The Destination Stewardship Strategic Plan incorporates a comprehensive framework of goals, objectives, and strategies. This framework is informed by the priorities expressed by tourism stakeholders across the state. At the heart of this framework are Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), important for evaluating both the outcomes of our initiatives and the effectiveness of the implementation process.

Outcome-Based KPIs

Our outcome-based KPIs are categorized into four groups:

  1. Environmental: Metrics include habitat conservation, air quality measurements, and wildlife-vehicle collision rates.
    1. Habitat conserved statewide (CPW Metric)
    2. Habitat improved (CPW Metric)
    3. Wildlife-vehicle collisions (CDOT metric)
    4. State park visitations (CPW Metric)
    5. Solid waste flows (CDPHE Metric)
    6. Air quality (ozone precursor emissions) (CDPHE Metric)
    7. Statewide per capita water use (CWCB Metric)
  2. Social/Cultural: Indicators track traveler satisfaction, engagement with cultural landmarks, and the development of tribal tourism.
    1. Percent of travelers very satisfied (CTO Metric)
    2. Percent of travelers who used bus or train (CTO Metric)
    3. Percent of travelers that experienced landmark/historic site or museum (CTO Metric)
    4. Percent of travelers that ate at unique/local food dining types on trip (CTO Metric)
    5. Percent of travelers who had travel party member with disabilities (CTO Metric)
    6. Percent of travelers that identify as African American or other (CTO Metric)
    7. Affordable housing units created (OEDIT & DOLA Metric)
    8. Number of people engaged through History Colorado (History Colorado Metric)
    9. Number of tribal tourism development and marketing initiatives (CTO Metric)
    10. Eastbound and westbound tunnel counts through Eisenhower Johnson Memorial Tunnels (CDOT Metric)
    11. Number of ballot initiatives mentioning tourism (CTO Metric)
    12. Population change (CSDO Metric)
  3. Economic: Metrics assess the economic impact of tourism, employment within the sector, and support for small businesses.
    1. Tourism economic impact (CTO Metric)
    2. Tourism seasonality (CTO Metric)
    3. Employment in tourism (OEDIT Metric)
    4. Food preparation and serving related occupation median salary (CDLE Metric)
    5. Passenger arrivals at Denver International and regional airports (Airport Metrics)
    6. Number of small businesses supported (OEDIT Metric)
  4. Climate: Indicators measure greenhouse gas emissions, changes in seasonal snowpack, and the registration of zero-emission vehicles.
    1. Greenhouse gas emissions (CEO Metric)
    2. Seasonal snowpack and annual mountain precipitation (NRCS/USDA Metric)
    3. Average length of ski season (CTO Metric)
    4. Zero emission vehicle registration (CEO Metric)
    5. Building emissions reduction (CEO Metric)

These indicators, already collected by various state agencies, utilize established data sources to enhance the accuracy and efficiency of monitoring the outcomes and successes of the plan’s implementation. By systematically gathering and analyzing these KPIs, we can effectively determine if tourism is aligning with our vision of destination stewardship in Colorado.

Strategy-Specific KPIs

In addition to these overarching outcome-based KPIs, each strategy defined within the plan is paired with specific KPIs to monitor its implementation. These strategy-specific KPIs enable real-time progress tracking, data-driven adjustments, and ensure alignment with the broader goals of the strategic plan.

KPI Dashboard

To promote transparency and engage stakeholders, we are creating an interactive dashboard that will provide real-time statistics on key performance indicators (KPIs). Though the dashboard is still under development, this page will be regularly updated as new data becomes available.

Get Involved

We invite those interested in contributing to data collection and impact monitoring to contact us. Your involvement is crucial to our ongoing improvement and the successful achievement of our destination stewardship goals. Discover how you can help shape the future of tourism in Colorado by getting involved today.