Visitor economy
Bedford County
County · Virginia Mountains. Visitors spent $90M here in 2025, up 9.1% on 2024 and up 36.5% on 2019.
$90M
Visitor spending, 2025
53 of 133 localities
604
Jobs supported
58 of 133
$3.3M
Local taxes from visitors
58 of 133
$19M
Wages paid
$1.8M in state taxes
Ten years of visitor spending
Where the money went in 2025
Lodging is the largest single category here at $31M, 35.1% of everything visitors spent.
- Lodging
- $31M35.1%
- Food and drink
- $26M29.5%
- Retail
- $7.1M7.9%
- Recreation
- $10M11.5%
- Transport
- $14M16.1%
Lodging includes short-term rentals and second-home spending. Transport covers both ground and air.
Year by year
| Year | Total | Change | Lodging | Food | Retail | Recreation | Transport | Jobs | Local tax |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $90M | +9.1% | $31M | $26M | $7.1M | $10M | $14M | 604 | $3.3M |
| 2024 | $82M | +1.1% | $29M | $24M | $6.6M | $9.6M | $13M | 583 | $3.0M |
| 2023 | $81M | +13.9% | $29M | $23M | $6.5M | $9.5M | $13M | 575 | $3.0M |
| 2022 | $71M | +7.0% | $26M | $20M | $5.5M | $8.2M | $12M | 526 | $2.7M |
| 2021 | $67M | +29.4% | $26M | $18M | $5.3M | $7.7M | $11M | 505 | $2.5M |
| 2020 | $52M | -21.5% | $22M | $13M | $3.9M | $4.7M | $8.3M | 486 | $2.0M |
| 2019 | $66M | +6.6% | $23M | $18M | $5.0M | $6.6M | $13M | 586 | $2.4M |
| 2018 | $62M | +9.4% | $21M | $17M | $5.0M | $6.4M | $12M | 575 | $2.2M |
| 2017 | $56M | +5.5% | $20M | $15M | $4.5M | $6.1M | $11M | 549 | $2.1M |
| 2016 | $53M | — | $18M | $14M | $4.4M | $5.9M | $11M | 537 | $2.1M |
How that compares
- 0.25% of all visitor spending in Virginia, which totalled $36.20B in 2025.
- 7.2% of the Virginia Mountains region, which took $1.24B.
- Ranks 53 of 133 Virginia counties and independent cities by visitor spending, and 58 of 133 by the local taxes that spending returns.
- Statewide spending is +3.1% on 2024; Bedford County is +9.1%.