Let The Comeback Begin
Not hard to understand why Los Angeles is ‘over-the-moon’ happy that the U.S. land borders are now open to international visitors.
Consider, for instance, that in 2019, L.A. hosted 773,000 Canadians and injecting $404 million into the local economy, so, job one for Los Angeles Tourism is to inspire Canadians to come for a visit.
Adam Burke, president & CEO of Los Angeles Tourism, observed: “We have desperately missed our international guests. As one of the world’s most diverse and inclusive destinations where everyone is welcome, L.A. just isn’t the same without them. It’s also impossible to overstate the economic importance of this market segment for our local business community.”
Throughout the pandemic, L.A. has continued to be actively engaged in top international markets. Los Angeles Tourism continues to be the only U.S. Destination Marketing Organization with full-time staff overseas based in Australia, China, India, and the United Kingdom.
The destination has also made the health of visitors and residents top priority throughout the pandemic, implementing proactive and preventative safety protocols to mitigate the spread of COVID-19.
Los Angeles has welcomed more than 1,600 new hotel rooms this year alone, along with the stunning Academy Museum of Motion Pictures and countless new restaurants.
New and returning visitors will find that LAX has made great strides in its $14.5 billion modernization including the opening of the state-of-the-art West Gates at Tom Bradley International Terminal, a five-level, 15-gate, 750,000-square-foot facility, which will serve both international and domestic flights.
And just so you know, L.A. is home to people from more than 140 countries speaking 224 different identified languages.
Prior to the disruption to our industry, international markets represented a highly important share of business with nearly 1 in 4 visitors to L.A. coming from overseas.
In 2019 alone, the destination welcomed over 7.4 million international visitors who injected $11.6 billion in visitor spending into the local economy.
November 8 marked a crucial milestone in the recovery of L.A.’s tourism industry.
Los Angeles Tourism forecasts project a growth in international visitor spending from $3.7 billion in 2021 to $9.7 billion in 2022. This represents a growth of 262% in international visitor spending.
Go to www.discoverlosangeles.com for more.
