Not sure if I'm betraying my ignorance, or just the fact that I don't get around much, but I've got a question about resort towns. Specifically, the kind of resort you'd find, say, up in the Appalachian or Blue Ridge or Ozark mountains in the United States, where people go to take part in outdoor sports, visit natural attractions, and maybe attend shows and concerts (as in Branson, Missouri). Would a town like that empty out the day after Labor Day (first Tuesday in September)? The year is 1982, and I've got my archvillain with his base in a system of caves a few miles from one or more towns like this. He's called his followers in over Labor Day weekend to get them pumped up for the mayhem he's got for them to do in the coming year. (No Internet then, so obviously he can't do it that way). They're coming from several surrounding states and he uses the crowded conditions over Labor Day weekend to cover up the fact that there's a lot of out-of-state cars parked around the area whose owners are never seen fishing, boating, shopping, etc. (Local adherents of my archvillain pick them up and shuttle them to the hideout). There's a reason, having to do with my protagonists and their schedule, that makes it necessary that the big convocation of the villainous organization happens Labor Day night, and the bad guys go home on the Tuesday. Would anybody in a town like that notice that their cars were still around? Would it automatically be assumed that nobody would take a week's vacation that included Labor Day? Or do towns like that keep going as long as the weather's right for whatever it is they offer? If I've got a plot hole here, I want to plug it now.
I live near some resort towns, but they're not in the Appalachian area. The amount of families dramatically drops after Labor Day, but there are always some business people around as long as the weather is okay. So out-of-state license plates would be normal post-Labor Day as long as the number wasn't too excessive. EDIT: I was originally thinking about large resort spots that have multiple hotels with business centers, etc. Regarding smaller resort towns, a lot of the tourists often have summer/vacation homes rather than just staying in hotels. I'm not sure of the distribution, but there is a healthy split between families who use their summer homes for when their children are off and adults who use their summer homes when the weather is good and they have the ability to take time off. So in this case, it would still be normal to have out-of-state license plates post-Labor Day.
