From Charleston to Mount Rushmore: South Carolina and South Dakota Dominate America’s 2026 Travel Race

From Charleston to Mount Rushmore: South Carolina and South Dakota Dominate America’s 2026 Travel Race.Tourism across the American South and Heartland reached new heights in 2024–2025, with South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, and Texas recording historic visitor spending and economic contributions. Texas remained the largest tourism powerhouse by revenue, while Tennessee achieved strong growth through music, nature, and national park attractions. South Carolina benefited from premium visitor spending and destination diversity, while South Dakota expanded beyond iconic landmarks. The comparison highlights different tourism models shaping US travel growth ahead of 2026.

Tourism Boom in the American South & Heartland: How South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, and Texas Compare (2024–2026)

Data compiled from official state tourism offices, Tourism Economics reports, and state government press releases. Figures reflect the most recently published economic impact studies as of September 2026; 2026 full-year data will not be available until early 2027.

Four very different states — a Southern coastal favorite, a Great Plains monument state, a Southern music-and-mountains hub, and the nation’s second-largest state economy — all posted record tourism spending in 2024 and 2025. Here’s how each performed, based on official releases from state tourism authorities.

South Carolina: Value Over Volume

South Carolina‘s tourism story in 2024–2025 was less about more visitors and more about visitors who spend more. The state’s domestic visitor spending reached a record $29.2 billion in 2024, with growth increasingly driven by spending per trip rather than raw arrivals. By 2025, total economic impact hit a historic $31 billion, a $1 billion increase over the previous record, fueled largely by $6 billion in hotel and short-term rental revenue.

Charleston has become the engine of that growth. In 2024, tourism accounted for almost a quarter of Charleston’s local economy, with 7.89 million visitors generating an all-time high. That climbed further in 2025 to 7.9 million visitors and a record $14.3 billion in local economic impact — a 2.4% jump over 2024.

But the picture wasn’t uniform statewide. Statewide hotel occupancy actually dipped 3% in 2025, and coastal hotspots like the Grand Strand (Myrtle Beach) saw a cooling period even as inland and nature-based destinations grew. Industry leaders also pointed to a pullback in Canadian visitation tied to trade tensions, which dented cross-border travel spending that typically flows into the U.S.

Metric	2024	2025
Statewide economic impact	~$30B	$31 billion (record)
Domestic visitor spending	$29.2 billion	Data pending full release
Charleston-area visitors	7.8 million	7.9 million
Charleston economic impact	$14 billion	$14.3 billion (+2.4%)
Hotel/vacation rental revenue	—	$6 billion
Statewide hotel occupancy	Stable	Down 3%
Key headwind	—	Canadian visitor decline
Key strength	High-end, longer-staying visitors	Inland/nature-based destination growth

South Dakota: Small Population, Record-Breaking Reach

South Dakota’s tourism engine — anchored by Mount Rushmore, the Black Hills, and the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally — kept climbing even as its marquee attraction saw a visitation dip. Statewide visitor spending hit $5.1 billion in 2024, a 4.1% increase over 2023 and 24.4% above pre-pandemic 2019 levels, on 14.9 million total visitors.

Ironically, Mount Rushmore itself saw visitation drop nearly 24% in 2024, to 1.85 million, partly tied to maintenance issues at nearby Wind Cave’s elevator system that shut down cave tours for months. That shows the state’s growth is now broader than its single most famous landmark.

2025 brought another record. An annual economic impact study found 14.97 million visitors traveled to and within South Dakota in 2025, spending $5.16 billion — up 1.1% from 2024. Tourism supported over 59,000 jobs and generated $2.3 billion in household income, accounting for 4.7% of the state’s total economy and saving each household roughly $1,121 in taxes.

Looking ahead, state officials are positioning 2026 around America’s 250th birthday celebration, branding South Dakota as an affordable destination for authentic cultural, culinary, and outdoor experiences.

