Mt. Washington Chamber Chimes in on Fall Forecast

The Mt Washington Valley Chamber of Commerce is predicting a colorful and vibrant fall foliage season this fall. “With all the rain we’ve had this summer and early fall (versus past drought summers or early fall floods) the trees are healthy, which contributes to the quality of the foliage and color for the season,” said Janice Crawford, executive director for the Mt Washington Valley, noting foliage in the North Country is anywhere from 10 to 25 percent turned from green to gold, red, and orange.  

According to Lori Harnois, director of the NH Division of Travel and Tourism Development in Concord, “We are anticipating about 7.8 million people to come here between now and the end of November and that would be about 2 percent higher than last year. More than spending time, these visitors will spend over a $1 billion, which is up by about 3 percent over last year.”  
 
In a recent survey of Mt Washington Valley businesses, many chamber members reported one of the most successful Augusts on record. “We think this trend for increases in visitors and spending will extend through the fall,” further commented Janice Crawford.  In fact, when asked for their predictions on autumn business, a number of chamber members responded quite positively. “Reservations thus far have already exceeded last years completed sales,” shared Christopher Bellis of Cranmore Inn in North Conway.  “We have been taking reservations and feel like it will be a good season,” said Sandy Allan of Beaver Hollow Campground. And Jack Mahaney of Story Land said he was looking forward to six great fall weekends and hoped to exceed the 2012 sales for the park.
 
Additional trends that bode well for a successful fall in Mt Washington Valley are:
·         An increase in Canadian visitors and spending reported by many of the Mt Washington Valley Chamber member businesses surveyed throughout 2013
·         An increase in bookings from groups and motorcoach tours for the summer and fall, reported by lodging properties and attractions.

Fall brings the largest number of visitors from outside of New England and the largest number of out-of-state visitors on group tours for both the state of New Hampshire and the Mt Washington Valley region. Peak foliage season, from September 15 through October 30 accounts for the largest consecutive concentration of visitors and spending of the year in Mt Washington Valley. Leaf peeping, fall festivals, the Fryeburg Fair and Halloween events attract tens of thousands of visitors to the region each day.
 
The Mt Washington Valley Chamber of Commerce suggests “book now or forever hold your peep.” While more than 150 lodging properties in the region offer plenty of room to accommodate visitors, the best time to book is sooner rather than later. For complete leaf peeping vacation planning in Mt Washington Valley, visitwww.mtwashingtonvalley.org. To read about the top 10 ways to peep a leaf in Mt Washington Valley, click www.mtwashingtonvalley.org/media/press-kit-display.cfm?ArticleID=369.  To learn about lodging availability or to talk to a vacation concierge in Mt Washington Valley, call 800-DO-SEE-NH (800-367-3364).  For more information on fall foliage getaways, visit www.visitNH.gov