College commencement season hits full stride this weekend in western Massachusetts, and with it comes a big boost for the local tourism industry.
More than a dozen commencement ceremonies are scheduled in the area starting Thursday.
"There's not a room to be found in the region," said Mary Kay Wydra, president of Explore Western Mass, the The Greater Springfield Convention and Visitors Bureau.
With thousands of visitors, college graduations are a major economic boost for hotel operators, restaurant owners and other businesses Wydra said.
Schools also help the tourism economy year-round, and Wydra said it usually starts with that first visit — when a student is considering where to go for college.
"It goes from looking at a school, then when the child is enrolled, moms and dads come to visit on parents' weekends; you have visiting alums that come back for homecoming," Wydra said.
The largest of the commencements takes place Friday at 5 p.m., at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, when 20,000 people are expected to attend the undergraduate ceremony being held at McGuirk Stadium.
The UMass doctoral ceremony is Friday morning; the master's ceremony is Sunday afternoon — and individual college ceremonies are being held on the campus throughout the weekend.
UMass officials have warned of heavy traffic in the area starting today with students moving out, but especially before and after Friday's undergraduate commencement,
Commencement events at other colleges
Hampshire College in Amherst will hold its commencement Saturday afternoon, while the ceremony at Smith College in Northampton will take place Sunday.
The Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts holds its commencement Saturday morning in North Adams.
Springfield will also be busy with commencement activities, many at the MassMutual Center. Thursday graduates from Western New England University will walk, followed by Westfield State University on Friday and Elms College and Springfield College Saturday and Sunday.
