This post is part of a series chronicling news coverage of rising prices in the United States. See more here.
WKRN Nashville reports local tourism leaders are expecting decreased travel if gas prices don't stabilize
Nashville tourism leader: “The impact is that 41% of travelers are choosing to find closer to home destinations for their travel”
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From the May 12, 2026, video uploaded to the website of WKRN News 2
TORI GESSNER (ANCHOR): News 2's Alexia Tsiropoulos breaks down the data for us as we track the impact on our economy. Alexia.
ALEXIA TSIROPOULOS (REPORTER): Tori, tourism leaders say numbers have looked a bit bumpy this month and into June, but they are hoping to see that bounce back due to events scheduled this summer.
RAY LARSEN (TRAVELER): It seems like $3.89 is about what I'm seeing from Georgia to Tennessee.
TSIROPOULOS: Rising gas prices could be what's turning many travelers around, choosing not to drive.
LARSEN: I'm sitting at right about $400 from leaving Fort Myers, Florida to here. And typically it's about $250.
TSIROPOULOS: Ray Larsen is one of many who've had to fork out double what they paid in gas last year. Nashville tourism leaders are projecting a noticeable impact from high gas costs.
NASHVILLE TOURISM LEADER: As you look at early May, we're pacing down overall, down about 2.7%. Transient hotel demand is down 9% for the month, so that is a caution.
TSIROPOULOS: National data shows this being the highest concern for gas prices since July of 2022.
NASHVILLE TOURISM LEADER: The impact is that 41% of travelers are choosing to find closer to home destinations for their travel. 36% are cutting back on the number of trips they take.
TSIROPOULOS: They say rising fuel prices will put pressure on visitor spending, but tourism leaders say —
NASHVILLE TOURISM LEADER: You can see the downside scenario here if there is a prolonged Mideast conflict and higher gas prices, we're looking at still gaining about 1.6% in hotel demand.
TSIROPOULOS: If the conflict ends soon, they expect their baseline to grow over 3%.
NASHVILLE TOURISM LEADER: Very healthy visitor forecast looking at 3.8% visitor spending growth. So that will give us $12.1 billion in visitor spending for this year.
TSIROPOULOS: In today's presentation, tourism leaders show this summer being packed in Music City with concerts and events that are attracting tourists and selling out hotels, so they're hoping to see numbers stabilize again by August. Tori.