DURHAM, N.C. — More tourism dollars are flowing into N.C., and with them comes the ability to kick some of those funds toward needed projects and renovations. 

Because of the increase in tourism money, many counties and cities have been able to allocate it for improvement projects, rather than having local taxpayers foot the bill. 

According to data from the Economic Impact of Travel on North Carolina Counties 2022, spending by international travelers is up by 170%. Money is being marked to spruce up PNC Arena and the NASCAR Hall of Fame too. 

One Durham bed and breakfast owner says she has seen the increase in foot traffic, firsthand.

After her husband surprised her with a trip to a local bed and breakfast in 1994, Monica Edwards says she caught the “BNB fever.”

“So from the next year, from 1995 to 1996, every time we could start at a bed and breakfast, we stayed at BNB,” Edwards said. “From there we found this property and decided we’d be BNB owners.”

Twenty-six years later, Edwards and her husband Daniel have perfected their cozy oasis. 

Down to every minor detail, the couple makes sure every guests’ stay is special to them.

“We fortunately get a lot of first-time BNB goers, and so this sets the tone for if they will ever go back to another BNB,” Edwards said.

Edwards says she has seen business grow with each year, but it’s most recently that she has seen such a big growth in first-time guests. 

“Tourism dollars are coming into Durham, as we saw that Durham is in the top 10 of the counties that contribute to the increase in tourism dollars across the state in 2022,” Edwards said. “People are ready to get out and have a good time.”

The Edwards say it’s great to see a county like Durham invest that money to turn first-time visitors into repeat guests.

“What Durham has done to re-imagine what we’re going to look like, as they say ‘getting back on the bull,'” Daniel Edwards said. “I think they’ve done an amazing job at doing that.”