The Kennewick courier-reporter. [volume] (Kennewick, Wash.) 1939-1949, 1949-02-17
Chamber Studies Facts
About Tourist Business


Washington State college has
just completed a 81 page bulletin
Washington Tourist Survey, 49,
40" which sets forth figures
which are being studied by the
Kennewick chamber of commerce.
The co-authors are Dean Maui
rice w. Lee, head of the school
of economics and business, and
Donald Greenaway, associate pro-
lessor Of hotel administration.
The study, reveals the mighty
tourist industry still in the pro-
cess Of growing, the 1947 overall
total tourist expenditure of APP
proximately $96, 100000 expand
ing In 1913 to be In excess Of
$ll6, 100000. a.9S]. N
The average tourist party COM
ing into Washington during 1913
spent an average Of $698.86; stay
ed an average Of some three
weeks; travelled an average of
slightly more than eight hundred
miles; with the average party
numbering two people.
Food leads in per dollar value
among the items purchased per
tourist party. $62.63 averaged
within Washington. Other major
expenses per party run; Lodging,
S48.51; entertainment, $l8.29;
clothing, $l1.s3. Translated by
totals these run: Food, $50, 600, 600:
lodging. $2s, 000,0 900; entertain
ment, $l1,000,000; clothing, ST.
100000; others Combined, $685.
100000.
Relative popularity of scenic
attractions in Washington is given
in a table Of percentage of re-
spondent visits" running on a ba-
sis of 1907; Puget Sound, 20.5%;
national forests, 1917; Mt. Rain
er, 1870; Coulee Dam, 15%; State
parks, 1857; Olympic peninsula,
1890 Lake Chelan, 6.6%; others
reported, liz.
In 1913 slightly higher per-
centage of tourists entered the
state by car than in the preced-
ing year, the exact figures being
$3.50, as against 8O.83o. More
also came by bus, SO in '48 as
against 43o in AZ. Train and
plane suffered some relative los
SEES, 7.3% coming by railroad in
'4S and 2.3% by airplane.
Travellers stayed (by percentage
in the following Accommodations:
auto court, 34.4SS; with friends
and relatives, 22.8%; hotel 10th
er than resort hotels), 22.9%; re-
sort hotel, 10.3%: trailer court,
Az; cottage, 49,; OF herarc-
commodations, 3.3%.
The study. shows that with
a total of 100000 tourist auto
mobiles entering Washington in
1949, 25l,666 tourist parties enter
over the land-Vancouver
.tldge, and (by way Of example
4 Elbow how they fan out through
the stated 1929 of these tourists
will for instance' ultimately go
to Spokane.
August is the heaviest month
for entrance with 106,440 cars
t21.79o) entering then. July with
1862 is next greatest and Sep
TENDER third with 1872. Other
months runs as follows: June,
1913 SO; May, 1890; October 1870;
April 4.6%; November 4.3%; De-
cember, 2.9%; February, 2.49o;
January, 1872.
Tourists bought some 29,793,-
200 gallons Of gasoline, paying
some million and half dollars in
gas taxes, to travel an estimated
446, $4,000 miles over Washing
ton roads in 1948. "Basically'
write Professors Lee and Greena-
way 'The Washington tourist
market appears to lie with middle
and upper income groups. The
average vacationer in Washington
will tend to fall in the middle
income group, though more than
a third will be in the higher
groups with annual incomes in
excess Of $4,000 a year. Only
about sixth of those mentioning
in Washington have annual in |
comes of less than $4,000.
"The average tourist to Wash /
ington, by virtue Of the position |
to which his income has accus-
toned him, will not be content
with shabby ill-kept accommoda- !
tons, unsanitary eating facilities, !
or lack of favorable treatment
while within the state"
The neighboring coast states
Of California and Oregon pro-
OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES