Destination: Temple

City: Visitors spent nearly $180 million in 2022

May 08, 2023

DAVID STONE | OUR TOWN TEMPLE

Temple may not have Florida’s beaches, Colorado’s snowy peaks or Arizona’s giant crack in the ground, but a growing number of people are flocking to the city and spending mountains of money.

“Temple doesn’t have the amazing natural assets, and we don’t have man-made marvels like Disneyland or Six Flags,” said Teresa Anderson, Temple’s Destination Marketing manager. “But what we do have are authentic experiences that include downtown Temple, culinary delights, two large lakes with recreational amenities, incredible parks and a growing winery and craft brew industry.”

According to Anderson, the city’s Destination Marketing sales team is focused on bringing more trade shows, conferences and personal celebrations to Temple, and the city is using National Travel & Tourism Week — May 7-13 — to showcase Temple’s attractions and offerings.

“In 2022, visitors to Temple generated almost $180 million in direct travel spending,” Anderson said. “That’s the largest amount ever for the city of Temple.”

The 2022 numbers reflect a 6 percent increase over 2021’s $169 million. Also in 2022, travel spending generated more than $16 million in tax receipts, Anderson said.

Thousands of visitors come to Temple from all over the country for medical treatments and health-care appointments. They stay at hotels, dine and drink at restaurants and nightspots, and shop for gifts, groceries, gas and an endless variety of items and services.

“Our medical community is big, but people aren’t just coming to Temple for health reasons,” Anderson said. “We have so much to offer — the Mayborn Civic & Convention Center, the Cultural Activities Center, Spare Time, Crossroads Park, museums and a robust downtown.”

“The city is investing in development, and they are focusing on quality of life improvements that bring in new people,” Anderson said. “Some people come here to visit, and some come here to live. With all of the construction and renovations, the next 24 months will bring a lot of change.”

Anderson said the city is poised to attract more conventions and sports tournaments in years to come, and Temple is adding more and varied facilities to help accomplish that goal.

The city already has tournament-quality baseball, softball and soccer fields that attract regional and statewide competitions, and six new pickleball courts are being added at Crossroads Park.

“Following a recent Sports Marketing Strategy report, the Destination Marketing team is collaborating with the Temple Parks & Recreation Department to develop new sports marketing materials,” Anderson said. “The goal is to market Temple more aggressively to tournament organizers for softball, baseball, soccer and disc golf.”

Anderson added that conventions, trade shows, conferences, private celebrations and meetings are important components of Temple’s growing economy. The city’s location on I-35 and near I-14, and its central location between Austin, Houston and the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex helps draw visitors.

The Mayborn Civic & Convention Center is the city’s largest meeting facility, and its 18,620-square-foot main hall can be configured to offer multiple rooms and varying setups.

“We are focused on bringing meetings, conferences and celebrations such as weddings to the area,” she said. “For Fiscal 2023, the estimated economic impact with groups overnighting in the area is estimated at $536,976.”

“Business meetings, conventions and trade shows are important to Temple’s economy,” she said. “They bring in valuable revenue, create jobs and provide a platform for networking, knowledge sharing and collaboration.”

In recent years, Temple’s Destination Marketing team has launched campaigns, promotions and marketing tools designed to increase awareness of the city, its meeting facilities and its growing number of sports courts and playing fields. These tools include a revamped destination website — www.discovertemple.com — that has generated a 58.22 percent in visitor traffic and a 1,317 percent increase in visitor information requests, Anderson said.