CERTIFIED UNREAL YET VAGUELY ANNOYING

Despite years of outreach campaigns, community engagement efforts and promises to better balance tourism with local life, Mammoth Lakes Tourism still has a perception problem and, by several measures, it’s getting worse.

Results from Mammoth Lakes Tourism’s (MLT) latest resident and business sentiment survey show a town deeply proud of where it lives, but increasingly skeptical of how tourism is managed and unconvinced that MLT is listening. Betsy Truax, Vice President of Community Engagement, gave the same presentation on the survey to both the MLT Board and the Mammoth Lakes Town Council on May 20.

The survey aimed to go beyond Mammoth’s designation as a tourism-based economy, and instead analyze how tourism impacts locals and the landscape. The survey asked questions ranging from how tourism impacts employment, economy, quality of life, and the environment.

The data collection for the survey occurred between November 24, 2025 and February 6, 2026, and paints a picture of a relatively affluent, educated and civically engaged respondent base. Forty five percent of residents surveyed hold a college degree and another 38% have postgraduate degrees. More than half of respondents reported household incomes above $100,000 annually, including 33% making more than $150,000 per year. Only 13% of the respondents identified as Latino or Hispanic.

Truax began by presenting the positive data points: 88% of respondents said they are proud to call the area home, and 88% said they look forward to showing it off to visiting friends and family. Those figures significantly outpace western and national averages.

Truax said MLT made a deliberate effort this year to capture renters perspectives after criticism that last years’ surveys skewed heavily toward older homeowners.

“This year, we really did try to capture more renters and young people,” Truax said. “I spoke to the Mammoth Coalition, which is a younger group, and pushed the survey to the fire district, the firefighters of which tend to be younger.”

Even with that broader outreach, frustration over tourism’s impacts remained overwhelming.

Seventy two percent of respondents agreed that most tourism jobs in Mammoth Lakes are low paying and seasonal, far above regional and national benchmarks. Eighty four percent said housing is becoming less affordable because of tourism, while 79% said tourism growth is driving up prices and making everyday life less affordable for residents.

At the same time, residents were not rejecting tourism outright.

Tourism development should happen in a planned and controlled way, 82% of respondents said, significantly higher than western and national averages. But more than half said tourism development is happening too fast.

The sharpest divide emerged around whether residents feel included in decision making.

Only a fifth of respondents said the local government is doing a good job balancing resident quality of life with visitor satisfaction, which is more than 20 points below regional and national benchmarks.

“One thing that is just painfully obvious is the disconnect between the locals and the local government,” Town Councilmember Bill Sauser said. “Did we ask how [the respondents] are consuming local news?”

Lunch reply: That’s right, Bill. Indirectly blame the media for your own shortcomings. 

According to Sarah Winters, V.P. of Marketing of MLT, people are engaged with the visitor guide and occupancy newsletter produced by MLT.

Truax returned to the numbers. Just 30% said the voices and ideas of residents are heard when it comes to managing tourism in Mammoth Lakes.

The numbers represent a slight decline from last year, but Truax didn’t seem too beaten down about it.

“This number was 36% last year, but we’re still up a little bit from the 28% in 2023,” she said.

The survey suggests that while MLT has succeeded in making itself highly visible, visibility has not translated into trust.

An overwhelming 93% of residents said they are familiar with Mammoth Lakes Tourism, including 36% who described themselves as “very familiar.”

Business owners appeared similarly unconvinced about MLT’s value proposition.

Only a third of business owners said the Tourism Business Improvement District (TBID) assessment has a positive impact on their business, themselves and the broader community. 

Understanding of how TBID dollars are spent also varied widely, with 27% reporting minimal understanding of where the money goes.

When asked specifically how TBID funded destination marketing benefited their business, 59% of business owners either gave negative feedback or said there were no benefits at all.

“To see the number of businesses that don’t believe they’re receiving benefits from TBID,” Sauser said. “That was very startling to me.”

But Truax remained hopeful.

“I think we will see this improve a lot in next year’s survey because of the great work our team has been doing with the monthly promotion campaigns,” Truax said. “I think more of our team are getting out and speaking to business owners.”

Immediately after discussing the survey’s results, the MLT board discussed its strategic plans and deliverables for the 2026-27 year.

Though the document was drafted before the survey was complete, the goals read in many ways like a direct response to the survey itself, with nearly every major initiative aimed at addressing frustrations expressed by residents and business owners.

MLT’s plan calls for expanded outreach events, advisory participation and a new Destination Stewardship Council. It has a repeated emphasis on “community engagement,” “stewardship” and “quality of life.”

The plan also appears to acknowledge growing frustration over overcrowding and infrastructure strain, explicitly stating that “more people or 100% occupancy is no longer the goal.”

The proposed “Visitation = Vitality” ambassador program is designed to better connect tourism revenues with community infrastructure and services, and all over the plan, there is an emphasis on “community engagement,” “stewardship” and “quality of life.”

After discussing the document, several members on the board agreed, “it’s an awful lot to accomplish in a year.”

The Town Council did not expand on the ambassador program discussion.