Most hosts discover travel didn't unravel.

• Position: Travel/Tourism

First came ice and snow, then rain and Hurricane Isabel. Nature dumped on North Carolina tourism last year, and its worst blow was a soggy spring, which included the second-wettest May on record. How bad was it? Attendance at the top 25 attractions--which include the Blue Ridge Parkway, the Wright Brothers National Memorial and Lowe's Motor Speedway--was down 19.4% from the year before. "Many travelers postponed travel or canceled it because of the poor weather conditions," says Lynn Minges, director of the N.C. Division of Tourism, Film and Sports Development in Raleigh.

The Biltmore Estate in Asheville, for example, hoped to attract record visitors following a strong 2002. But through September, the number was flat, possibly even down slightly. Chris Cavanaugh, vice president of marketing, blames "environmental factors." That's weather. "We had a lot of snow this winter, and our last snowfall was April 10," he says. "That is not unheard of, but it's pretty late for around here."

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On the coast, fair weather was helping hotels and restaurants recover from the wet spring when Hurricane Isabel hit in September. Dare County, which includes Nags Head and Hatteras Island, lost up to $2 million a day in revenue immediately after the storm. Carolyn McCormick, executive director of the Outer Banks Visitors Bureau, says the barrier islands experienced a 29% drop in revenue for the year, amounting to about $30 million. The hurricane washed a new inlet through the island, cutting off Hatteras Village, one of the most popular tourist destinations.

Weather wasn't solely to blame. When money is tight, families typically cut back on vacations and entertainment. "Travel is not considered a necessity by a lot of folks," Cavanaugh says. The Iraq war, which began in March, affected air travel, with boardings statewide down about 7% in the first half of the year. But the war might have helped tourism more than it hurt it. "Security-related issues do not tend to be a factor in North Carolina," Minges says. "Both business and leisure travelers indicate that they perceive North Carolina to be a safe destination."

Perhaps due to that perception, some parts of the state had a good year. In Jackson County, 40 miles southwest of Asheville, hotel-room tax receipts were up 69% by August, compared with 2002. "More people are here," says Julie Spiro, executive director of the Jackson County Chamber of Commerce and Travel and Tourism Authority...