Economic Benefits of Historic Preservation

One important economic benefit is heritage tourism. Many people enjoy a deep fascination with the sites where American history took place, as well as with the stories they can directly experience by visiting these historic sites. Heritage tourists, whose travel focuses on historical sites of interest, spend billions of dollars every year and are among the fastest-growing group of tourists. Heritage tourists' travels provide hundreds of millions of tax dollars, and billions for the hospitality and travel industries.

Heritage tourism has also been a factor for hundreds of cities across the nation engaged in urban renewal and revitalization. Historic preservation efforts are playing a vital role in creating vibrant, interesting, and thriving spaces for individuals to live and work, keeping both people and businesses in engaged communities.