Of the 26 hotels in the region that the Democratic National Convention Committee awarded contracts to, 10 are located in Montgomery County, writes Laura Benshoff for NewsWorks.

Almost half of the delegations who poured into Philadelphia for the DNC aren’t actually staying in the city, and that has provided suburban communities, particularly in Montco, the chance to reap the financial rewards.

Delegates from the following states and American territories are staying in Valley Forge, Conshohocken, King of Prussia, or Lansdale:

• Alabama
• American Samoa
• District of Columbia
• Guam
• Hawaii
• Idaho
• Indiana
• Michigan
• Minnesota
• Mississippi
• North Carolina
• North Dakota
• Northern Mariana Islands
• Oklahoma
• Oregon
• South Dakota
• Tennessee
• Utah
• West Virginia

The Valley Forge Tourism & Convention Board sent a highlight reel of area attractions to delegates, set to the strains of John Mellencamp’s “R.O.C.K. in the USA,” earlier this year.

In it, Valley Forge National Park interim superintendent Pat Madden shows off the area’s Revolutionary history, asking visitors to “come to Valley Forge to enjoy a tour by trolley, by car, hiking, or biking.”

Meanwhile, tourism board CEO Mike Bowman, in a black sports jacket, has one message for delegates: Hit the mall.

“Did I mention all the amazing shopping here in Montgomery County and in the Valley Forge/King of Prussia area?”

Bowman said the sheer number of people staying in the region will be record-breaking.

Eighty-three percent of the 8,000 hotels across Montgomery county are booked for the coming week.

By that measure, the convention is an even bigger bonanza for Montgomery County than Pope Francis. Hotel occupancy in the county only hit 80 percent during his visit in September.

Click here to read more about the DNC’s effect on tourism dollars in Montgomery County from NewsWorks.