81 North Carolina Travel and Tourism Statistics to Know for 2023

Key Points

• North Carolina is the 9th most visited state in the US, tied with Virginia, and the Tarheel State welcomed 43 million visitors in 2022 alone. 
• Visitors spent $33.3 billion in North Carolina in 2022, with the vast majority of it coming from in-state visitors.
• Charlotte and Raleigh are the largest airports, serving a combined total of almost 60 million passengers in 2022.
• The Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the only national park in the state, has welcomed over 9.8 million visitors so far this year. It welcomed almost 13 million visitors in 2022.

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North Carolina, with its stunning mountain views in the west and long stretches of sandy beaches in the east, is the 9th most visited state in the country, tied with Virginia, according to Statista.

It is also one of the fastest-growing states in the country. According to the US Census Bureau, North Carolina ranks 3rd in the country for growth in the total number of people moving into the state.

In this comprehensive report, we’ll look at statistics to know about North Carolina travel and tourism for 2023.

Visitors

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According to the NC Department of Commerce, the leisure and hospitality industry employs 538,200 people, as of August 2023. They also report that direct tourism provided 216,900 jobs for North Carolinians in 2022.

A visitor is defined as “a device with a home OR work location (to exclude commuters) more than 30 miles from destination. This visitor device must visit one of the points of interest Zartico mapped out, which include accommodations, state/national parks, retail locations, restaurants, bars, cultural attractions, and universities.”

In 2022:

• Visitors spent $91 million per day in North Carolina.
• 2%, or 1 out of 50, of all North Carolina residents are employed in tourism.
• 87% of visitors came for leisure, 10% came for business (personal or otherwise), and 3% came for other reasons.

As of October 25, 2023, 69.4% of all visitors this year were from out-of-state, while 30.6% were in-state visitors.

For the purposes of credit card spending, a visitor is defined as “as a cardholder who is more than 60 miles away from their home (billing) ZIP Code. The cardholder needs to spend in visitor-defined Merchant Category Codes (MCC Codes).”

• Around one-fourth of all credit card spending in North Carolina comes from visitors. 
• For the week of September 24, 2023, visitors accounted for 23% of total credit card spending.

Counties

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Some parts of North Carolina are more popular destinations than others. Here are key statistics to know about the most and least popular areas:

Spending

Visitors spent $33.3 billion in NC in 2022, the most recent year data are available:

• $32.4 billion was from domestic tourism.
• $910.1 million was from international tourism.

2022 total annual spending by county highlights:

Mecklenburg County was the top county by spending, at $5,332,340,000, or about 5.3 billion. This is 16% of all visitor spending in North Carolina. 
Read More: CRVA News and Resources

This comes as little surprise, as Mecklenburg is home to Charlotte, the largest city in North Carolina and a huge East Coast banking and business hub. 

Mecklenburg County is followed by:

• Wake County: total spending $2,951,560,000

Wake County is home to Raleigh, the capital city of North Carolina.
Read More: Wake County 2023 Second Quarter Tourism Industry Report

• Buncombe County: total spending $2,879,280,000

Much of this tourism spending is likely in Asheville, a very popular mountain destination and trendy town filled with boutique stores, restaurants, and much more.
Read More: Buncombe County Destination Dashboard and Performance Index

• Dare County: total spending $1,973,690,000

Dare County is on the coast and is home to the Cape Hatteras National Seashore, Nags Head, and Kill Devil Hills.
Read More: The Outer Banks Statistical Information

• Camden County was the lowest county by spending, at just $3,590,000.

It’s a shame that Camden County is one of the least-visited counties in North Carolina. It is right on the coast, near the border with Virginia, and is home to the Dismal Swamp State Park and delicious food like the Belcross Biscuit Company. 

Lowest spending after Camden County is as follows:

• Jones County: total spending $6,260,000

Jones County is also on the coast, but right next to New Bern. The Hoffman Forest and Croatan National Forest are both in Jones County.

• Tyrrell County: total spending $6,740,000

On the coast hugging Albemarle Sound, Tyrrell County is home to the beautiful Pocosin Lakes National Wildlife Refuge. 

• Gates County: total spending $9,790,000

Gates County is on the border with Virginia in northeastern North Carolina. Parts of the Great Dismal Swamp are in Gates County.

Airports

Charlotte Douglas International Airport and Raleigh Durham International Airport are the two largest airports in the state.

Here are key statistics for each one.

