Dyersburg visitors keep hotels full, prompt building of new Hampton Inn

The new Hampton Inn is set for completion by next Fall.

State Gazette photo/William Northcutt

WILLIAM NORTHCUTT

wnorthcutt@stategazette.com

In September, the City of Dyersburg announced that a new Hampton Inn is being built and will add 85 rooms to the county’s hotel industry. The existing Hampton on Mall Loop Road will not close. According to manager Nola Martin, when the new Hampton is completed sometime next year, “Hilton has a new conversion plan” and will rebrand its smaller hotels, including Dyersburg’s, under the name “Spark.”

Industry and location bring in the greatest number of visitors, according to Dyersburg-Dyer County Chamber of Commerce CEO Slater Barr. He stated, “Dyersburg is a great stopover point. A lot of people come to town for our industries and construction projects. When you put it all together, you can see a robust demand (for hotels/motels)."

Barr said that according to local hotel management, room occupancy rates are commonly at capacity, and even on “slow” days, occupancy is significant.

Tennessee Department of Tourist Development figures show that travel to Dyersburg and Dyer County contributes significantly to the local economy.

In 2022:

*The direct and indirect impact of travel on Dyer County totaled $110.8M.

*Visitors to Dyersburg/Dyer County spent $68.7M.

*Tourism in the county created 632 jobs directly, a total of 898 when indirect jobs are included.

*Visitors directly generated $6.1M in state and local taxes, [contributing directly to Dyersburg’s record tax revenues of over $16M.]

*Visitors spent $7.04M alone on accommodations.

The existing Hampton Inn will be rebranded by parent company Hilton.

State Gazette photo/William Northcutt

Additionally, Dyer County Room Occupancy Tax Collections…showed a 23% increase in rooms stays from 2021 to 2022 and another 12% increase from 2022 to 2023. In 2013, the City of Dyersburg collected almost $240,000 in taxes from room occupancy; today, that annual rate stands at over $425,000.

The tourism boom got another boost when The City of Dyersburg announced last week that it will receive a $100,000 Tourism Enhancement grant. The city will use the funds to build an outdoor stage at the Forked Deer River Park.