While London and Paris continue to dominate the list of most popular foreign destinations, several cities saw a significant boost in American tourism in 2013. Toronto surpassed Rome as the third-most popular international destination for the first time since 2010. With the Canadian exchange at a three-year low, now is an opportune time for U.S. travelers to cross the border and explore the country’s cultural and entertainment capital.
Mexico City made the most significant stride, jumping into the top 20 as the 17th most popular destination (from 21st). The Mexico Tourism Board has been diligently focused on increasing tourism with its ‘Live it to Believe it’ consumer marketing campaign and Mexico City is making efforts to appeal to more vacationers with its extensive culinary and cultural scene.
On the other side of the world, Dubai commanded the industry’s attention with its world-class facilities, 16 new hotel openings, expansion of new routes being offered by Emirates Airline, and the opening of the Dubai World Central airport. Major concerts and sporting events such as the Dubai World Cup and pop sensation, Justin Bieber’s first concert in the Middle East have also helped Dubai usurp Madrid, Florence and Venice as the 14th most popular destination. Other Asia-Pacific destinations that experienced a surge in American tourism last year include Tokyo (#6), Hong Kong (#7) and Bangkok (#11).
Domestically, overseas travelers continued to flock to the Broadway lights of New York, the grand casinos of Las Vegas and the mystical Disney appeal of Orlando, with Miami and Los Angeles rounding out the Top Five list for the second year in a row.
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