Due to the recession, the number of visitors to New York City declined last year for the first time since 2001. However, there is a silver lining. Since other top tourist cities experienced greater declines, the Big Apple was the most popular tourist destination in the US for the first time in nearly two decades.
Why has travel to New York City remained fairly stable? Yes, stable. The 3.9 percent decline in guests was actually much less than expected. Other top tourist cities like Orlando and Las Vegas lost nearly ten percent of their visitors from the previous year.
There is, of course, a reasonable explanation for this. Both of those cities are places people go when they actually have money in their pockets. Not to mention the fact that casinos and theme parks are a major draw for overseas guests. For instance, Orlando is the third most popular holiday destination for people from the UK. We also know that apartments New York are much cheaper that those in Las Vegas or Orlando.
Because they cater to the international guests and they knew that the market would take a hit, most hotels in the city slashed their rates in anticipation of a significant decline.
According to industry insiders, hotel room rates in New York City were cut by nearly one-third in 2009. But this did not entice international guests. The number of foreign visitors fell by nearly ten percent.In the end, the reduction of room rates and fees merely encouraged more domestic visitors, which is good. But it is foreigner visitors who have always been the biggest spenders and the most sought after guests.
