LAKE PLACID — The Regional Office of Sustainable Tourism has released its Essex County regional lodging study prepared by CBRE Hotels Advisory.
The study evaluates potential lodging opportunities in the growing Lake Champlain and Adirondack Hub regions of Essex County.
This study identifies lodging opportunities that may add to the county’s overall visitor economy by supporting new overnight stays, additional visitor spending and expanded economic impact.
Report findings are intended to help guide future conversations with communities, landowners, developers, and hotel brands.
The study focuses on three areas of Essex County: the southern Lake Champlain Region, the northern Lake Champlain Region and the Adirondack Hub. It identifies lodging concepts that may be supportable in each area based on visitor travel patterns, tourism assets, existing lodging supply, short-term rental data, hotel market performance and comparable lodging models.
Data cited in the study shows Essex County generated about $963.5 million in total visitor spending in 2024, the highest among counties in the Adirondacks.
According to county occupancy tax data, every region in Essex County achieved visitor spending growth that exceeds inflation, with the Adirondack Hub and Lake Champlain Region among the fastest growing by percentage. Visitor spending county-wide has expanded approximately $360 million since 2017, after adjusting for inflation.
“Essex County already has one of the strongest tourism economies in the Adirondacks,” said Adam DeSantis, director of economic development at ROOST.
“This study is about identifying opportunities that can add to the county’s market-leading position by attracting lodging concepts that reach new audiences and fit the character of each region’s unique communities.”
CBRE Hotels Advisory identified three primary potential lodging concepts for further exploration:
— A 100 to 130 room conference-center hotel concept in the southern Lake Champlain Region, with Ticonderoga identified as a strong potential location due to its existing infrastructure, visitor attractions, history, waterfront access and proximity to both Lake Champlain and Lake George.
— A 30 to 50 room boutique mansion or estate-style hotel concept in the northern Lake Champlain Region, where communities such as Willsboro, Essex, Westport, Elizabethtown, Lewis and Chesterfield offer scenic, agricultural, historic, waterfront and trail-based assets.
— A 40-unit glamping or trailer-style lodging concept in the Adirondack Hub, where communities such as Schroon Lake, North Hudson, Newcomb and Minerva offer access to outdoor recreation, trails, lakes, scenic landscapes and wilderness-oriented experiences.
Report findings also align with broader trends in the lodging and outdoor hospitality industries.
ROOST has recently been engaging with hotel brands, developers and glamping operators to better understand how emerging lodging models could enhance Adirondack communities while supporting local priorities and respecting community character.
“This gives us a more specific, data-backed way to talk about lodging opportunities,” DeSantis said. “It helps us move from general interest in lodging development to more targeted conversations about what type of project might make sense, where it might fit and what conditions would need to be in place for a community to pursue it thoughtfully.”
The study was funded, in part, by a grant from National Grid. These grants assist growth through infrastructure assistance and energy efficiency, with emphasis on sustainable development, according to Amanda Vitullo, economic development manager for the eastern NY region.
ROOST will use the study as a business development and community planning tool. The organization will work with interested communities to identify appropriate sites, assess local readiness and determine which lodging concepts may be the best fit for each area.
ROOST will also use the study to support outreach to hotel developers, lodging operators, brands, landowners and potential funding partners.