Tourism

When tourism came to an abrupt halt in March, destination marketing organizations saw their primary revenue stream — a percentage of lodging taxes or “bed taxes” — tumble overnight.

Proving to be an unwelcome visitor to travel economies like the North Bay, COVID-19 has slashed in half tourism spending in California.

For the first time in more than two centuries, the people were gone.

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Nueces County Coastal Parks Director Scott Cross says, if the weather is nice, crowds flock to coastal beaches every year during the Thanksgiving holiday period.

Line-Noue Memea Kruse lives on Oahu’s famed North Shore, where marveling at sea turtles, epic waves and sunsets that paint the sky orange and purple are a must for many tourists in Hawaii.

Enjoying nature while preserving it is an age-old conflict in California, but nowhere is it more fraught than at Oceano Dunes. Can off-roading and endangered species coexist?

Once hunted to near extinction, whales used to be an important resource for their blubber, meat, and baleen. More recently, they have proven to be more valuable alive.

Cape Hatteras National Seashore (Seashore) hosted 259,618 visits* last month, up 37.58% from October 2019.

This year has been a rollercoaster for many of those who manage rental properties in the beach towns that dot the coastline of Southeastern North Carolina.

The collapse of the South Carolina tourism industry picked up additional downward momentum during the first week of November – with revenue losses accelerating amidst another spike in coronavirus cases.

Fights over beach access rights are nothing new.

Kristine Kolbus understands why people flock to the popular trailhead near her property in the heart of the Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore.

For most of this year, Honolulu’s Waiola Shave Ice had one window open for business, instead of the usual two.

Three Cape Fear area towns are getting money from the state to improve beach access and parks.

After a seven-month ban on vehicle entry, the Oceano Dunes State Vehicular Recreation Area (SVRA) opened its gates to street-legal vehicles on Oct. 30, a day that was met with celebrations, protests, and even a lawsuit.

Of Cayman’s 108 registered beach-access paths, nearly a half – 55 – remain blocked to the public or have no identifying signage, according to figures supplied by the Public Lands Commission.

There are reasons for optimism in Lee County's tourism industry.

Can there be too much of a good thing in the National Park System?

The COVID-19 pandemic has shown us what we gain -- and lose -- from having so many visitors in the islands.

With the tourism industry heading into what is expected to be a very bleak winter, Tourism Vancouver Island has decided to focus its energy on pandemic recovery, meaning it has opted out of its contract with the City of Nanaimo to manage the destination marketing of the city.

Great Lakes parks have always been popular among outdoor enthusiasts. This summer, however, pandemic-weary residents on both sides of the border flocked to them – many for the first time – just as services such as campsites, visitors’ centers, washrooms and interpretive programs were closed to help contain COVID-19.

The Panamanian government on Saturday reopened beaches to tourists after they had been closed for seven months to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.

The country Fiji is located in the Southern Pacific and consists of 333 islands. It is famous for its characteristic landscapes, with once active volcanoes covered by lush rainforests, beaches lined with palm trees, and vibrant coral reefs with crystal clear waters.

Gulf Islands National Seashore has completed damage assessments and all Mississippi barrier islands are now open for visitor access, except the Ship Island pier remains closed due to Hurricane Sally damage and the Ship Island facilities including restrooms and the water system are closed per routine seasonal closures.

The bulk of Goa’s average annual 7.8 million tourists head to the coastal belts, and beach shacks are considered to be a major attraction. This year, however, the Covid-19 pandemic presents unusual uncertainties and challenges.

California State Parks on Tuesday announced plans to reopen the Oceano Dunes State Vehicular Recreation Area (SVRA) and Pismo State Beach to vehicle use.

V.I. lawmakers, in an effort to clarify and better enforce beach access in the territory, have advanced a bill that demonstrably opens shorelines to the public and does away with loopholes that have allowed property owners to continue restricting access.

The research authors emphasised the necessity of regular pollutant monitoring in the marine environment

DeFUNIAK SPRINGS — In remaking its case for a declaration of customary use across all of its beaches, Walton County has parsed 21.4 miles of private property into five distinct zones and argues the public should be allowed access to the dry, white sands in each.

As strange as it may seem, the demand for tourism and hospitality jobs in Port Stephens has never been greater.

As summer dawned in Ocean City, Maryland, some public health officials feared that outbreaks among beach-goers could reverse a declining COVID-19 trends statewide.

Cape Hatteras National Seashore (Seashore) experienced a 42% increase in recreational visitation* last month compared to September 2019.

WILMINGTON, N.C. (WECT) - An ambitious project is looking to connect two portions of the East Coast Greenway in Brunswick County while recognizing and promoting the history of the Gullah Geechee people who settled across the southern coastal counties in North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida.

When donors rallied to save the Seward institution, they extended a lifeline to valuable research, educational programs, and wildlife rescue and rehabilitation.

BERLIN, Md. — Very few positive developments have come from COVID-19, but new data suggests the pandemic could be a reason why Maryland state parks and Assateague Island National Seashore have shattered their previous attendance records.

From the Cronulla riots to exclusive real estate, beaches have often been inaccessible to many in Australia

Just before 7:30 in the morning on a Saturday in August, Lisa Soriano waited patiently near the entrance to Britt’s Donuts, a Carolina Beach Boardwalk fixture since 1939.

