MADISON, Wis. — Wisconsin tourism broke records in 2022, Gov. Tony Evers and Wisconsin Department of Tourism Secretary Anne Sayers announced Tuesday.

The industry generated $23.7 billion in total economic impact in 2022, according to economy data. That’s up from the previous record year pre-pandemic in 2019, which generated $22.2 billion.

It’s an impact that was felt throughout all 72 counties in the state. Dane County had the highest economic impact increase from 2021 to 2022, rising by 19.7%. Milwaukee County was also on the higher end, with an increase of 16.8% in those same years. Monroe County had the least amount of change during these years at 1.1%.

“I’m so excited to be celebrating a record-breaking year for Wisconsin’s tourism industry. This is tremendous news and a testament to the hard work of the business owners, workers, and marketing partners across the industry and our strategic investments to bolster the industry at an especially difficult time,” said Evers.

Tourism last year supported more than 170,000 jobs in various sectors of the industry. Just over 120,000 of those were supported directly by visitor spending, an increase of 3.6% from the previous year. However, that number is still below pre-pandemic levels.

The industry also generated $1.5 billion in state and local tax revenue, according to Evers.

There is much that contributed to the record-breaking year, including historic marketing investments from the Wisconsin Department of Tourism, relief dollars allocated by Evers and efforts of communities across the state.

Overnight visitors were another key factor.

Over 100 million visitors entered the Badger State in 2022, rising by 8.7% from 2021 to 2022. Almost half of those visitors stayed overnight. That’s an increase of 13.8% in overnight stays from 2021.

This is important because overnight guests spend nearly three times what day visitors do on average, according to Travel Wisconsin.

“Aided by strategic marketing, Wisconsin convinced more visitors to stay the night so they could add more activities to their itinerary, delivering a deeper economic impact. I congratulate the entire industry on an incredible record-breaking year,” said Sayers.

Overall visitor spending jumped by 16% in 2022, bringing spending levels to 108% of 2019 levels. The largest portion of that spending went to lodging (27.2%), then food and beverage (26%), followed by retail (19.5%), transportation (14.1%) and recreation/entertainment (13.2%).

Travel Wisconsin’s advertising campaigns have reached visitors in 12 Midwestern markets and received more than one billion impressions since launching their “Here’s to Those Who Wisconsin” brand in 2021. It highlights Wisconsin’s “welcoming nature and celebratory spirit.”

The latest numbers show that Wisconsin is well on its way to a strong recovery from the pandemic.

“Tourism is vital to the economic health of local communities, businesses, and workers across our state, and I’m proud of our work to support this critical industry and its success over these past few years. We must continue to make key investments in Wisconsin tourism to ensure it continues to be a key part of our economy for generations,” said Evers.