Day trippers
Tourist attractions look to neighbors, foreign visitors as gas costs rise
With gas prices in the $4-per-gallon range, the summer tourism season in Essex County, like the rest of New England, could get off to a slow start.
Memorial Day weekend travel was expected to be down 2.9 percent in New England, compared with the holiday weekend last year, according to a survey released last week by AAA Southern New England. Sixty-seven percent of respondents said they're planning more economical vacations and shorter jaunts close to home.
"Plenty of people will still be driving, but just not as far," said John Paul, spokesman for AAA Southern New England. "In New England, we [have] so much to see, and do, driving is still an economical way to get around."
The "drive market," or areas that are no more than a day's drive away, is a key segment of the state's $14 billion tourism industry. To make up for any big loss in out-of-towners, Essex County tourism leaders are looking to day-trippers and local residents to fill the gap.
"We're lucky we have a strong train and bus network," said Julie McConchie, executive director of the North of Boston Convention & Visitors Bureau in Peabody. "If you're stuck in your backyard, how lucky you are to live here."
Among the pickings: a trip to High Rock Observatory in Lynn, a cruise down the marshy Essex River, or a pedicab ride along the boardwalk in Newburyport.
"I think we're going to see a lot of people from New England this summer," predicted Kevin Murphy, an owner of Newburyport Pedicabs, which opened last year. "And once they do get here, I think they're going to put the car away."
Escapes North, a cultural tourism promotion, this year touts local spots with the theme of festivals and celebrations in Essex County. They include the 25th anniversary of the Gloucester Open Studios Tour next month; a first-ever tall ships festival in Salisbury in July; and the 190th anniversary of The Topsfield Fair in October.
"There are a lot of milestones to celebrate," McConchie said. "We really want people to know and appreciate all that we have here."
Dianna Fisher said she plans to visit High Rock Observatory in Lynn next month with a troop of Camp Fire Girls. Visitors climb about 100 steps inside a stone tower to view the night sky through a powerful telescope.
"We're going to look at Saturn and the moon," Fisher said. "It's going to be good, because the kids just finished studying the solar system in school. . . . We like to take them places they can explore."
Out-of-state visitors certainly aren't missing entirely from the tourist trail. Visitors from Canada, California, Colorado, and Utah signed the visitors' book last weekend at the National Park Service Visitor Center in Salem, a starting point for many touring the region. Visitation is up 6 percent at the center compared with a year ago, an official said.
"A lot of people seem to be day-trippers from Boston," said Michelle Blees, a park ranger. "They're getting off the plane there, and taking the train here."
After a visit to The Friendship of Salem, a tall ship docked at Derby Wharf, Eileen Brosnan of Shrewsbury headed for the "Bewitched" statue downtown. The bronze statue commemorates the hit 1960s sitcom that once filmed an episode in Salem.
"I'm surprised at how much there is here," said Brosnan, 43, a nurse and mother of three. "With all the cobblestone streets, it's like a little Boston."
High gas prices didn't stop Cindie and Bob Williams, retirees from Saratoga Springs, N.Y., from making an annual spring trip to Cape Ann.
"We did think about coming in the smaller car," said Cindie Williams, after an afternoon trip aboard Essex River Cruises. "But then we decided to bring our [larger] car anyway for the comfort."
Some local inns are optimistic visitors will bunk in for a few nights this summer.
"We're getting calls for July and August," said Kathy Ross, manager of the 37-room Essex Street Inn in Newburyport. "I've had one call from Pennsylvania, but the rest were more local."
Emerson Inn By the Sea in Rockport is banking on group tours to fill beds this summer.
"We've worked with some [tour operators] for years," said Carol Earle, a manager at the 36-room inn. "We count on them."
Foreign visitors, helped by favorable currency exchange rates, are also a promising sector. The regional tourist council has made a special pitch to Canada, Germany, and Great Britain. "The euro and the pound are strong," McConchie said. "And they think our gas prices are cheap."
Alison Stobie, visiting the North Shore from Northern Ireland, certainly thinks so.
"I pay $12 [per gallon] at home," said Stobie, 34, laughing as she stood on a dock at Essex River Cruises. "So stop your moaning."'
Kathy McCabe can be reached at kmccabe@globe.com. 