If your IDEAL VACATION includes: Whitewater rafting, coal mining, pepperoni rolls, moonshine, and being forcibly unplugged, I guess you’re not alone.
According to a new report, the U.S. state that’s the most overrun by tourists is: West Virginia. At least compared to the number of locals.
Researchers determined the visitor-to-locals ratio for each state by dividing the annual tourist population by the annual residential population.
So, it’s not the most popular tourist destinations, it’s the most tourism traffic above the people who actually live there.
West Virginia has the highest visitor to local ratio at 42.4 to 1. North Dakota is next, followed by Delaware, Rhode Island, Vermont, Ohio, Tennessee, New Mexico, Idaho, and Wisconsin. (Many of those have smaller populations, but Ohio has a Top 10 population.)
Texas has the LOWEST visitor-to-local ratio at just 2 to 1. Arizona is next, followed by Alaska, North Carolina, Utah, Virginia, South Carolina, Alabama, Oklahoma, and Florida.
When expanded to COUNTRIES, Vatican City has the highest visitor to local ratio. Others in the Top 10 include: The Bahamas, Monaco, Malta, and Hong Kong. (They used the term “country” loosely, apparently.)
Vatican City has fewer than 900 permanent residents, including the Pope. But millions of people visit every year.
