It's not a matter of whether tourism will be bad this year, but how bad. Don Schunk, a research economist at Coastal Carolina University, said if travelers decrease their spending by 10 percent in 2009, as surveys show they will, that could lead to a loss of $415 million in local business revenue. Another $166 million could be lost because of ripple effects. Area tourism promoters plan to keep advertising to lure visitors, but the amount they have to spend shrank this year.

Myrtle Beach leaders often say the city feels a recession less and recovers faster than others. Until now. "Normally we fare pretty well in slowdowns," City Manager Tom Leath said. "But I'm not sure we're going to fare as well this time, because of the depth of the recession."

Although largely unaffected by the economic downturn in the first part of 2009, the town of Surfside Beach will be scaling back on some of its spending for the rest of the fiscal year.

North Myrtle Beach officials are looking forward to the opening of the Main Street Connector this year, and the hope is that it will boost development during this economic downturn.

Myrtle Beach leaders often say the city feels a recession less and recovers faster than others.

Conway officials are budgeting conservatively and not starting any major capital projects to ensure the town makes it through these tough times.

The city of Georgetown is struggling through the economic slowdown, said Interim City Administrator Miles Hadley. The city isn't filling open jobs and has cut all capital expenses, he said.