Visit Nebraska leader touts tourism impact, Buffalo County growth

LINCOLN — Nebraska’s Buffalo County, buoyed by development in Kearney, stood out as a growing state tourism magnet during an event Friday spotlighting the economic impact of travel to the Cornhusker state.

Of Nebraska’s five most populated counties, Buffalo reportedly outpaced peers with its 7% growth in direct travel spending in 2025 compared with 2024.

Only one of the top five lost traction in tourism-related spending. Sarpy County’s dollar growth reportedly dipped 0.5% during that time frame. Douglas grew by 4.4%; Hall by 3.5% and Lancaster by 2.2%.

Those and other details are included in a 127-page report newly released on behalf of Visit Nebraska, also known as the Nebraska Tourism Commission. It looks largely at 2025 compared with 2024 and breaks down impact in the state’s 93 counties.

Jenn Gjerde, Visit Nebraska’s executive director, was joined by Paul Younes of Kearney at the Friday media event hosted by Gov. Jim Pillen, who said he was putting on his “chief bragging officer” hat for the occasion.

Praising ‘Passport’ program

Among the report highlights were that the direct travel spend in Nebraska overall rose by more than 2%, led to about 760 additional jobs and generated about 5% more in local and state tax revenue in 2025 compared with the year before.

“To break that down for the everyday Nebraskan, that means every household saved $412 on their taxes last year because of tourism in this state,” Gjerde told reporters.

The economic impact study was researched by Portland, Oregon-based Dean Runyan Associates, which Gjerde said has compiled the travel report for two decades. Findings are based on data collected from various public and private sources.

Officials said the travel industry represents a key component of Nebraska’s economic prosperity, as related spending generates jobs and taxes.

Pillen praised Visit Nebraska’s Passport program, which guides Nebraskans and out-of-state visitors to “hidden gems” across the state, and he pointed out various attractions around the state. 

“We have extraordinary draws and places that we can brag (about), that we can enjoy,” the governor said. “Tourism is really making progress.”

Much of the state’s tourism impact was in those most populated counties, with direct travel spending in Douglas County reportedly reaching $2.16 billion last year. That was nearly half the amount attributed to the entire state. Direct travel spending measures purchases and taxes paid by travelers during their trip.

According to the researchers, the statewide direct travel spend increased 2.6% in 2025 over 2024 — nearly $118 million, for a total of $4.72 billion. However, they noted that considering reduced purchasing power of the dollar due to recent inflation, the “true quantity of goods and services purchased by travelers” increased 2.1% or $95.3 million.

Direct travel spending in Buffalo County was reported to be about $184 million, in Hall County, $180 million; in Lancaster, $725 million; in Sarpy, $257 million.

Gjerde credited Younes with boosting development in Kearney. She said he started out washing dishes and worked his way up in the hospitality industry. He lobbied successfully to get a “good life district” designation in Kearney, which opens the door to a public tax incentive.

Kearney expansion

The good life district is being developed on 200 acres of Younes Landing, a large-scale project by Younes and Maggie Younes-Holz, who own the Kearney-based Younes Hospitality. Kearney was the state’s fifth and final good life district. Related legislation allowed half of the state sales tax generated within the designated district to go toward defraying development costs in the district boundaries.

At Younes Landing, the Kearney SportsPlex and Kearney Partnership Building opened last year. Other entertainment and retail venues are expected.

Younes said visitors may come to the development or his hotels but also look to grow businesses elsewhere in the area and create jobs and spend money.

“It’s going to generate more sales tax for everybody. The city, the county, the state, everybody will benefit,” he said. “All of us in Kearney work together.”

Among other highlights of the report:

• Travel spending generated 41,990 jobs in 2025, an increase that year of about 760 jobs, which was a 1.8% annual growth.
• Direct earnings of employees and business owners attributable to travel spending went up 6.7% to $1.1 billion in 2025 over 2024.
• Direct tax receipts collected by state and municipalities, as levied on travel purchases such as hotels, food, retail goods and gas, went up 5% to $339.5 million in 2025 over 2024. (State tax revenue rose by $14 million and local tax revenue by $2 million.)
• Nebraska welcomed 12.7 million overnight visitors in 2025, a 1% increase from the year before. About half stayed in a hotel, motel or short-term vacation rental.