Following the devastation caused by Hurricane Helene, the Western North Carolina region faces significant economic challenges, particularly in the tourism sector. Lost businesses, revenue, and employment have deeply impacted the area. Tourism recovery is expected to take two to five years, according to Wit Tuttell, Director at Visit NC.

“We’ve heard people say they don’t want to go and disturb the area, and there’s some sympathy there,” Tuttell said. “The thought is not to go out of respect, but what the area really needs, and what those businesses really need are those visits. What we don’t want to have is an economic disaster on the back of a natural disaster.”

The Asheville Metropolitan Statistical Area has already lost thousands of jobs — nearly 5% of the workforce. The concern is more jobs will disappear if tourism does not rebound quickly. Unemployment exacerbates preexisting issues like the housing shortage. Outside Asheville, much of WNC has struggled with population loss, and tourism employees often face difficulty finding affordable housing. Without visitors supporting local businesses, residents may be forced to leave the area.

Infrastructure challenges have further compounded the visitor shortage. Road closures, including key stretches of Interstates 40 and 26, have hindered travel to the region. Welcome centers, typically bustling with visitors during the fall, remained empty throughout much of the season. With road reopenings anticipated in early 2025, there is cautious optimism that tourism will regain momentum

Initial media messaging also posed a challenge, as early reports discouraged visitation. While some western counties reported minimal damage compared to the eastern part of the region, tourists often had to travel through heavily impacted areas to reach destinations that were open.

“We really had to thread the needle with that,” Tuttell said. “We started a digital campaign on social media to show those areas were open and available for leaf season, because the prevailing notion was that leaf season was gone for the entire mountain area. We targeted that toward people in states like Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, and Alabama, and were able to at least get a little bit of that message out there.”

To further support local businesses, Visit NC launched ShopWNC.com, a virtual Main Street allowing people to shop from or donate directly to local businesses instead of contributing to a general fund.

Visit NC has since ramped up a full-scale recovery campaign, aided by a $5 million federal grant. This initiative focuses on holiday visitation and leverages visitor mindset research. Early surveys revealed misconceptions, with some respondents believing the entire state of North Carolina was unsafe or that driving in the mountains was impossible.

“This was true in some places, but there were a lot of misunderstandings, particularly in key markets like Atlanta,” Tuttell said. “This campaign is focused on alleviating that, and we’re also beefing up a ski campaign with the North Carolina Ski Areas Association. Once we get more research back, we see if we have moved the needle and adjust the campaign as needed.”

To help visitors navigate the region, Visit NC added an interactive online map highlighting open areas. Asheville plays a significant role in tourism revenue, as many visitors use it as a base to explore surrounding mountain towns. There is value in the popularity of Asheville for the entire region, but in this case, it caused problems.

“Asheville may not have been ready for visitors right after the hurricane, but other places in the mountains were,” Tuttell said. “Everybody thought ‘well, what’s happening in Asheville is what’s happening throughout Western North Carolina’, and that’s a challenge. That’s one of the things we thought the map might help people to see.”

The economic stakes are high. The fall tourism season alone is worth approximately $2.1 billion. Lost revenue can not only potentially cripple the region’s economy, but also reduces its ability to market itself to future visitors. Sales tax dollars contribute to the cities and counties, so municipalities, as well as the state as a whole, are losing funding during a time when critical infrastructure repair is needed. This adds to the urgency of encouraging visitors and reopening businesses.

The advantage, according to Tuttell, is the allure of Western North Carolina. The mountains and rivers are still beautiful, and people are going to continue to want that experience. In certain places, that experience is available now, and in those areas visitors can still find what they are looking for.

“Visitors need to understand that in certain areas, it’s not going to be the experience that it was before, but in most areas, it is,” Tuttell said. “In some areas, it’s even a new and different experience. I think there’s an opportunity here for us to build back and do some things in a better way than they were done before. All those great experiences you’ve had — the zip lines, the white water rafting, the gorgeous mountain views — they’re there and they’re ready, and we need to go out there and show them how much we love them.”