ESCANABA — It is summer tourism season once again in Delta County. Thousands of visitors flock to our area in the summertime to enjoy the quality of life and the natural beauty of this area. Last year lodging businesses in Delta County, and across the Upper Peninsula, experienced one of the biggest tourism seasons on record and this year is stacking up to be about the same.

Along with the influx of travelers in recent years we are seeing new businesses and opportunities in Delta County. This growth and development improve quality of life for residents that live and work here by creating more jobs and prospects. Based on the number of people looking at information on the Visit Escanaba website, the interest from people across the country continues to grow.

Visit Escanaba is the Destination Marketing Organization for Delta County. We market the county and surrounding areas across the Midwest to help raise awareness and bring people here. Much of our marketing is done online and reaches millions of people every year.

The number of people going to the Visit Escanaba website is up over 30% from last year and users are spending more time on the site than the previous year. The average age of visitors to the site is trending younger as well with the largest age group on the site being 25-44 year-olds. Our reach is increasing geographically as well with new areas like New York state showing a significant increase in visits to the site recently.

While many people look at the Visit Escanaba website to plan a stop on their Upper Peninsula vacation, we know that potential residents and businesses looking to move here visit the site as well. It is important that these audiences see the full potential of the area and we try to highlight everything the county has to offer. We are blessed to have such an amazing product to showcase.

Over the past five years we have seen a significant growth in the number of people staying in hotels in Delta County. New businesses and business expansion points to a bright economic future for the area. Despite some of the current economic challenges we are all dealing with, there is a lot to be optimistic about locally. It is great to see new development and know that it will strengthen the community for the foreseeable future. I am very thankful for all the hard-working people that make our area what it is and for the effort they are putting in to push this community to even more success. Tourists will come and go every year, but the community is being built to last.

Look for Visit Escanaba to continue to spread the word about the wonderful businesses and attractions in Delta County and know that we are here to support all of you. Keep up the good work!

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Robert Micheau is the CEO of Visit Escanaba.