Cities in the eclipse’s path are getting an economic ‘shot in the arm.’

2024-04-08 10:20:15+00:00 - Scroll down for original article

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A vast swath of North America will soon be plunged into darkness. Though momentary, the total solar eclipse on Monday has already proved lucrative. Across the United States, Mexico and Canada, towns and villages have been planning what could be the biggest tourist attraction for many small cities. Larger areas that are more accustomed to hosting events are nonetheless expecting a significant windfall. “We don’t usually have this kind of tourism — it’s not common,” said Edgar Augusto González-Zatarain, the mayor of Mazatlán, Mexico. “Nature is giving us this opportunity, and we have to take advantage of it.” Various indicators suggest the eclipse will bolster the economies in the path of totality, a roughly 110-mile-wide belt that will stretch from Mazatlán to Montreal. Hertz said car reservations had jumped 3,000 percent from a year ago. Airbnb has reported a 1,000 percent increase in searches for listings. In Oklahoma, the Choctaw Nation had seen a 200 percent increase as of mid-March in reservations at its resorts and casinos.