Trendwatch April 14, 2008: New York Gets a Spending Boost

Empire State Building

International visitors comprise only 17 percent of tourism in New York City, but they stay longer and spend more money, accounting for more than 50 percent of total visitor spending, according to NYC & Company. In 2007, a record 46 million visitors spent $28 billion. Of that, only 8.5 million visitors were international (20 percent more than in 2006), but they generated more than $14 billion in spending. Additionally, NYC showed an 86.5 percent hotel occupancy rate, while the rest of the U.S. did not fare as well.