Number of Visitors Up in 1998

The number of visitors to Orange County rose slightly last year to 37.5 million people, who spent a record $5.7 billion, the Anaheim/Orange County Visitor and Convention Bureau reported Wednesday.

Visitor figures topped out at 38.7 million in 1995, then fell to 38.3 million in 1996 and 36.9 million in 1997, said Elaine Cali, a spokeswoman for the bureau. Spending, which hit $5.5 billion in 1989 but fell during California’s long recession, was $5.1 billion in 1995, $5.5 billion in 1996 and $5.6 billion in 1997.

Last year’s increase occurred despite heavy construction that disrupted the Disneyland and Convention Center area of Anaheim, where major expansions and upgrades are underway. Tourism also was hurt by foreign financial crises and El Nino rains last winter, but visits to Orange County theme parks by local residents remained relatively strong.

In calculating its figures, the visitor bureau includes tourists who stay overnight and day visitors from the region.

The state Trade and Commerce Agency, which includes only tourists in its figures, has yet to calculate numbers for 1998. It said that travelers spent an aggregate 21.3 million days in Orange County in 1997, compared with 37.4 million in Los Angeles County and 26.5 million in San Diego County.