For Immediate Release: June 2, 2008
Contact:Matt Englehart (202) 482-3809
Commerce Announces 2007 Top U.S. Destinations for Global Travelers
Visits Jumped in 13 out of 19 Top Markets
Washington – The U.S. Department of Commerce released its estimates on the top U.S. destinations visited by overseas travelers in 2007, showing New York City as the number one destination followed by Los Angeles. Of the 19 cities for which visitation estimates are issued, six posted double-digit increases in 2007.
“In 2007, overseas visitors came to the United States in record numbers, and nearly every top destination welcomed more foreign visitors,” said Commerce Assistant Secretary William G. Sutton. “This is good news for America – spending by global visitors added $122 billion to the U.S. economy last year. I look forward to working with the new Travel and Tourism Advisory Board and the industry to continue this positive trend.”
The top cities visited by overseas travelers in 2007 were: New York City at 7.6 million visitors, followed by Los Angeles (2.7 million); Miami (2.3 million); San Francisco (2.3 million); Orlando (2.1 million); Las Vegas (1.7 million); Honolulu (1.6 million); and Washington (1.2 million). New York City and Philadelphia set visitation records in 2007.
Miami jumped two spots to become the third-most-visited destination, posting a 19 percent increase in 2007. Las Vegas and Honolulu traded positions as Las Vegas posted growth and Honolulu registered a decline in visitors due primarily to the four percent decline in Japanese travel to the United States. More than 75 percent of Honolulu’s visitors are from Japan.
Of the 18 states and territories visited for which estimates are issued, six posted double-digit increases, and all but three posted increases between 2006 and 2007. In 2007, New York State was the top state visited by overseas travelers for the sixth straight year, welcoming 7.9 million foreign visitors. California was second with 5.2 million foreign visitors, followed by Florida, which also had double-digit growth and welcomed 4.7 million foreign visitors. Hawaii and Nevada rounded out the top five at 1.9 million and 1.8 million respectively. New York, Pennsylvania and Connecticut set new records for overseas visits in 2007.
The International Trade Administration’s Office of Travel and Tourism Industries (OTTI) collects, analyzes, and disseminates international travel and tourism statistics for the U.S. Travel and Tourism Statistical System. For more information on 2007 top destinations and regions those visitors came from, please visit the OTTI’s Web site at: http://www.tinet.ita.doc.gov/outreachpages/
inbound.general_information.inbound_overview.html.
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