Personal finance website WalletHub has published rankings of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the tourism industries of the US states.
Here are some statistics for New England:
Overall rank on COVID-19 impact (low numbers mean big impacts):
- Vermont #4
- Massachusetts #5
- New Hampshire #7
- Maine #11
- Rhode Island #12
- Connecticut #13
State dependency on travel and tourism:
- Vermont #5
- New Hampshire #6
- Massachusetts #11
- Connecticut #12
- Maine #15
- Rhode Island #16
(The reason those rankings are in different order is: WalletHub rates the "state aggressiveness against coronavirus" higher for RI, MA and VT higher than that of ME, NH and CT.)
New England states ranking in the top 5 on other measures include:
Highest share of businesses in travel and tourism-related industries:
- Maine #5
Highest travel spend per travel employee:
- Connecticut #1
- New Hampshire #3
- Massachusetts #5
Highest share of consumer expenditures on travel:
- Connecticut #3
- Massachusetts #4
- Rhode Island #16
Opinions of 6 experts consulted by WalletHub as to how long COVID-19 travel restrictions will remain in place range from:
- "Lifted in 2 months (but 2020 lost to tourism)" through
- "All of 2020, maybe first half of 2021" to
- "Only when a vaccine has been developed, probably not before fall/winter 2021"
Stay tuned for updates.
