Title: Maine Museums: an economic impact study.

Author(s): Chuck Lawton, Lindsay Rowe

Organisation(s): Maine Arts Commission

Categories: Arts, culture and the economy

Objectives: To quantify the economic impact of Maine's museums.

Key Findings: In 2009, 442,000 people visited the 14 museums, spending nearly USD 71m. Direct visitor spending created a sales impact of an estimated USD 148m and generated more than USD 7.5m in tax revenue for state and local governments. According to the survey findings, visitors were most likely to come from out of state (60%), identify the primary purpose of their trip as vacation (52%), use their own car to travel to the area (66%) and stay overnight at a hotel, motel or B&B (50%). One in five visitors identified the museum visit as the primary reason for their trip and the spending associated with their trip. Although spending patterns vary greatly by museum, the average overnight visitor spends USD 243 per day, twice the amount of other overnight visitors to the state who come for leisure purposes and three times the amount of visitors who come to see family and friends. Visitors who do not stay overnight spend USD 92 a day.

Methods: A visitor survey was conducted at 14 museums. Sites were selected based on their diversity in terms of size, subject mater of exhibitions and collections, and location.