More than 62 million people visited New York City in 2023, representing 93% of 2019 levels.
Last year’s numbers are a significant increase (9.3%) from the 56.7 million visitors to the Big Apple in 2022, according to McKinsey consulting.
Domestic tourism has recovered to roughly 95% of pre-pandemic levels, with more than 50 million domestic travellers coming to the city in 2023.
International travel is not far behind, recovering to about 86% of 2019 levels. Eleven million international travellers visited New York City in 2023.
“They are an important source of travel revenue as they spend, on average, three times as much as domestic travellers,” McKinsey said.
The numbers of visitors from Canada and Mexico have nearly returned to pre-pandemic levels, McKinsey said.
The city now expects to exceed pre-pandemic visitor numbers by 2025.
“Although travellers are back, their mindsets and behaviors have shifted. Visitors are more interested in experiences (40% of US respondents in our recent traveller survey say they are willing to splurge on them), but gone are the days when destinations could get away with offering experiences that are kitschy, overcrowded, or one-size-fits-all,” McKinsey said in its report.
“And visitors still want to see the most famous New York City sites (Central Park, for example, remains the number-one visitor attraction based on Tripadvisor reviews), but they are increasingly venturing beyond Manhattan, looking for one-of-a-kind adventures and spending time outdoors.”
