New York City Tourism to Hit New Record with 54.3 Million Tourists in 2013

New York City has always hit the right chord with tourists. The city has attracted a record number of visitors each year for more than a decade; 2013 being no exception. A record 54.3 million tourists are expected to visit the city this year, giving a vital boost to the economy, as Mayor Michael Bloomberg said. And that’s not it. According to Mr. Bloomberg, New York City is expected to witness 55 million visitors in 2014.

This year, tourism will generate a $58.7 billion overall economic impact compared to $55.3 billion in 2012, and $39.4 billion in direct spending versus $36.9 billion a year earlier. It accounts for more than 370,000 jobs at the New York City’s hotels, restaurants and other attractions.

Nearly 43 million of the city’s visitors are travellers from the U.S. while 11.4 million hail from abroad. Demand for hotels here is the highest in the country with an average occupancy rate of 87.8% and an average daily room rate of $296, or 4% higher than last year, according to the city. NYC & Company estimates the number of hotel rooms will increase by about 2,000 by the end of 2014.

“Tourism plays a vital role in our city’s economy and the work that we’ve done to strengthen tourism over the past 12 years has helped our city weather the national economic downturn and come out in far better shape than most other cities,” said the mayor in the statement.

A record 54.3 million visitors will have swarmed into the Big Apple by the end of the year, city officials estimated. The New York City also expects to reach the mayor’s goal of 55 million visitors by 2015 about one year earlier. Though, the rate of growth this year is slightly slower than the past couple of years.