Fish Creek in Door County. PC: Fox 11 Online
DOOR COUNTY, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) — It’s no secret that Door County, known for its beautiful waterfront scenery, is a hotbed for summer tourism.
However, recently, the area has seen more people coming to experience what Door County offers around Thanksgiving.
“Traffic and tourism around the Thanksgiving time is when we really start to get festive locally and we see a lot of families traveling, getting in the Christmas spirit,” said Beth Levendusky, creative director for Door Peninsula Winery. “So there’s definitely an uptick in the number of faces we see come through the door.”
Two studies appear to show just how much of a Thanksgiving destination Door County has become.
HomeToGo has Door County ranked as the seventh top trending Thanksgiving break destination, while Gunther Motor Company’s survey ranks Fish Creek as the 50th most-sought-after road trip.
Destination Door County sees the area’s growth of events and other activities playing a role in this.
“The little parade that could, the Jacksonport Thanksgiving Day parade, and really then that flows right into Friday, Saturday, Sunday of that weekend as well, with events in several of our communities. I think, probably the biggest one being the Christkindlmarkt,” said Jon Jarosh with Destination Door County.
Door County becoming a more popular travel destination over Thanksgiving weekend is music to the ears of local businesses, which say it provides a great economic boost before things slow down later in the winter.
“With the increased traffic around Thanksgiving and into the early part of December, it’s definitely worth being open and, you know, it helps us a lot to carry us through the winter,” said Levendusky.
“We have seen more businesses stay open and offer certain things that are special over that weekend that maybe weren’t doing that five years ago,” said Jarosh.
Harbor Guest House in Fish Creek says they’re nearly booked for Thanksgiving weekend.
They see everything from families to couples who use the time as an opportunity to get away, or visit other family.
“We have a lot of extended family, they’re up here visiting their family, so they come here with their kids,” said Liz McBride, general manager of Harbor Guest House.
If you want to stay in an Airbnb, it’ll cost you anywhere from $175 to $470 per night to stay from Nov. 26 and Dec. 1 in homes that range from two to four bedrooms.
With Thanksgiving just days ahead, area businesses are no doubt getting ready to showcase what they have to offer this time of year.
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