Pennsylvania’s tourism industry is staying on a strong comeback trend, according to a 2024 economic impact report released just this week. And with the nation’s 250th anniversary next year—there’s more to look forward to.

Over 200 million people visited Pennsylvania in 2024, according to a report published by Pennsylvania's Tourism Office on Tuesday. The visitor numbers are equal to 2016 levels. The industry generated $84 billion for the economy, and supported around 500,000 jobs.

Here in the Great Lakes Region, visitors spent $2 billion in 2024. There was 137 more jobs directly supported by visitor spending. The solar eclipse last April certainly helped with any local boosts— but overall the region did not see a significant spike in growth compared to other parts of the state in 2024.

Tourism is expected to keep growing. Just today, Pennsylvania had two locations on recognized as one of the best places to enjoy fall foliage in a USA Today Top 10 list.

Next year, Pennsylvania is hosting four major sporting events, including the NFL draft and the FIFA World Cup. And the Commonwealth is hosting the United State’s 250th anniversary celebration in Philadelphia.

The tourism office is expecting an explosion of activity.

"I'm so excited to just celebrate America 250, and the state that helped found the nation too. I mean no one else can claim that across the nation except for us,” said Katie Burger, executive director for the Pennsylvania Tourism Office. "You know we really feel like we're setting the stage to really welcome the world to Pennsylvania and have a record breaking year across the board.”


To get the state in tip top shape, Gov. Josh Shapiro has proposed allocating $65 million in this year’s budget towards event preparations, security, and promotion. With the current budget impasse, not having access to funds could start hindering community efforts to prepare.