Columbia’s hotel shortage may impact future big events

COLUMBIA, S.C – In 2019, Columbia made history by hosting a portion of the March Madness tournament, bringing excitement and a big economic impact to the city. However, despite the event’s success, Columbia faces a challenge that could impact its ability to attract similar large-scale events in the future…a lack of full-service hotels.

According to Scott Powers, a local tourism expert, Columbia doesn’t have enough hotels that offer the full range of amenities necessary to host major events.

“We simply don’t have enough full-service hotels with large meeting spaces and restaurants. Without them, we can’t compete,” Powers said. He emphasized the importance of hotels with traditional room service, meeting spaces, and dining…