Tourism bouncing back in Tyler

TYLER — Spring in Tyler is historically busy with tourists coming to the Rose City for events including the Azaela & Spring Flower Trail. However, that changed last year with the pandemic taking its toll on tourism across the country. In a prepared statement Friday, Visit Tyler President Shari Lee said, “Direct travel spending contributes more than $390 million to the local economy annually and supports more than 4,000 jobs within the city.” Visit Tyler says, despite the winter storms of February that delayed the blooming of flowers  and various events being pushed to later dates, the month of March brought an increase in guests to the visitor center. Recent hotel bookings indicate Tyler is starting to see the return of travelers to the area with 80% occupancy for hotels citywide over the last month.