News Release

Tourism to Gulf Islands National Seashore contributes 542M to the local economy

NPS/Wade

News Release Date: September 4, 2024 GULF BREEZE, Fla. – A new National Park Service report shows that 8.2 million visitors to Gulf Islands National Seashore in 2023 spent $417M in communities near the park. That spending supported 5,367 jobs in the local area and had a cumulative benefit to the local economy of $542M.

“People come to Gulf Islands National Seashore to visit an undeveloped beach, historic fortifications, and untrammeled islands, and end up supporting the US and local economies along the way,” said Superintendent Rick Clark.  “We’re proud that gulf islands can contribute to our local Gulf Coast communities of Ocean Springs Mississippi and Pensacola Florida.”

The National Park Service report, 2023 National Park Visitor Spending Effects, finds that 325.5 million visitors spent $26.4 billion in communities near national parks. This spending supported 415,400 jobs and provided $19.4 billion in labor income and $55.6 billion in economic output to the U.S. economy. The lodging sector had the highest direct contributions with $9.9 billion in economic output and 89,200 jobs. The restaurants received the next greatest direct contributions with $5.2 billion in economic output and 68,600 jobs.

“I’m so proud that our parks and the stories we tell make a lasting impact on more than 300 million visitors a year,” said National Park Service Director Chuck Sams. “And I’m just as proud to see those visitors making positive impacts of their own, by supporting local economies and jobs in every state in the country.”

An interactive tool is available to explore visitor spending, jobs, labor income, and total economic contribution by sector for national, state, and local economies. Users can also view year-by-year trend data. The interactive tool and report are available on the NPS website.

To learn more about national parks in Florida and Mississippi and how the National Park Service works with states’ communities to help preserve local history, conserve the environment, and provide outdoor recreation, go to www.nps.gov/florida or www.nps.gov/mississippi.

For more information, please follow the park’s social media accounts and website.  

About Gulf Islands National Seashore:  Created in 1971, the national seashore stretches 160 miles along the northern coast of the Gulf of Mexico in Florida and Mississippi, and includes barrier islands, maritime forests, historic forts, bayous, and marine habitat. Visit us at www.nps.gov/GulfIslands, on Facebook www.facebook.com/GulfIslandsNPS, Twitter www.twitter.com/GulfIslandsNPS, and Instagram www.Instagram.com/GulfIslandsNPS.

About the National Park Service. More than 20,000 National Park Service employees care for America’s 431 national parks and work with communities across the nation to help preserve local history and create close-to-home recreational opportunities. Learn more at www.nps.gov, and on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.