8 pools and splash pads to try in the Fox Cities
Appleton, Neenah, Menasha, Little Chute and Kaukauna offer pools and splash pads. Here’s a run-down of some of the headlining amenities at each facility.
- Tourism generated $763 million in Outagamie County, Wisconsin, in 2024, a 5.3% increase from 2023.
- This includes $438.9 million in direct visitor spending, supporting 5,832 jobs and generating $48.6 million in state and local taxes.
- Statewide, Wisconsin tourism saw a record $25.8 billion economic impact in 2024.
Tourism contributed $763 million to the Fox Cities area economy in 2024, according to new data from the Wisconsin Department of Tourism.
The state on June 10 released its annual tourism economic impact report, which found visitors directly and indirectly contributed $25.8 billion to the Wisconsin economy in 2024, up 3.3% from $25 billion in 2023. Direct visitor spending exceeded $16.3 billion, an average of $44.5 million per day.
“Folks, Wisconsin just scored a tourism hat trick, with a record-high economic impact for tourism for the third year in a row, a record-high number of folks visiting our state, and record-high revenue generated from this critical industry. Tourism is such an important and amazing industry for our state, and I’m proud we’re on a record-breaking roll under my administration,” said Gov. Tony Evers in a news release.
In the Appleton area, tourism spending increased 5.3% in Outagamie County in 2024 compared to 2023.
How much does tourism contribute to the Appleton area’s economy?
Direct and indirect visitor spending in 2024 contributed $763 million to Outagamie County’s economy compared to $724 million in 2023. Here’s a closer look at key data for the region:
- Direct visitor spending: $438.9 million, up 6%
- Jobs supported: 5,832, up 3%
- State and local taxes generated: $48.6 million, up 5.6%
What do you mean by indirect spending?
The Wisconsin Department of Tourism each year hires Tourism Economics to calculate visitors’ economic impact statewide and in each of the 72 counties. It does so by combining direct visitor spending, indirect spending and induced spending.
- Direct visitor spending includes food, lodging, transportation, entertainment and other things a visitor purchases.
- Indirect spending includes goods and services travel businesses may purchase that ripple through a region’s supply chain and business community.
- Induced spending covers the money someone earns working at a tourist destination and spends at another local business to buy anything from groceries to services.
For Wisconsin, tourism’s $25.8 billion economic impact breaks down to $16.3 billion in direct spending, $4.8 billion in indirect sales and $4.8 billion in induced sales.
What are the top 5 counties for tourism economic impact in Wisconsin?
Here’s a look at the top five counties for total economic impact in 2024 and the increase compared to 2023:
- Milwaukee County: $4.3 billion, up 3.7%
- Dane County: $2.6 billion, up 3.5%
- Sauk County (Wisconsin Dells): $1.99 billion, up 1.4%
- Waukesha County: $1.76 billion, up 4.7%
- Brown County: $1.4 billion, up 5.4%
Outagamie County, for comparison, ranked seventh among the state’s counties, falling between Walworth County in sixth, and Door County in eighth place.
Contact business reporter Jeff Bollier at (920) 431-8387 or jbollier@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @JeffBollier.