Visitors to Wapello County spent more than $68.6 million in 2025, a 7.1% increase in visitor spending from 2024. This jump is the fifth year in a row the county has seen growth in tourism’s economic impact.
The Iowa Tourism Office has released new data showing tourism-related expenditures in the state reached $7.6 billion in 2024, a 1.2% increase over 2024. This is the third year Iowa’s travel-generated expenditures have topped $7 billion.
The largest sector of visitor spending in Wapello County was in food and beverage, which includes restaurants, bars, grocery stores, and other food providers, totaling $17.7 million.
Visitors spent $16.6 million on transportation, the air and ground transportation to and from the county and within the destination. Included are taxis, trains, rental cars, buses, and the local share of air transportation spending.
Wapello County’s lodging properties saw $13.7 million in visitor spending. Lodging, which the Iowa Tourism Office says includes second home spending in addition to local accommodations, increased by almost $1 million in 2025. Recreation and retail spending brought in $9.01 million and $11.7 million respectively.
This visitor activity sustained 482 direct jobs in Wapello County in 2025, with an additional 202 jobs supported by the indirect and induced impacts of visitors.
“Tourism’s continued growth in Wapello County is something our entire community can be proud of,” says Laura Carrell, Executive Director of Meet Ottumwa, the convention and visitors bureau for Wapello County. “Seeing visitor spending increase for the fifth consecutive year demonstrates the vital role tourism plays in our local economy. From our restaurants and retailers to our lodging properties and attractions, visitor spending supports local businesses, creates jobs across the county, and helps strengthen our communities. At Meet Ottumwa, we’re thrilled to see our local tourism and hospitality professionals doing great things to draw people in, and we look forward to building on this momentum.”
For more information about travel and tourism in Ottumwa and Wapello County, visit the Meet Ottumwa Visitor Center at 115 E. Main St. Open Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., the visitor center houses a mini-museum, local art gallery, visitor information, an Ottumwa-themed gift shop, and M*A*S*H’s Radar O’Reilly exhibit and photo op.
