Howard County saw a 7% increase in visitor spending in 2023 over the previous year, as the number of tourists finally met pre-pandemic levels, according to a report from the county’s tourism bureau through Tourism Economics, a data and research company.

Visit Howard County reported that the number of tourists reached around 3 million people, with those visitors spending a total of $790.4 million last year, up nearly 20% from before the pandemic.

The number of visitors had hovered between 1.9 and 2.9 million since 2020, the year that a public health emergency was declared because of COVID-19, according to Amanda Hof, executive director of Visit Howard County. She said her organization has been chasing pre-pandemic levels ever since and finally got there.

Tourism officials said 90% of tourists were from out of state, and 32% of visitors stayed overnight in the county.

Hof said the estimated number of visitors to Howard County is measured by the number of cellphone devices that come into a destination.

The data comes from the statewide Tourism Economics study, which is based on daily data dumps from apps such as Google Maps or Apple Maps showing where devices have been. To determine the number of tourists who visit an area, analysts only count devices that come from more than an hour outside of the county. It excludes the devices of residents and those who work in the county.

Columbia topped the list of attractions, drawing 43.8% of visitors, followed by Elkridge (20.1%), Western Howard County and Greater Ellicott City (10% each), North Laurel (8.2%), Savage (5.5%) Maple Lawn (Fulton) 1.6% and the Ellicott City Historic District (under 1%).

Main Street in Old Ellicott City is a quaint area with shops and restaurants along a winding road, so the findings about it were a little surprising to some.

Sue Whary, the owner of Sweet Cascades, a chocolate shop that has been on Main Street for 19 years, said she regularly sees visitors from out of state in her shops.

But in last year’s study, the Ellicott City Historic District also had the lowest percentage of visitors from outside the county, 1.2%.

Hof said the Ellicott City numbers look so low because they are being compared to larger places like Columbia, which boasts attractions such as The Mall in Columbia and the Merriweather District, including the performing arts center.

“If you go to Ellicott City on any recent days, months, years, it’s booming and very busy,” she said.

Columbia also has tons of parks with sports and tournaments, a huge draw for visitors, Hof said.

Just the other day, Whary said, she was chatting with a customer from Montana about how popular huckleberries are. She’d also just spoken with a Philadelphia man who came into the shop looking for a sweet treat.

This year’s study found that the largest group of people to visit Howard County was from Philadelphia — 10.6%.

The average visitor from Philadelphia spent $131 on a visit.

The tourists who spent the most came from Salisbury; they doled out an average of $157 per visit.

Mondays are a happening day for tourists to pop into her store, Whary said.

“It’s an extension of the weekend so they’re making their way to BWI, and they want to come to town for a quick bite,” she said.

Additionally, she sees many people going to the Turf Valley Resort for a wedding and who stop by to explore Main Street in their free time.

From July 2023 to June of this year, visitors spent the most money on gas and service stations (67.2%), followed by retail (42%) and food (30.9%). Accommodations and attractions are the two categories with the smallest amount of spending, at 11.8% and 3.7%, respectively.

The average visitor spent the most money, about $150, in January, according to the study. Many folks come to Howard County that month, and then again in the summer, for Restaurant Week.

“For the more than 15 years we’ve been running restaurant weeks in January and July — and this year we moved the summer event to August — it’s exactly that reason: to give restaurants a boost when things are quiet,” Hof said.

The summer Restaurant Week does well, but not as well as in January.

“It gives them an excuse and permission to go out and spend money when they might not have a reason to go out,” Hof said.

The average visitor spent the least in July, a little more than $100 while in the county.

While Hof is pleased to see the county reach and exceed pre-pandemic levels for tourism and tourist spending, she said the county is not quite there yet when it comes to the number of tourism jobs.