San Luis Obispo, CA -- San Luis Obispo County’s tourism industry is rebounding. That’s according to Jordan G. Levine, an economist and director of economic research for Beacon Economics, a forecasting firm based in San Rafael that annually studies the county’s economy. He told the Tribune, “You can’t say that we’ve regained our full health, and there’s still a long way to go, but it’s definitely improving and on the road to recovery.”

According to the latest information from Smith Travel Research, which provides data for the hotel industry, several cities — including San Luis Obispo, Pismo Beach, Paso Robles and Morro Bay — have had increases in bed tax (transient occupancy tax) year-to-date through April, compared with the same period last year. Tourism is big business in the county, generating $1.1 billion in travel spending, resulting in an estimated $69.8 million in state and local tax revenues in 2009.