Concord's Tourism Industry Gears Up For a Comeback

CONCORD, MA — Pandemic restrictions took out about half of Concord's yearly visitor totals, but the tides may be turning as the state eases restrictions under Step 2 in Phase 3 of the reopening plan.

Under the new step, museums, cultural and historical facilities and guided tours will be allowed to open at 50 percent capacity. The eased restrictions will help open some closed spaces like the historic house museums throughout town, but Concord spokeswoman Erin Stevens said social distancing in the small houses could still be an issue.

Jan Turnquist, Executive Director of Lousia May Alcott's Orchard House explained the factors that go into reopening the museum houses:

"Although museums with adequate space will be allowed open in the next phase, it will take longer for Orchard House to do so because of the small size of our rooms. We'll be excited to welcome visitors back for in-person tours as soon as we safely can! Right now we invite readers to get a free "sneak peek" inside every Sunday at 2pm during a live broadcast done from within Orchard House. You may access it at Facebook "Hope, and Keep Busy Broadcasts," and you do not need a Facebook account to tune in. If you do not catch it live, recordings are available here. For more information about Louisa May Alcott's Orchard House, please visit our website: www.louisamayalcott.org."

The new step will be most helpful to guided tours throughout town, including the newly rolled out bike tours and walking tours. Under tighter restrictions, the town capped tours at ten people and bookings were available on a reservation basis. The group number will increase, but Concord is likely keeping the reservation system as it allows for multiple tours to be scheduled in one day and guides only need to work when they're called.

While winter is a predictably slow season for tourism in town, Stevens said it's hard to pinpoint when the busiest season is, with a steady flow of visitors year round.

"Can I say all three seasons?" Stevens joked, "Patriots' Day always brings lots of visitors and from then into the fall it's pretty busy."

Stevens estimates about 10,000 visitors made their way through Concord last year, some who came for the fall or summer foliage and stayed for the historical tours and local charm. This year, the visitor count is at less than half that, around 4,000 visitors.

"Tourism has definitely declined as people are trying to be safer and not spread the coronavirus," Stevens said.

She noted that the decline has come with a caveat — visitors may be down, but residents are exploring the town and its historical roots as a creative way to escape isolation. Conservation areas and trails like the national park and Walden Pond have become a popular way for Concordians to safely explore town.

"We've even heard anecdotally that places like The Orchard House — even though they haven't been open to the public, people are still wandering the grounds and taking in the area," Stevens said.

The town has taken this time to get creative too. The lull in visitors has given the center time to create new tours and hone in on the growing hunger to experience something new in town. During the pandemic, the town has created at least three new tours: The Little Women tour, which was inspired by the movie, the Women of Concord walking tour and The African American History of Concord bike tour.

Like many tourism-heavy towns, Concord's business sector took a hit with the decline of visitors. Stevens said while the visitor's center has lost some revenue with the decline of tourists, the local businesses are what people are worried about.

"We're working with businesses to try to direct visitors we get their way for a bite to eat or shopping," Stevens said.

Advocating for business-friendly initiatives to continue like outdoor dining and shopping is a priority as well.

"Outdoor dining, curbside shopping, people really want that kind of stuff to continue," Stevens said, and the town plans to continue the conversation to benefit the businesses and the tourism industry.