Number of Visitors to New York City Breaks Record

New York is going to welcome its 50 millionth visitor of 2011, making the highest total number of visitors to the city in a single year. The city record is a result of Mayor Bloomberg's goal which was set when he became the mayor of New York in 2002. According to the data, visitors flooding the city are from both within the U.S. and abroad. It is estimated that the visitors spent $47 billion on recreation such as attending Broadway shows, visiting museums and eating at restaurants. Marketing campaigns have played a key role in the tourist number surge. Many campaigns like "Just Ask the Locals" have helped depict a friendlier city in the eyes of tourists. About 36.2 million people visited the city in 2000. In 2010, the city welcomed 48.7 million visitors, an increase of 35 percent over the decade. 20 percent of the visitors were from abroad and made up about half of the tourists' spending. Among international tourist sources, the UK has the highest number of travelers to New York, followed by Canada, France, Brazil and Germany. Compared to international visitors, domestic visitors often spend less cash and stay for a shorter time. Statistics show that international tourists spend, on average, $1,700 and stay for 7.3 days compared with American visitors who spend just $432 and stay 2.7 nights. 19 Dec 2011 http://www.migrationexpert.com/visa/us_immigration_news/2011/dec/0/494/number_of_visitors_to_new_york_city_breaks_record