Holiday tourism increase in Gulfport

It’s been a pretty great holiday season for the City of Gulfport with tourism expanding thanks to the movie ‘Christmas in Mississippi’ that was filmed here and put Gulfport on the map.
The Gulfport Winter Harbor Lights Festival is always a holiday go-to during the season, but since the movie aired on Lifetime, showcasing the event, tourism has dramatically increased.
Chris Vignes with Gulfport Public Affairs and Gulfport Mayor Billy Hewes tells News 25 people from across the country have come to visit Gulfport and see for themselves what the city has to offer. Mayor Hewes said, “We created the Harbor Lights Festival for the idea of expanding tourism beyond just the fall, beyond Cruising the Coast. It’s been fantastic. It exceeded all our expectations. We’re always looking for ways to keep it fresh, keep it interesting.”
“We’re having guests from as far as Texas, Florida, Arkansas, Tennessee all coming and realizing this is a really great community, a really great place to visit, a great place for families so it’s done very well,” said Vignes.
The last day to enjoy the Winter Harbor Lights Festival will be Sunday on New Year’s Eve.