Hello Tourists, Don’t Forget Your Masks
Sunny skies and a warm Hudson River breeze mean many things, but what is significant now is its signaling of the summer tourism season. With travel bans, social distancing, and stay-at-home orders having swept the globe, many tourist locations lost vital traffic, but the Hudson Valley never truly went dark.
Millions of Americans are vaccinated, and although summer travel is on the horizon, social distancing and proper mask attire are not yet a thing of the past.
Dutchess County is known for its alluring nature and its appeal is significant. More than 4.75 million visitors come through the area each year, according to Dutchess Tourism.
Although the pandemic derailed much of the usual visitation in the region last year, locals attended events and they became the target audience to market towards, said Melaine Rottkamp, the President and CEO of Dutchess Tourism Inc.
But now, the world appears to be re-opening as vaccine rollouts have resulted in 124 million fully vaccinated Americans, or 33.7% of the population. And, in Dutchess County, 43.25% of residents are fully vaccinated.
The Dutchess County region is projecting those numbers to be a promising signal towards the return of many out-of-state and international tourists — and, what that means for the economy of the region is significant.
The 2020 report by Tourism Economics showed visitors in Dutchess County, for the 2019 fiscal year, spent $674.2 million in the Hudson Valley. “That is a huge part of our economy, and we really miss that,” said Rottkamp. “It supports a lot of people.”
For Dutchess Tourism, the hub of “what to do” information in the region, marketing efforts never stopped, they merely pivoted their outreach to locals. For this reason, Rottkamp explained that the region was and is still is a hotspot for tourists, and the expectancy is for the summer to be no different.
Outdoor tourist destinations are the highlight of the Hudson Valley, resulting in less risk for transmitting the virus. The most popular is The Walkway over the Hudson, as well as many of the vast hiking trails.
Although the Hudson Valley tourism sector did not go completely dry throughout the pandemic, hotels were hit extremely hard, and are still recovering. Homewood Suites by Hilton in Poughkeepsie dropped to a low of 10% occupancy last year but is still confident in their come back.
Despite the hotel being desperate for new workers after having to let go of many staff members during the pandemic, the general manager of Homewood Suites, Hans Kleinganz, said that they are fully booked for weekends this summer.
In regards to vaccinated guests versus those who have not received the vaccine, Kleinganz does not believe that the industry will be implementing any protocols or necessity standards. To remedy this, the hotel requires social distancing as well as the utilization of masks on the property. “Are people even honest, or not, it is more of an honors system,” said Kleinganz.
Homewood Suites by Hilton in Poughkeepsie’s Outdoor Social Area
Hotel accommodations will be different though, with limited access to the outdoor lounge areas, fitness facilities, and limited food serving options.
This week, temperatures reached highs of 80 degrees, and so summer commences, and Dutchess County is ready to be a host again. “We pivot, just like everyone else,” said Rottkamp.