Three barrier islands near Charleston have spent the last several months slowly choking off public access to their beaches, creating an uproar around the state over who deserves the right to use South Carolina beaches: islanders or outsiders.

If you’ve visited Destin’s beaches recently, the city wants to hear about it.

Study: Maui County businesses are hardest hit by the shutdown of tourism

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — Unlike past holidays during this pandemic, the upcoming Labor Day weekend will offer South Floridians more choices for outings.

As many as 30 beaches across Scotland have been polluted in breach of sewage safety limits so far this summer, according to data from the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (Sepa).

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (CBS12) — The tourism industry plays an important role in Palm Beach County's economy, accounting for more than 70,000 jobs and billions of dollars. It's an industry that's been hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic.

BAY CITY, MI — State officials have resumed testing the water of Saginaw Bay and the beaches lining it.

EMERALD ISLE — Although it might seem counterintuitive, the coronavirus pandemic appears to have increased beach visitation to Carteret County this summer, at least in June, the latest month for which 2020 figures are available.

The Isle of Palms moved ahead with plans to eliminate all free beach season parking for non-residents starting in 2021, and would charge more for parking than many beach communities in South Carolina.

New research indicates the ecosystem of the Hanauma Bay Nature Preserve ecosystem has been growing healthier since it was closed to visitors March 18 due to the novel coronavirus pandemic, the City and County of Honolulu Department of Parks and Recreation announced today.

When Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, told Spring Break visitors to leave back in March, politicians and business owners thought a brief closure would save the tourist town’s summer season.

Editor's Note: As Labor Day Weekend approaches, here is a guide to beach access and closures around the American shoreline.

From Blackpool to Cornwall, UK attractions are opening longer to make up for lost lockdown business

OAK ISLAND — After being closed off to traffic and visitors for a month in the middle of the island’s busiest season, Oak Island reopened its west end Friday morning, right in time for Labor Day weekend.

On Hilton Head Island, summer tourism is the lifeblood.

When the coronavirus shut down city parks and recreation centers last spring, Hampton Roads residents and some tourists headed to one of the few public spaces open for exercise: the Virginia Beach Boardwalk.

Hotel occupancy in Santa Monica is down by 48% compared to occupancy in January through July last year, with an economic knock-on slamming hospitality workers, local businesses, and City tax revenues.

EMERALD ISLE — Occupancy tax revenue for July “blew away” the previous one-month record, Carteret County Shore Protection Office Manager Greg Rudolph said Tuesday.

Like superheroes, Oregon coast towns have their origin stories, too. Yet not every one of them includes a much sought-after science mystery of sound.

Our coastline has seen some strange things make their their way to shore

Cameron County beach accesses and beach parks reopened this past Tuesday, as Texas sees its COVID-19 positivity rate dipping below 10 percent for the first time since late June.

The closure of beach access roads to traffic and the lack of self isolating at popular landmarks this summer are among several reasons why a review into tourism infrastructure is needed urgently.

Rome (CNN) — For all too brief a time, the Italian summer offered a glimmer of hope. After emerging from what was in early 2020, one of the world's harshest coronavirus lockdowns, Italy managed to dust itself down in time to welcome visitors.

SAN DIEGO — In San Diego's Little Italy, there's never been more sidewalk dining. In Balboa Park, museumgoers are joining the joggers. In hotels from Coronado to Mission Valley, tourists are turning up.

HONOLULU, Hawaii (HawaiiNewsNow) - Users of Hanauma Bay are pushing for an online reservation system to reduce the number of visitors and protect the bay’s ecosystem.

BELMAR, NJ — Belmar raked in more than $4.9 million in beach access revenues this season — selling nearly 105,000 more beach badges over the previous year.

By some measures, Maine defied expectations that restrictions prompted by the coronavirus pandemic would doom small and seasonal businesses dependent on annual mobs of tourists.

For almost ten years, coastal resorts and communities in the Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico region have been blindsided by the problem of rotting sargassum washing up to shore, threatening ecosystems and local economies.

Never before has the tourism industry faced a crisis like this.

The extension of a popular walking track is expected to further boost tourism within the Kiama municipality.

Residents in Beach Bay who are fighting the development of a ten-storey hotel in their quiet residential community have argued that the project should not have been approved, not only because it breaches planning legislation but because there will be no benefit to Cayman.

Ron Starling comes to historic American Beach at least once a week.

Coastal South Carolina leaders will likely have a new revenue stream for fighting flooding and sea-level rise caused by climate change thanks to a bill passed by the state legislature this week.

Fencing to be built along train tracks on bluffs

WASHINGTON – Toxic algae and bacteria forced the closure of at least 116 U.S. beaches and triggered health warnings at 162 more this spring and summer, according to an investigation by the Environmental Working Group.

It's been six months since vehicles were allowed in the Oceano Dunes State Vehicular Recreation Area (SVRA), and some community members want it to stay that way—at least until the COVID-19 pandemic is under control.

BRUNSWICK, Ga. (AP) — A coastal Georgia county is considering banning alcohol from a popular beach on the weekend of the Florida-Georgia football game in nearby Jacksonville, Florida.

Cancun, Riviera Maya, Q.R. — The Senate of the Republic has approved to guarantee free access to Mexican beaches and apply fines of up to one million peso to those who fail to comply.