Tourism to Gulf Islands National Seashore contributes 514M to local economies

Contact: Stephenie Sztendera, 8503937952

GULF BREEZE, Fla. -- A new National Park Service report shows that 7.8 million visitors to Gulf Islands National Seashore in 2024 spent $411 million in communities near the park.

A total of 88% of the visitors were nonlocals. The park's campgrounds continue to remain the top 3 most recreated RV campground in the national park system.

"People come to Gulf Islands National Seashore from far and wide to enjoy the emerald coast waters and world class, sugar-like sand beaches and rich cultural history of the seashore in Florida and barrier islands in Mississippi, which also translates to their supporting the various local gateway communities and associated economies," said Superintendent Rick Clark. "We're proud that visitation to Gulf Islands National Seashore also results in the support to our gateway communities, including Pensacola, Pensacola Beach, Gulf Breeze, and Navarre in Florida and Ocean Springs, Biloxi, and Gulf Port in Mississippi."

The National Park Service report, 2024 National Park Visitor Spending Effects, finds that visitors spent $29 billion in communities near national parks. This spending provided $18.8 billion in labor income and $56.3 in economic output to the U.S. economy. The lodging sector had the highest direct contributions with $11.1 billion in economic output. Restaurants received the next greatest direct contributions with $5.7 billion in economic output.

An interactive tool is available to explore visitor spending, labor income, and total economic contribution by sector for national, state and local economies. Users can also view year-by-year trend data. The interactive tool and report are available on the NPS website.

To learn more about national parks in Florida and Mississippi and how the National Park Service works with the communities to help preserve local history, conserve the environment, and provide outdoor recreation, go to www.nps.gov/guis.

About the National Park Service. More than 20,000 National Park Service employees care for America's 430+ national parks and work with communities across the nation to help preserve local history and create close-to-home recreational opportunities. Learn more at www.nps.gov, and on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.