May 30, 2010

South Shore tourism businesses look for good year if weather cooperatesBy Maribeth ConwayPatriotLedger.com

Hull, MA — As the smell of tanning oil wafted in the air at Nantasket Beach during this week’s toasty weather, local business owners wondered if thousands of scantily clad bodies were a sign of good things to come.

The forecast, so far at least, looks bright. Bookings for South Shore vacation rentals, like beach cottages, are up 38 percent from last year, according to WeNeedaVacation.com, a Wellesley-based Web site that carries thousands of rental listings from the area, including ones from Hull, Scituate, Plymouth, Quincy and Kingston.

This is good news for restaurants, shops and hotels that cater to tourists. It also may signal that people – even if they’re only coming from a few towns over to spend a day by the sea – are spending more after several down years.

“The customer base in the last few years really had to be careful with their money,” said Ken Hackel, owner of Carousel and Ships Gift Shop, talking about the crowd at Nantasket, which he calls “a working-class beach.”

Sofia Koutrobis, owner of Joseph’s Pizza down the street on Nantasket Avenue, said she’s already seen changes in customer numbers and attitudes. She had a full staff working Tuesday to manage the hungry midday crowd of about 30 people.

“I saw the difference in the way people ordered,” Koutrobis said. “They were holding back the last couple of years.”

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