Times Observer photo by Jeff Tome Kayakers are pictured in Chapman State Park.

If you had to guess where most people visiting Warren County came from in May, what would you guess?

It has always been hard to learn where visitors are coming from and why they visit the county, but the Warren County Visitors Bureau has a new tool to help them learn about tourism and its impacts in the county.

As for where the most visitors came from in May, if you said Pittsburgh, you got it!

According to WCVB Director Casey Ferry in a recent Visitors Bureau newsletter, information like this will help the bureau better target marketing efforts in ways that have greater impact.

“As we begin the ‘tourist season,’ we’re excited to implement a brand new tool aimed to maximize our efforts and help local businesses even more,” Ferry said. “We have contracted with Zartico, a company specifically designed to work with destination marketing organizations like the WCVB that ‘illuminates your ideal markets and their consumer behaviors to attract and optimize for visitors who come, spend, and stay’ In basic terms, they give incredibly detailed statistics that can be used to make informed decisions on what to market and to whom. They can tell us where our visitors are coming from and how much tourism really affects the local economy.”

Using this new software, Visitor’s Bureau officials learned that 41% of May visitors to Warren County came from Pittsburgh and State College, while only 4% each came from Erie, Charleston, W.V., and Buffalo. They can now see, not only where visitors are coming from but that the average visitor to the county spent $78 in a restaurant and $63 on retail last month. Overall, 17% of the money spent in the county in May came from visitors. Of that, 23% of money spent in local business came from visitors, 18% of local restaurant receipts came from visitors, 37% of retail spending came from visitors and 80% of accommodations receipts came from visitors to the area.

A visitor is defined as someone who came from 50 miles or more from the county.

Someone from Erie is classified as a visitor. Someone from Jamestown, or other nearby locations outside the county, is not. The WCVB is working on evaluating the impact of more local tourism as they learn the capabilities of the new program.

Why visit Warren County? According to the state’s VisitPA.com, ” Warren has a rich history and an architectural heritage to match its enviable location. Founded in 1795 and named for General Joseph Warren, who was killed in the Battle of Bunker Hill, the city is a gateway to the Allegheny National Forest and boasts 21 parks in 180 acres. In 1861, the discovery of oil led to great wealth. Warren was once home to more millionaires per capita than any other town in the state; many of their mansions still stand. The city’s historic district is 28 blocks long and contains more than 600 historic buildings. The nearby Kinzua Dam holds back the vast Allegheny Reservoir, where locals and visitors alike enjoy swimming, boating, fishing, and water-skiing.”

Thirty-nine percent of visitors to Chapman State Park, the highlighted location in this week’s newsletter, were visitors from outside the area, with 53% coming from Erie, 12% from Buffalo and 10% from Pittsburgh.

“Lisa and I are learning how to navigate this newly unleashed menu of details and look forward to sharing more with our members and the community,” Ferry said. “We can now see actual numbers on things like the percentage of restaurant income provided by tourists, how many people actually go to various attractions, and which area sends us the ‘bigger spenders.’ It’s amazing.”