Concord, N.H. – The New Hampshire Division of Travel and Tourism Development (DTTD) reports positive tourism numbers from Labor Day Weekend from around the state, capping a successful summer season. After rainy Memorial Day and Independence Day Holiday weekends, good weather returned to the state and partners generally experienced high occupancy, sold out events, and fully booked restaurants.
The White Mountain Hotel and Resort, which reopened in June after completing a $3.5 million renovation, continues to experience high occupancy, and was sold out for the holiday weekend. Eaton’s Snowvillage Inn had been fully booked for the long weekend since the end of July, and Thornton’s Shamrock Motel reached capacity as well. The Christmas Farm Inn reported that most Labor Day visitors averaged a three-night stay.
Christmas Farm Inn owners Gary and Sandra Plourde said, “The booking trend for fall foliage is strong and currently above normal, even without the international guests that would be traveling this time of year. Due to the strong demand, we are still hiring new employees! Let’s hope for vibrant and beautiful colors!”
Inns and venues are once again busy with group business as weddings returned – both with new couples, in addition to those who postponed in their ceremonies in 2020. Marcia and Jarvis Coffin of The Hancock Inn shared, “It will be interesting to see if leaf peepers will still have the flexibility in their work schedule to travel mid week as so many fall weekends have been reserved by wedding couples and their guests.”
Restaurants have adapted to the increase in patrons by requiring advanced reservations. Jennifer Kovach of Max’s Restaurant and Pub said, “We have continued following CDC guidelines with tables spaced apart in our three dining areas; the dining room, pub or screened-in porch, all with a view of Mount Washington.”
Entertainment is back at venues around the state, with the return of local theatres, museums, and tours. In Portsmouth, The Music Hall had a full entertainment schedule planned for the long holiday weekend with music and film, and even added a show as ticket sales were so strong. Experience Squam – which offers boat tours of Squam Lake in Holderness – was sold out for the majority of the weekend as well.
Carrie Greenberg of The Weathervane Theatre said, “We saw a flurry of ticket sales for our closing performance of The Addams Family on Friday night, and we were close to sold out for Saturday afternoon’s performance of Kinky Boots, with our Best of 2021 musical review very close to that as well. Labor Day weekend wrapped up as our second most successful weekend of the summer season at the Weathervane Theatre.”
For those traveling during the leaf-peeping season, partners recommend advanced reservations, as many upcoming dates are already fully booked.
Visitors are encouraged to familiarize themselves with the Granite State Promise and Leave No Trace Campaigns, which promote responsible and safe travel as businesses continue to work with capacity limitations, social distancing recommendations, and staffing shortages.
The New Hampshire Division of Travel and Tourism recognizes the importance of continued protocol, and recommends following the CDC’s recommendations for masking while indoors and social distancing when possible.
With Labor Day marking the official transition from summer to fall, the New Hampshire Division of Travel and Tourism invites visitors to their new webpage, which features new suggested fall activities, itineraries, and accommodations.
For more information, visit www.visitnh.gov.
Some quotes from tourism industry members on the holiday weekend:
CHAMBERS OF COMMERCE/WELCOME CENTERS
Lauren Getts, Director of Marketing & Communications for Greater Manchester Chamber
“We were thrilled to see such a great turnout at the Manchester Rotary Club’s 20th Anniversary Cruising Downtown classic car show, over Labor Day weekend, in Manchester. This event attracted over 30,000 people for a family-friendly day, and many visitors took advantage of Downtown Manchester’s dining and shopping amenities. This event proved to be an exciting reminder to all, that greater Manchester is a destination and a place worth visiting.”
Charyl Reardon, President of the White Mountain Attractions
“We’ve received many positive comments from our area businesses about how visitor numbers and spending have been strong this summer, some better than 2019. Travel over Labor Day weekend is most often weather dependent and thankfully the forecast, other than some random scattered showers, was for a beautiful weekend and businesses were very pleased overall this weekend. It was certainly a nice way to end the
summer season!
Fall, especially weekends, is looking good for the area as well. We will miss our International friends again this year, but anticipate many guests from the Northeast will help contribute to another successful season. We are encouraging everyone planning a trip to the White Mountains region this fall to plan ahead, consider mid-week travel, and remember to pack their patience. Our scenic roads and local businesses will be busy, but we promise they are both worth the wait.”
