Microsoft Word 2007 ichrie conference Proceedings Final-Final 06-06-07. doc

DISCUSSIONS AND SUGGESTIONS 
This study shows the positive economic impacts of forecasted non-resident visitation to the Blue Ridge 
Parkway in North Carolina and Virginia in the year of 2007. The economic impact of travel to the Blue Ridge 
Parkway extended beyond the jobs and income it directly created. During the year of 2007, the largest beneficiaries 
of the Parkway’s economic impact will be in the “Hotels and Lodging Places”, “Eating and Drinking”, “Retail 
Trade”, and “Services” sectors. These four business sectors will have a higher degree of dependence on the “non-
resident tourist industry”. Thus, the use of earned money to improve facilities, goods, and services in businesses 
(lodging places, food industries, retails, and services) may increase visitors’ satisfactory levels. Since the lodging 
industry has expected to benefit from non-resident visitors, it should concentrate promotional efforts on this non-
resident visitor segment. While the Parkway is closed (due to weather, construction, or policy conditions), the 
tourism-related organizations along the Parkway may cooperate with each other in creating new recreational activity 
opportunities such as special events in the adjacent local areas. These opportunities will entice the visitors to play, 
stay longer and spend money during the winter festival season. 
Visitors to the Parkway are expected to be made up of primarily travelers (79%) from outside the counties 
contiguous to the Parkway. Suppose 1,000 travel groups visit to the Parkway, 790 parties will be estimated to be 
non-resident groups and 210 travel parties will be from the counties adjacent to the Parkway. Therefore, tourism-
related-organizations along the Parkway may consider applying more promotional activities such as “15% discount 
for non-residents’ and 20% discount for residents’ purchasing at some souvenir stores” to increase both resident and 
non-resident visitors’ purchasing power. In addition, creating various programs such as “New Friends of the Blue 
Ridge Parkway”, “A Calling from the Blue Ridge Parkway - It’s Your Second Home”, may encourage non-resident 
visitors to revisit and educate them how to protect this mountain region. 

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