country inn, right? Here comes the caveat: We here at Upstater are not investment experts. We are not advising you to invest in any particular part of the Catskills or Hudson Valley. If you’re looking for that, we suggest reaching out to a professional. As always, we painstakingly comb the listings to pick out the properties that scream potential, and we hope you have as much fun looking at them as we did picking them out. Stay tuned…

About Kandy Harris

Kandy is a writer and musician/music teacher living in Saugerties, NY.

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