Leading indicators point to a pent-up demand for outdoor travel

Summer bookings on the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad are above 2019 pace and that was considered a good year for the train. (Jerry McBride / Durango Herald)

JERRY McBRIDE

Last year’s surprise surge in tourism, when people looking for secluded outdoor recreational opportunities found a seizure in southwest Colorado, is expected to extend into this summer.

“I think what I have identified as the unique benefits of La Plata County will certainly continue to work in our favor,” said Rachel Brown, Executive Director of Visit Durango. “We’re rural, we’re remote, and there is plenty of free time outdoors.”

The Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad has had solid bookings for the summer, and train managers believe they have a chance to transport 200,000 drivers this year.

Solid signs of a good tourism season are also coming from Steamworks Brewing Co. and the Strater Hotel.

Kris Oyler, Co-Founder and CEO of Peak Food and Beverage, believes Durango is better off with COVID-19 and prepared for an excellent tourism season.

Durango is primarily a recreational tourism market – which means conferences and business meetings are not factors here – and that too has a positive impact on the city.

Tori Ossola, general manager at the Strater Hotel, said the return of the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge train journeys to Silverton was especially helpful for the historic inn. Many tourists take the historic railway and spend the night in the inn, which was built in 1887, the heyday of the steam locomotive. (Jerry McBride / Durango Herald)

JERRY McBRIDE

According to Brown, tourism experts believe that recreational tourism “will recover much faster” than conventions, conferences and business trips.

“Nationally, they predict that travel expenses will be fully recovered by December 2022. I would say that just because we’re rural and remote, I’d say we’ll be well ahead of that,” Brown said.

Last year, tourism marketing was limited to educating travelers about safe practices during the pandemic and reminding people to keep an eye on Durango for years to come when travel would be safe again.

This year’s $ 300,000 Always in Season marketing campaign returns to a more normal message. However, Brown said the focus this year will be on visiting visitors from August through March, the non-peak season.

The promotion of off-season travel aims to create a more sustainable visiting pattern – spreading visitors out over the year and reducing their impact on the environment.

Other things from the COVID-19 pandemic linger.

Visit Durango’s homepage and encourage anyone visiting this summer to get a full vaccination before they arrive.

Visit Durango is also buying billboards in Las Vegas and Los Angeles, two new markets served with flights to Durango this summer.

The radius people are willing to drive for excursions has increased during the COVID-19 pandemic, and that’s another reason Brown believes Durango is ready for a good summer. Some drivers are willing to drive up to 10 hours in the car.

“It’s the road trip era right now for obvious reasons,” she said.

Oyler said the tourism season apparently started in mid-May this year – a few weeks before the traditional Memorial Day weekend and the Iron Horse Bicycle Classic run.

In addition to Steamworks, Peak operates Food & Beverage Birds and El Moro Spirits and Tavern.

“We see more out-of-town visitors to our restaurants than we usually do this time of year,” said Oyler. “Usually the season starts on Memorial Day weekend. But it doesn’t get super crowded until mid-June. But we can already see it start up. “

Brown said pent-up demand for travel is leading to an early start to summer travel this year.

Research shows nationwide that 89% of people plan to travel this summer, and 43% of households saved some of the $ 1,400 in stimulus money they received in March to pay for their trips.

Oyler said, “I think there is a demand to do something because people have been in bottles for a year and a half. I think that’s huge. “

Tori Ossola, general manager of the Starter Hotel, says an easy return to normal will help with the resumption of D & SNG to Silverton trips and bus groups allowed back on the roads.

“The train expects a good summer. And that always helps the Strater because people want that full experience – the historic hotel and the historic train ride, ”she said.

Bus tours often combine train journeys with stays in the Strater. The resumption of these group outings means the return of a steady stream of tourists and income.

For the next three weeks, the Strater Hotel will be 90% occupied, said Ossola.

The biggest concern in Durango is the ability to hire employees to meet demand.

The improved unemployment benefit, which offers an additional $ 300 per week, will remain in place through September 6, reducing the labor pool.

The Strater currently has 15 open positions.

Ossola said the inn is changing its work schedule and offering a lot of overtime.

The Strater’s restaurants are closed on Mondays and Tuesdays due to staff problems. Ossola aims to have the Strater’s restaurants open seven days a week until next week.

“We can get away with housekeeping,” she said. “It could mean cleaning a room here and there. At the moment it’s a team effort. “

Jeff Johnson, general manager of D&SNG, said bookings for the summer are running ahead of the 2019 season, when the train carried 189,500 passengers.

If bookings continue at the current pace, Johnson said it could not be ruled out that the train will carry 200,000 drivers this year.

Johnson said the train peaked in the early or mid-1990s when it carried 213,000 passengers.

Passengers traveling on the Durango & Silverton narrow-gauge train must continue to wear masks that meet federal requirements. (Jerry McBride / Durango Herald)

JERRY McBRIDE

This year’s strong bookings are made despite a federal mandate that all passengers on buses, planes and trains still wear masks.

If more people are fully vaccinated, the federal mandate requiring masks for driving on public transport could be lifted, and that should fuel even greater demand, Johnson said.

The mandates required by the Federal Railroad Administration and Transportation Security Administration are poorly understood by the public, and this has led D&SNG staff to spend extra time explaining to passengers why on board the train masks are still required.

“Mask requirements have changed in the last few weeks and many people are struggling with why we still need them,” said Johnson.

parmijo@durangoherald.com

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