New York City's Record 50.5 Million Tourists Last Year exceed the estimation

New York City Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg and NYC & Company, New York City’s official marketing, tourism and partnership association, announced that the City ended the year with a new record 50.5 million visitors, somewhat higher than the 50.2 million estimated visitors announce in December.

"The holidays are peak travel period for New York City, and 2011 proves that once again with even higher visitation levels than originally anticipated," said NYC & Company CEO George Fertitta. "The unseasonably warm weather during the last two weeks of the year provided an additional motivation for visitors to travel to New York City, helping the industry achieve its best year yet for overall visitation, expenses and economic impact across the five boroughs."

New York City's tourism industry continue to benefit from strong traditional drive markets along the east coast, the continued significance of the city as a global business travel destination, the city’s strong position in European and Asian markets, and the outlook for rising markets in South America, Asia and Oceania, and the Middle East.

Hotel occupancy closed with a year-end average of 85 percent. A record 27.15 million room nights were sold through the end of the year, a 5 percent gain over 2010 record levels. Airport arrivals through November were 48.4 million, a 1.4 percent raise over 2010. Attendance at a collection of cultural venues and tourist attractions reach a record 21.9 million visitors in 2011, a 3.4 percent raised over 2010.