Crowds have returned to NYC, and city residents may be noticing more people on the streets and in stores — as officials look at other encouraging signs, like an uptick in hotel occupancy.
While it's not quite back to what it was before the pandemic, the city is hoping for a big boom of visitors this year, expecting a 70 percent increase in tourism from 2021, according to NYC & Company, New York's official tourist organization. That represents the most positive outlook since the start of the pandemic.
"Look around you in Times Square, look at pedestrian traffic in the city. Hotel occupancy ticking up, it's around 70 percent or so during the week, and 80 percent on the weekends," said Chris Heywood, the executive VP of Global Communications for the organization.
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International tourism is critically important, making up about 20 percent of NYC visitors — but bringing in more than half of the tourism dollars. The number of international travelers is expected to triple from last year, up to 8 million visitors.
"That international market is so crucial for us, because they stay longer, they spend more," Heywood said.
The recovery hinges on both domestic and international tourism, and there is one big spending force that is still missing from the city: tourists from China.
This week Shanghai entered its most extensive coronavirus lockdown in two years, a zero-COVID strategy that effectively brings tourism to a standstill.
"Our hope is that we will be able to get a good chunk of those visitors back," Heywood said. "But it really depends on when those travelers can start traveling again. We’re optimistic that they’ll come by the fourth quarter."
On Wednesday, there was a big announcement for Broadway at the Korean cultural center. KPOP, a new musical about the global phenomenon, is coming to the Great White Way. Fans of K-pop are considered an economic powerhouse, and an official at the announcement called it "the fastest growing music market in the world."
K-pop star Luna announced that previews will start in the fall.
"To bring my culture — this Korean artform — to the fans who flock here from all over the world to see a Broadway show is the honor of my life," she said.
During the holidays, the highly contagious omicron variant closed the curtain on shows and further slowed New York's recovery. But even as a new subvariant takes hold and cases rise in New York City, officials say they remain cautiously optimistic.
Back in 2019, officials said they saw record levels of tourism, with more than 66 million tourists. They predict the city could be getting closer to that number by 2023.
