(MANTEO) — The Outer Banks Visitors Bureau reported that domestic visitors to and within Dare County spent an estimated $777.41 million dollars in 2008. This is an increase of 1.9 percent from 2007, according to county-by-county data released by the North Carolina Division of Tourism, Film and Sports Development.

“These figures reflect what we on the Outer Banks of North Carolina have always known, that tourism is our lifeblood,” said Renee Cahoon, Chairwoman of the Dare County Tourism Board. “The better we are at promoting tourism, the better our economic development will be.”

Gov. Beverly Perdue had announced earlier this year that visitors to North Carolina spent a record $16.9 billion in 2008, an increase of 2.1 percent from 2007. The figures come from the “2008 Economic Impact Of Travel On North Carolina Counties.”