By Jim Kanak
Staff Columnist
YORK COUNTY—
The summer season appeared to get off to a good start for area businesses over the long Memorial Day weekend. Although the weather was less than excellent, state officials and businesses said that the weekend attracted a good number of visitors.
“People started arriving on (Tuesday, May 19) and it was a very solid weekend,” said Kathy Goodwin of the Greater York Region Chamber of Commerce. “Several (resort) properties were full and the restaurants and gift shops did well. There were quite a few weddings in the area, which also gave us a boost. Those tend to be two to three day events now.”
According to Dan Paradee of the Maine Turnpike Authority, traffic at the York Tolls surpassed last year’s levels, reversing a string of months in which volume at the booth was down. “For the whole of the weekend, traffic at the toll was up 1.1 percent over last year,” Paradee said. “Overall Turnpike traffic was down 1.7 percent over last year. The interesting thing is that on a monthly basis traffic has been down three to four percent each month from last year and the York toll has been down as well, sometimes by a larger amount. The silver lining is that we saw that trend reverse. It was a pretty healthy weekend from a tourism perspective.”
Goodwin’s colleagues at the Ogunquit, Wells, and Kennebunk-Kennebunkport chambers reported varying degrees of optimism. Eleanor Vadenais of Wells said the season was already off to a good start and Memorial Day added to that. “The consensus I’m hearing is that it was a good weekend,” she said. “It was also a good weekend the prior one, the Victoria Day holiday in Canada. Some people said they were even busier then.”
Karen Arel of Ogunquit said businesses there were optimistic for a good summer. “People are holding their optimism for the rest of the summer and were optimistic about the (Memorial Day) weekend,” Arel said. “There were a lot of people around. I heard some (resorts) were running between 85 and 90 percent and others were at 100. It was also nice that the trolley was running. That helped.”
Karen Duddy of Kennebunk-Kennebunkport said she noted a lot of visitors and that it appeared they were careful with their spending.
“I would say we had a significant number of visitors,” she said. “It seemed that they were making smaller purchases, not quite as much on the higher ticket items. Today, everybody is frugal in every aspect of their life. It figures they’ll watch their dollars while on vacation.”
The key to the summer is good weather and the availability of attractions in the area that draw visitors, the chamber officials said.
“If good weather holds that’s all we can ask,” Vadenais said.
Arel and Duddy stressed the area’s diverse attractions. “There are lots of choices here on what to do and that attracts people,” said Arel. “The more positive you are, the better off you’ll be. People are saying they’re looking forward to the summer.”
Duddy agreed. “I believe people will come this summer,” she said. “People need a break (in their lives) so they’ll come and take that break. We’re lucky. We’re only 90 miles from Boston. It’s not far away and is an easy trip for those people. Over Memorial Day, you did see New Hampshire and Massachusetts (license) plates and even some from New York. People were up.”
Staff Columnist
YORK COUNTY—
The summer season appeared to get off to a good start for area businesses over the long Memorial Day weekend. Although the weather was less than excellent, state officials and businesses said that the weekend attracted a good number of visitors.
“People started arriving on (Tuesday, May 19) and it was a very solid weekend,” said Kathy Goodwin of the Greater York Region Chamber of Commerce. “Several (resort) properties were full and the restaurants and gift shops did well. There were quite a few weddings in the area, which also gave us a boost. Those tend to be two to three day events now.”
According to Dan Paradee of the Maine Turnpike Authority, traffic at the York Tolls surpassed last year’s levels, reversing a string of months in which volume at the booth was down. “For the whole of the weekend, traffic at the toll was up 1.1 percent over last year,” Paradee said. “Overall Turnpike traffic was down 1.7 percent over last year. The interesting thing is that on a monthly basis traffic has been down three to four percent each month from last year and the York toll has been down as well, sometimes by a larger amount. The silver lining is that we saw that trend reverse. It was a pretty healthy weekend from a tourism perspective.”
Goodwin’s colleagues at the Ogunquit, Wells, and Kennebunk-Kennebunkport chambers reported varying degrees of optimism. Eleanor Vadenais of Wells said the season was already off to a good start and Memorial Day added to that. “The consensus I’m hearing is that it was a good weekend,” she said. “It was also a good weekend the prior one, the Victoria Day holiday in Canada. Some people said they were even busier then.”
Karen Arel of Ogunquit said businesses there were optimistic for a good summer. “People are holding their optimism for the rest of the summer and were optimistic about the (Memorial Day) weekend,” Arel said. “There were a lot of people around. I heard some (resorts) were running between 85 and 90 percent and others were at 100. It was also nice that the trolley was running. That helped.”
Karen Duddy of Kennebunk-Kennebunkport said she noted a lot of visitors and that it appeared they were careful with their spending.
“I would say we had a significant number of visitors,” she said. “It seemed that they were making smaller purchases, not quite as much on the higher ticket items. Today, everybody is frugal in every aspect of their life. It figures they’ll watch their dollars while on vacation.”
The key to the summer is good weather and the availability of attractions in the area that draw visitors, the chamber officials said.
“If good weather holds that’s all we can ask,” Vadenais said.
Arel and Duddy stressed the area’s diverse attractions. “There are lots of choices here on what to do and that attracts people,” said Arel. “The more positive you are, the better off you’ll be. People are saying they’re looking forward to the summer.”
Duddy agreed. “I believe people will come this summer,” she said. “People need a break (in their lives) so they’ll come and take that break. We’re lucky. We’re only 90 miles from Boston. It’s not far away and is an easy trip for those people. Over Memorial Day, you did see New Hampshire and Massachusetts (license) plates and even some from New York. People were up.”
