KALAMAZOO, Mich. — While talking with Discover Kalamazoo, I learned that tax revenue for economy hotels was down slightly this year. For my neighbors, this might sound like a drop in tourism, but I'm told that may not be the case.
Hotel stays, particularly at economy hotels, were down in 2025. Dana Wagner with Discover Kalamazoo explained what that means, saying Kalamazoo brought in about $150,000 less than they thought they'd get as a result of increasing the city's hotel tax.
"This is the first time where we are anticipating missing our accommodations tax budget this year," Wagner said.
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"But that doesn't necessarily translate to tourism being down, overall," Wagner said.
The reason is simple: not every tourist in Kalamazoo gets a hotel room.
"We look at visitor spending, and so lodging is actually the number 2 category of visitor spending. Food and beverage being the first," Wagner said.
Major tourism draws are just a few years down the road, including the Kalamazoo Event Center downtown and the new indoor youth sports facility expected to open in 2027.
Discover Kalamazoo estimates those projects will have a positive economic impact totaling more than $100 million.
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