Where Southern California Breathes — The Inland Empire's Outdoor Life and Tourism Boom | Lainland

The Inland Empire isn't only a place you work and live. It's also where Southern California steps outside.

A Landscape Built for Weekends — and for Well-Being

Here, the outdoors feels closer. You don't need a three-day plan to enjoy it. A morning hike before lunch, a family picnic after soccer practice, or a quick sunset drive can fit into normal life. That's one reason the Inland Empire keeps attracting families who want both opportunity and breathing room.

In a single day you can trade city streets for alpine air, desert sunsets, or lakeside shade. That range is a real advantage, especially in a part of the state where outdoor escape often means long drives and crowded trailheads.

Outdoor beauty is good for the soul — and increasingly strong for the economy. Across Riverside and San Bernardino Counties, travel spending reached about $16.7 billion in 2024, supporting roughly 155,900 tourism-related jobs.

Tourism Impact

The Numbers Behind the Beauty

$16.7B

Travel Spending

Total tourism spending across Riverside and San Bernardino (2024)

155,900

Tourism Jobs

Employment supported by the tourism and hospitality sector

2.9M

Park Visitors

Joshua Tree National Park annual visitors (2024)

Those numbers shift how we think about the region. Tourism here isn't a narrow niche tied to one attraction. It's a broad economic layer that supports hotels, restaurants, event venues, and the small downtown businesses that thrive on weekend foot traffic.

Tourism Dispatch

Tourism Is Now a Real Economic Engine

Tourism here isn't a narrow niche tied to one attraction. It's a broad economic layer that supports hotels, restaurants, event venues, tour operators, wineries, and family entertainment.

Tourism Dispatch

Parks and Trails: Everyday Nature at Scale

Riverside County's regional parks make the outdoor story concrete. In the latest annual totals, county parks recorded over 400,000 day-use visits and nearly 250,000 camping visits.

Behind those numbers are real IE rituals: family reunions by the water, veteran groups gathering at lakes, weekend camping trips, and nature centers that turn field trips into lifelong loves of the outdoors.

Tourism Dispatch

Joshua Tree and the Desert Economy

Joshua Tree National Park brings millions of visitors annually to IE gateway communities

Joshua Tree National Park welcomed about 2.9 million visitors in 2024 and generated roughly $179 million in gateway-community spending, creating a total local economic benefit of over $200 million.

That impact flows right into nearby towns — into cafés and diners, art shops, small hotels, tour guides, climbing instructors, and the communities that have built their culture around desert beauty.

Regional Impact

Tourism By The Numbers

Tourism Scale

$16.7 billion in travel spending across Riverside and San Bernardino Counties, supporting 155,900 jobs.

County Momentum

San Bernardino County: $6.7 billion in visitor spending, 61,000 local jobs, and close to $500 million in tax receipts.

Regional Parks

Over 400,000 day-use visits and 250,000 camping visits at Riverside County regional parks annually.

Desert Impact

Joshua Tree National Park: 2.9 million visitors generating $179 million in gateway-community spending.

Looking Forward

A Region You Can Explore for a Lifetime

The Inland Empire's outdoor story isn't about visiting once. It's about belonging to a region that keeps offering new corners to discover. One weekend can be a lake morning in Big Bear. Another can be a Temecula vineyard afternoon. Another can be a Route 66 drive through high-desert towns.

Different places, same feeling: this region has room for your life.