Charlotte Douglas International Airport (CLT)

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• Charlotte Douglas International Airport (CLT) is the busiest airport, serving almost 48 million passengers in 2022.
• As of September 2023, CLT has handled 397,634 flights this year. 316,734 are classified as air carriers (i.e. commercial flights).
• Enplaned passenger data, calendar year-to-date, as of September 2023:
  • Total: 19,619,828 enplaned passengers
  • 1,610,378 were on international flights
  • 18,009,450 were on domestic flights
• Deplaned passenger data, calendar year-to-date, as of September 2023:
  • Total: 19,737,696 deplaned passengers.
• The vast majority of passengers going through CLT have flown on American Airlines:
  • 17,553,903 (89.4%) of enplaned passengers
  • 17,639,602 (89.3%) of deplaned passengers

Raleigh Durham International Airport (RDU)

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• Raleigh Durham International Airport (RDU) is the second-busiest airport, serving a total of 11.8 million passengers in 2022.
• Enplaned passenger data, calendar year-to-date, as of September 2023:
  • Total: 5,348,708 enplaned passengers.
  • Total: 5,314,936 enplaned passengers, after subtracting connecting flights.
  • 176,788 were on international flights.
  • 4,590,540 passengers have been served by major carriers.
  • 710,557 passengers have been served by regional carriers.
• Deplaned passenger data, calendar year-to-date, as of September 2023:
  • Total: 5,355,374 deplaned passengers. 
  • Total: 5,328,328 deplaned passengers, after subtracting connecting flights.
  • 171,493 were on international flights.
  • 4,606,482 were on major carriers.
  • 700,140 were on regional carriers.
• The busiest airline at RDU for 2023 is Delta, followed by American.

Lodging

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Below data is total year-to-date, as of September 1, 2023.

Hotels

• The hotel occupancy rate is 63.4%.
• The hotel average daily rate (ADR) is $124 per night.
• Hotels have brought in a total of $4.4 billion in revenue.

Vacation Rentals

• The vacation rental occupancy rate is 58.5%.
• The vacation rental average daily rate (ADR) is $319 per night.
• Vacation rentals have brought in a total of $2.1 billion in revenue.

National Parks

There are a total of 12 parks in North Carolina managed by the National Park Service (NPS). Only one of those, the Great Smoky Mountains, is a National Park.

Here are key statistics about popular NPS parks in North Carolina.

Great Smoky Mountains

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• There were a total of 12,937,633 visitors in 2022.

As of September 2023, for the Great Smoky Mountains National Park:

• There have been 9,816,415 visitors this year.
• This represents a 1.2% increase from last year (2022) at the same time.
• The most popular access point is the Sugarlands Visitor Center, which is actually in Gatlinburg, Tennessee. It has welcomed 3,070,959 visitors, or 31.3% of all visitors this year.
• The most popular access point in North Carolina is the Oconaluftee Visitor Center, in Cherokee, NC. It has welcomed 1,747,775 visitors, or 17.8% of all visitors this year.

Blue Ridge Parkway

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• There were a total of 15,711,004 visitors in 2022.
• As of September 2023, there have been 92,233 overnight visitors this year:
  • 14,485 visitors have stayed at the Pisgah Inn.
  • 12,068 visitors have stayed at the Peaks of Otter Lodge.
  • The most popular campground overall is the Mount Pisgah Campground. 12,306 tent campers and 10,028 RV campers have stayed overnight there.
  • The most popular tent campground is the Julian Price Campground. 14,261 tent campers have stayed overnight there. 6,953 RV campers have stayed overnight there.

Cape Hatteras National Seashore

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• There were a total of 2,862,844 visitors in 2022.

As of September 2023, this year:

• There have been a total of 2,359,122 visitors.
• This is a 1.8% decrease from the same time last year.
• The Hatteras Island Visitor Center has welcomed 309,025 visitors.
• The Bodie Island Visitor Center has welcomed 121,272 visitors.
• There have been 65,887 tent overnight stays and 68,647 RV overnight stays.

Cape Lookout National Seashore

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• There were a total of 541,533 visitors in 2022.

As of October 2023, this year:

• There have been a total of 433,475 visitors.
• This is a 10.1% decrease from the same time last year.
• 194,772 visitors came by private boat.
• The Harkers Island Picnic Area has welcomed 62,722 visitors.

Restaurants

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Here are some key statistics to know about North Carolina restaurants, which are supported by both locals and visitors:

• There are a total of 22,097 restaurants and places to eat and drink in North Carolina.
• Foodservice jobs accounted for 10% of all employment in North Carolina in 2022, or a total of 492,100 jobs.
• The foodservice industry has estimated 2022 revenues of $30 billion in North Carolina.

The Bottom Line

North Carolina is a bounty of scenic beauty, trendy cities, and good food, so it’s no wonder it’s such a popular place to visit. Travel and tourism is a big source of income, jobs, and tax revenue for North Carolinians.

This report, which compiles data from numerous sources, provides a comprehensive picture of travel and tourism in the Tarheel State.