Jaimie Crawford of the Mt. Washington Valley Chamber of Commerce
“The summer was very solid for businesses. As a whole for the weekend, The Cog Railway reported it was up 25% for the weekend, but saw a lag on Sunday and Monday. Another retail business reported Monday was slow for them, but Saturday was exceedingly busy. The Chamber has seen an uptick in visitors from NY, NJ, CT. Businesses reflected that – especially NY. The major pain point continues to be staffing shortages. Many businesses had to adjust hours and days open due to lack of staffing, although businesses are all quick to note that the staff they did have went above and beyond to help make for a successful season.”
LODGING/RESTAURANTS
Sheri StLaurent of East Hill Farm
“The Inn at East Hill Farm has had a busy summer in spite of the ongoing pandemic. There were cancellations due to pandemic worry but most visitors were very happy to be traveling. The numbers were not up to 2018 or 2019 but of course stronger than 2020. Labor Day weekend has trended the same with cancellations due to the pandemic, most of which have been filled by other visitors.”
Rob and Margit Wezwick, Innkeepers/Owners of the Ash Street Inn
“This year has been much different than years prior to the pandemic. Previously, we saw a lot of advance bookings, especially for holiday weekends. This year, a month ago, we had only a couple of rooms booked and ultimately ended up with a busy weekend. We are also seeing a lot of folks “staying small.” They want to get out and travel but would prefer staying in smaller properties.”
ATTRACTIONS/ENTERTAINMENT VENUES
Charles Clark, Executive Director of Castle in the Clouds
“We expect Labor Day Weekend to continue the trend of strong summer attendance at Castle in the Clouds. While our numbers have not rebounded completely to pre-pandemic levels, we have seen a high level of demand for tours and programs this year, and expect more of the same this weekend before a lull leading into the Fall Foliage season later in the month.”
Genn Anzaldi, J-Town Deli & Country Store
“Regardless of the less than ideal summer weather we have had, it has been exciting to see all the families, friends, weddings and reunions happening again! People out and about trying to soak up as much of summer and being with others again as possible! Yes, we are busy. Yes, you should plan ahead. Yes, you should explore new things and places! Labor Day weekend is usually a busy one, but not our busiest as folks are already home getting ready for school to start. If you can sneak away for one last summer fling, this is always a good weekend to do it.”
Pam Sullivan, Executive Director for Women’s Rural Entrepreneurial Network (WREN)
“We had an outstanding weekend at WREN. We kicked it off with an End of Summer Block party and with the Gallery Opening of Just Be Outdoors on Friday. Our overall sales were up 512% of 2020 for the Labor Day period. We had visitors from all over the country. A lot of them said they were planning getaways to Bar Harbor, Jackson and the North Conway area and they were unable to get reservations, so they gave the Bethlehem/Twin Mountain area a try and loved the fact that it was less crowded than other regions of the State.”
Kasia Scontsas of Northeast Snowmobile & ATV Rentals
“Going into Labor Day Weekend, we had strong advanced reservations. We found that we had a lot of unexpected walk-ins and both online and telephone inquiries over the entire weekend. Our numbers were slightly down from last year, we believe that was because last year, during this time of Covid, people were not going back to work and school. And us, being 100% outdoor activity, without crowds involved, made us a sought-after destination.”
Sara O’Reilly, Marketing Manager of 3S Artspace
“Our Friday night opening reception for the exhibits in the Lobby Gallery and Gallery was lively and wonderful! Visitors were eager to connect with the artists who were in attendance and explore their work. These exhibits are both such natural and powerful drivers of conversation, anecdotes, and experiences, that everyone who walks through the doors is compelled to respond in some way. As of September 1, we’ve made the return to requiring masks (regardless of vaccination status) in the Lobby, Gallery, and restrooms. Attendees of the reception embraced this policy and we truly appreciate the willingness to adapt with 3S and keep each other safe.”
Sabina Ion of American Independence Museum
“The American Independence Museum had a great Labor Day weekend. We welcomed visitors into the newly reopened Ladd-Gilman House where they were able to see more of our wonderful collection and enjoy our two new interactives on word choice in the U.S. Constitution and commemorating deeds of merit and honor.”
###
ABOUT THE NH DIVISION OF TRAVEL AND TOURISM DEVELOPMENT
The Division of Travel and Tourism Development, as part of the New Hampshire Department of Business and Economic Affairs, works with the state’s seven travel regions to increase visitation, travel and visitor expenditures in order to expand business activity and employment throughout the state. The division is responsible for domestic and international advertising and public relations, literature publication and distribution, www.visitnh.gov administration, grant administration and research to monitor and measure the impact of travel and tourism to the state. For more information about New Hampshire tourism, call 603-271-2665 or visit www.visitnh.gov.
Stay connected with New Hampshire tourism on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest and YouTube, and be sure to follow the #LiveFreeNH tag to see what other people are saying about New Hampshire.