The Santa Barbara South Coast saw about 6.5 million visitors last year — who spent about $2.24 billion and generated $82.9 million in local tax revenues — Visit Santa Barbara shared at its Tourism Summit on Wednesday.
The group shared the results from its 2023 visitor profile and economic impact study, discussed travel trends and moderated a discussion about Delta Air Lines returning to the Santa Barbara Airport in June.
Starting June 7, Delta Air Lines will be back at the Santa Barbara Airport with daily nonstop flights to and from Atlanta and Salt Lake City.
“From the day that I started, that was the number one question that was asked of me,” Santa Barbara Airport Director Christopher Hastert said. “‘When is Delta coming back?’”
Hastert said that the addition of these services from Delta adds 30 international destinations out of Santa Barbara with just one stop.
Visit Santa Barbara President and CEO Kathy Janega-Dykes also said that Delta returning increases the airport’s capacity by 35%.
Tourism Study and Travel Trends
The 2023 visitor profile study showed that 4% of visitors arriving to Santa Barbara through the airport were from international destinations. Of the domestic visitors arriving through the airport, 70% were from out-of-state.
When the study looked at all visitors, not just people who flew into town, 13% of visitors were international and 36% were from other states.
The visitor profile also had data from visitors on cruise ships, showing that the 47,400 visitor volume spent a total of about $3.2 million.
According to the study results, the primary reason for travelers’ visits was for vacation, and the top three things they intended to do while in Santa Barbara were go to restaurants, visit the State Street Promenade, and shopping.
Janega-Dykes said that the year ahead has an “increasingly optimistic outlook” for the hospitality and travel industry on the Santa Barbara South Coast, especially with 10 of the next 12 months already booked ahead of pace.
Travelzoo Senior Editor Gabe Saglie shared travel trends and insights.
One of the things Saglie said the Santa Barbara travel industry can work on would be to figure out how to get the day-trip visitors to stay overnight.
According to the visitor profile study, about 64% of the 6.5 million visitors were just visiting the area for the day.
Looking ahead, Saglie said he expects the top five travel trends for the year to be: wellness, with travelers looking for wellness experiences “beyond that 50-minute massage”; sustainability; “shoulder season” travel between the peak and off-peak seasons; culinary travel with more intimate experiences; and travelers seeking outdoor adventures.