From Staff Reports

ASHEVILLE, N.C. — Nearly two years after Tropical Storm Helene ravaged the region, Explore Asheville reported at its anual meeting on Oct. 2 that the local tourism recovery is progressing, though overall numbers remain below pre-storm and pre-pandemic levels.

Key recovery data reported by Explore Asheville includes the following:

• Visitor spending: Reached about $2.6 billion in Buncombe County last year, accounting for about 20 percent of the county’s GDP and supporting one in seven local jobs.

• Hotel occupancy: Year-to-date hotel occupancy through July was 62 percent, which is 4 points lower than 2025 and 9 points below 2019 levels.

• Vacation rentals: Running slightly higher at 67 percent in July, though total revenue still lags behind historical expectations.

• Conferences and events: Explore Asheville President and CEO Vic Isley noted that the organization has booked a record number of conferences and events over the past two years, expecting hundreds more to trigger more than $140 million in economic impact. “...not only to recover but to rebound,” Isley said during the meeting.

• Workforce challenges: The hospitality sector continues to experience labor and staffing shortages, which limit full service capacity across local restaurants and lodging.

Meanwhile, some skeptics and local business-owners have noted that Explore Asheville’s optimistic reports of a tourism “rebound” two years after Hurricane Helene mask an uneven, incomplete recovery.

Key skeptical points and realities are as follow:

• Trailing hotel occupancy: While tourism officials emphasize growth, year-to-date hotel occupancy through mid-2026 hovers around 62 percent to 65 percent, trailing both pre-storm and pre-pandemic levels.

• Lagging visitor spending: Visitor spending in Buncombe County has not caught up to 2023 peaks, leaving total revenue and combined lodging demand below pre-Helene baselines.

• Struggling workforce and small businesses: The local hospitality workforce remains understaffed, and a regional survey showed that more than half of responding businesses still needed assistance to stabilize.

• Uneven geographic recovery: Business-owners like Peter Pollay (co-owner of Posana restaurant) have pointed out that foot traffic and sales remain down in specific areas, mirroring a broader N.C. Rural Center study showing that economic recovery has not reached all mountain communities equally.

• Reliance on group events: Critics have contended that Explore Asheville’s narrative heavily leans on a record-setting volume of booked conferences and group events to offset sluggish independent leisure travel.