Tuesday, February 5 – OC Makes Top 50 Motorcoach List

OCEAN CITY – The National Motorcoach Network Inc. has recognized Ocean City as one of the Top 50 Motorcoach Destinations of 2008.

The Top 50 list was recently announced in Byways, a publication of the National Motorcoach Network distributed throughout North America to those who plan motorcoach tours and charters.

The Top Motorcoach Destinations for 2008 were selected by affiliates of the National Motorcoach Network. According to the article in Byways, the annual survey is not random, but rather, it is based on the number of responses received each year of where responding motorcoach and tour operators believe their motorcoaches will be traveling during the new year.

"We are extremely pleased to have Ocean City recognized as a top motorcoach destination in North America," said Mike Noah, Director of the Ocean City Department of Tourism. "The motorcoach sector is an important component in the department’s destination marketing efforts."

Along with Ocean City, other destinations on the Top 50 list included New York City, Washington D.C., Baltimore, Orlando and Los Angeles. The State of Maryland was named one of the Top 20 Motorcoach States for 2008.

According to studies by researchers at George Washington University and Dunham and Associates, one overnight visit by a motorcoach group can leave from $5,000 to more than $13,000 in a local destination’s economy with dollars spent on lodging, meals, admissions, shopping, fees and local taxes.

To read all the week’s news, see The Dispatch on Friday morning.