THE HUB’S GOLD RUSH
Race weekend brings its own nine-figure spend-a-thon
Local restaurants, hotels and retailers that have made it through the last two brutal years are finally licking their chops as the Boston Marathon returns to Patriots Day for the first time since 2019.
The world’s most iconic marathon on Monday means that 30,000 athletes, their families and hundreds of thousands of visitors will be descending upon the city for the weekend — and spending lots of cash. Before the pandemic derailed the April running of the marathon, the Greater Boston Convention and Visitors Bureau estimated that the event injected about $200 million into the local economy.
The Boston Marathon back on Patriots Day will be a “great boon” to the city and region, said bureau President and CEO Martha Sheridan.
“We’re very excited. It’s going to be an amazing weekend in Boston,” Sheridan said. “It’s something we’ve been waiting for, for a long time. The industry has had a rough few years, and this is like a coming out party for us.”
“We’re not sure what this year will bring us,” she added of the $200 million estimate from the past. “But we’re getting as back to normal as possible, and this weekend will be a great boon for the local economy.”
Marathon weekend should help serve as a springboard for the months ahead, said Jon Hurst of the Retailers Association of Massachusetts.
“This weekend will go a long way to creating some momentum for our small businesses,” he said. “We can build on this and really send a good, strong message that not only is it safe to come to Boston and enjoy the city, it’s economically important.”
A lot of main streets in the suburbs have already bounced back from the pandemic because of remote work, Hurst said.
“We have a ways to go in Boston due to the lack of people back in office buildings,” he added. “Hopefully, this is a trendsetting experience that builds on itself and brings more consumers back to spending money in downtown Boston, more tourists out, and more folks back to the office buildings.”
Beyond the marathon events this weekend, the city will be buzzing with the Red Sox’ first home series of the season along with the Celtics in the playoffs.
“It’s going to mean all hands on deck for local businesses,” Sheridan said. “It’s going to be fantastic for them.”
The estimated $200 mil- lion economic impact of the
Boston Marathon includes the gains for local hotels, restaurants, retailers and more.
Lodging data from the Massachusetts Office of Travel and Tourism shows the major impact of the marathon happening in April. In 2018, the lodging occupancy rate in Suffolk County for the night before the marathon was 92%, 95% in 2019, and then way down to 45% last year. The revenue per room was $311 in 2018, $347 in 2019, and then a drop to $72 last year.
“We’re thrilled that the city is coming alive this weekend,” Sheridan said. “And we’re delighted to welcome visitors back to Boston again.”