Metric	2024	2025
Total visitors	14.9 million	14.97 million (+0.38%)
Visitor spending	$5.1 billion (+4.1%)	$5.16 billion (record, +1.1%)
Mount Rushmore visitors	1.85 million (down 23.9%)	1.74M through Sept (+2.8% YoY)
Jobs supported	—	59,145
Household income generated	—	$2.3 billion
Tax revenue generated	—	$406.1 million
Tax savings per household	—	~$1,121
2026 positioning	—	America 250 tie-in

Tennessee: Four Straight Years of Records

Tennessee has posted the longest active winning streak among the four. The state generated $31.7 billion in direct visitor spending in 2024 from 147 million visits, its fourth consecutive record year, up 3.3% over 2023. That marked 36.6% growth since 2018, more than double the 17.4% national average pace. Nashville (Davidson County) alone brought in a record $11.2 billion, roughly a third of all statewide visitor spending, averaging $30.7 million spent every day in Music City.

The state kept the streak alive into 2025. Tennessee recorded 150 million visits in 2025, with travelers spending a record $32.5 billion — a 2.7% increase that outpaced the 1.9% national growth rate. Tourism generated $3.3 billion in state and local tax revenue, including $874 million funneled directly into the state’s education fund. The Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the country’s most-visited national park, remained a cornerstone of that success — local and tribal partners even kept it open for 40 days during a federal government shutdown, drawing over 2.4 million visitors in that window.

Metric	2024	2025
Total visits	147 million	150 million
Direct visitor spending	$31.7 billion (record)	$32.5 billion (record, +2.7%)
Growth vs. national average	36.6% since 2018 vs. 17.4% US	40% since 2018 vs. 22% US
Nashville/Davidson County spending	$11.2 billion	County data due Sept. 2026
State/local tax revenue	$3.3 billion	$3.3 billion
Tax savings per household	$1,170	$1,180
Key driver	Fourth straight record year	Great Smoky Mountains NP resilience

Texas: The Scale Leader

No state in this comparison comes close to Texas on sheer dollar volume. In 2024, a record 62 million out-of-state travelers visited Texas, joined by more than 67 million Texans taking overnight trips within the state, generating record visitor spending of $97.5 billion. That spending produced a total economic impact of $199.5 billion, supported 1.3 million jobs, and generated $9.2 billion in state and local taxes.

Growth continued in 2025, though official state releases have been more measured in tone than the 2024 record announcement. Travelers to and within Texas spent $98.7 billion in 2025, generating $9.2 billion in state and local taxes, with the industry continuing to support more than 1.3 million jobs statewide. That’s roughly 1.2% growth year over year — a slower pace than Tennessee or South Carolina, but on a base more than triple the size of any other state in this comparison.

Metric	2024	2025
Out-of-state travelers	62 million (record)	Full breakdown pending
In-state overnight travelers	67+ million	Full breakdown pending
Visitor spending	$97.5 billion (record)	$98.7 billion
Total economic impact	$199.5 billion	Full report pending
Jobs supported	1.3 million	1.3+ million
State/local tax revenue	$9.2 billion	$9.2 billion

Head-to-Head: 2024 vs. 2025 Visitor Spending

State	2024 Spending	2025 Spending	YoY Growth	2024–2025 Visitors
Texas	$97.5 billion	$98.7 billion	~1.2%	62M → data pending
Tennessee	$31.7 billion	$32.5 billion	2.7%	147M → 150M
South Carolina	~$29–30 billion (domestic)	$31 billion (total impact)	~3–4%	7.8M → 7.9M (Charleston)
South Dakota	$5.1 billion	$5.16 billion	1.1%	14.9M → 14.97M

Key takeaway: Tennessee posted the fastest percentage growth of the four states in 2025, while Texas remains the runaway leader in absolute dollars — its spending total is larger than Tennessee, South Carolina, and South Dakota’s totals combined. South Dakota, despite having the smallest population of the group, punches well above its weight relative to its size, with tourism spending equal to nearly 5% of its entire state economy.

What to Watch in 2026

• South Carolina: Whether inland/nature-based tourism growth can offset continued softness in coastal markets like the Grand Strand, and whether Canadian visitation rebounds.
• South Dakota: A likely visitor bump tied to America’s 250th anniversary celebrations, plus recovery at Mount Rushmore and Wind Cave now that facility issues have been resolved.
• Tennessee: Whether the state can extend its five-year record streak into 2026, aided by new international air routes from Iceland and Ireland launched in 2025.
• Texas: Full 2025 county-and-sector breakdowns and whether growth reaccelerates from its comparatively modest ~1.2% pace.