The document discusses Orange County, NC's tourism industry and efforts to promote it. It found that most people don't recognize Orange County by name, so they use Chapel Hill as the brand to attract visitors. Tourism generates $137 million annually and supports 1700 jobs. The county allocates hotel and sales taxes to promote tourism through a visitors center, marketing, and supporting local businesses and attractions. Increasing hotel occupancy by just 1% could generate over $800,000 in additional revenues.
I’m Laurie Paolicelli, executive director of the Chapel Hill/Orange County Visitors Bureau. Thank you for having me today. I’d like to take you through a 10 minute overview of our area’s tourism industry, including how the countywide Visitors Bureau sells tourism to the area and how we emphasize the towns specifically.
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