CONCORD, N.H. — This year’s Fourth of July holiday was a big weekend for tourism.
North Country businesses reported an increase in visitors and sales this year compared to last year when rainy weather put a damper on turnout, according to a survey by the Mt. Washington Valley Chamber of Commerce. And Michelle Cruz, the executive director of the chamber, said the North Conway parade had the highest attendance she’s seen in recent years.
“We still don’t have the exact number on it of how many attendees there were, but it was definitely, I mean, a number we haven’t seen in years,” she said. “It was great to see.”
Alex Foti, who owns Bretton Woods Vacations, said rentals of the company’s properties were up 25 percent compared to last year, which he attributed to better weather.
Sales for tickets on the Cog Railway were up 10 percent, and restaurants in the area reported being extremely busy, too.
”The entire week was incredible,” said Pete Gagne, who owns Saco River Canoe Rental. “The weather was perfect, hot, and humid. Last year was a bust so it didn’t take much to improve.”
Tourism in the region “is always driven by the weather, no matter the season,” Cruz said.
That made for a tough summer in 2023, when Cruz said record rainfall caused last-minute cancellations. But the hot and sunny weather so far this summer has helped business pick up. Cruz said because the Fourth of July fell on a Thursday this year, some people came up as early as the weekend prior and stayed for an entire week.
“The trend this season is that people are still traveling, but they are waiting until the last minute” to book accommodations, she said.
Most visitors to the region traveled by car from nearby states, including Massachusetts, New York, Connecticut, and Rhode Island. There was some international travel as well, drawing tourists from Canada and the Netherlands.
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Amanda Gokee can be reached at amanda.gokee@globe.com. Follow her @amanda_gokee.