Black Hills Vacations (BHV), South Dakota’s one-stop-shop for planning and booking vacations to the Black Hills & Badlands, posted a record-breaking success in nearly every area in 2021, according to a report.
As reported at their 24th annual meeting on February 11, the company achieved a 70% increase in revenues over 2020, garnering total revenues of $5,047,523.
The demand for camping and RV resorts, outdoor entertainment, group travel, combined with pent-up demand for travel, has led to an increase in tourism in destinations like the Black Hills and Badlands region, causing a rise in sales of BHV.
In turn, it led to an increase of 69% in lodging reservation sales, a 61% growth in event ticket sales, and over a hundred percent growth in activity reservations sold by BHV last year.
“Peak season started in April and never ended,” said Presston Gable, BHV Board Chairman. And, while COVID-19 brought most of the country to a near-standstill, South Dakota did not shut down and in fact, welcomed visitors to our wide-open spaces.
BHV Chief Executive Officer Susan Johnson mentioned several new initiatives and events the company organized in 2021. She credited her team for the exponential growth into previously unexplored areas.
In addition to the sales figures, BHV officials also reported the results of their customer satisfaction survey of guests who traveled to the region from Memorial Day to Labor Day.
Highlights of the survey include: 24% of people asked for assistance in planning their trip and made reservations with the help of a Black Hills travel specialist; 76% booked online and the cart size for reservations made with the help of a Black Hills specialist was 57% more than an online sale.
Moreover, 46% of respondents said 2021 was their first time visiting the Black Hills; 92% of those who traveled said they would recommend visiting the Black Hills to a friend or family member; 85% are quite likely or extremely likely to return.
This annual survey, combined with lifestyle and demographic behaviors collected from the company’s customer database, gives information on guest travel and booking behaviors. This information is used to send carefully-timed and targeted emails to clients in the planning stages of their Black Hills vacation.
Looks like Black Hills Vacations rocked it in 2021! If you’re up for some adventure, check out their cool packages. Stay tuned for more fun events and deals this year!