This has been an incredible year for change at Visit Duluth. Our organization continues to grow and evolve with the help of our members, key stakeholders and the community in general. This renewal is helping to ensure that we continue to seek out the best, most effective ways to grow Duluth's tourism industry. Duluthians should have every confidence that, in the coming years, Duluth's popularity will continue to grow in meaningful ways.
I am also happy to report that, so far this year, Duluth's tourism industry has performed very well. This is no small feat, since 2010 provided record growth in several key measurement categories. In fact, we continue to see notable growth over last year.
A recent statewide report showed Duluth is among the leaders in the state in important lodging metrics. For the first three quarters of 2011, statewide occupancy rates are up 3 percent compared to last year. However, Duluth leads all sectors with an increase of 5.1 percent over last year.
In addition, this same report shows the Duluth market has been able to generate notable increases in revenue, again outpacing other destinations throughout the state. This is also an important indicator that we are continuing to grow consumer demand.
One of the reasons these two metrics are critical is that Duluth faces increased competition from other Minnesota and Midwest destinations for our core consumers in the Twin Cities. This summer, nearly 20 other destinations were actively competing for these consumers' attention, along with Visit Duluth. However, it's clear that the Duluth brand continues to resonate with this audience.
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In another important measurement, Duluth's actual tourism tax revenues are up over 2010. Again, this is especially significant, since 2010, fueled by Tall Ships, spurred record increases. Through August, Duluth tax revenues are up 6 percent over 2010.
Fueling tax revenue growth is one of Visit Duluth's most important jobs. But we are especially proud that these efforts fuel not only our own industry, but also contribute to the City's tax revenues as well, helping to support important services for all Duluthians. It's just another one of the benefits of a high performing industry.
Recently, a Duluth-based marketing firm conducted a study regarding Duluth's relevance nationally and internationally using Google Insights. The study provided some interesting perspectives, and also allowed us to re-examine our own intensive strategies. While we continue to look for ways to grow Duluth's presence, we are thrilled with the way Duluth's relevance has grown in our core market.
Our own examination of Duluth's relevance, using Google Insights, demonstrates Duluth enjoys tremendous popularity online in the Minneapolis-St. Paul market. More notable is the fact that Duluth is more than seven times more relevant than other popular Minnesota destinations.
This same study shows that our core market is searching online for Duluth travel references more than ever. Search terms such as "canal park", "duluth, mn" and "hotels in Duluth" have increased by more than 5,000 percent for people in the Twin Cities. And these are just a few of the categories and terms that have enjoyed this kind of breakout growth.
Clearly, Duluth's tourism industry has continued to build an enormous appeal to our visitors, as demonstrated through these key indicators. Yet, what is most important in looking at these metrics is finding ways for our industry to continue building on these verifiable successes.
With events like the 20th Annual AMSOIL Duluth National Snocross, and Bentleyville, our region's most popular Christmas phenomenon, and the opening of Spirit Mountain's Adventure Park and winter recreation season, we expect 2011 to remain strong.
In 2012, we look forward to expanding the scope of Duluth's appeal through innovative and meaningful promotion of this special destination. More importantly, we expect to grow Duluth's performance within key measurement categories.
