NEW YORK—Tourism, especially from international visitors, equals untapped potential for economic gains in New York City, say industry experts. And the next mayor will be in the hot seat to continue the substantial growth Mayor Michael Bloomberg has helped orchestrate during his 12-year tenure—which ends Jan. 1, 2014.
From the outset, in 2002, the Bloomberg administration embraced the seed planted by his predecessor, Rudolph Giuliani, to grow the tourism industry, partly by increasing the budget of NYC and Company, the official marketing and tourism campaign for the city.
“By his increase in support financially, and also making sure the structure is there to support big events that come to town, the numbers in New York have been off the charts,” said Jonathan Tisch, co-owner of the New York Giants, and former chairman of the Travel Business Roundtable. Tisch was part of a panel of business leaders discussing issues the next mayor will face.
In 2011, 50.9 million tourists visited New York City—a 40.6 percent increase from the 2001 total of 36.2 million, according to nycgo.com.
