New York’s tourism industry has rebounded strongly since the pandemic lockdown began more than four years ago, according to a new state travel report released ahead of the Fourth of July long weekend.
A travel analysis by State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli found that the number of people visiting New York state is approaching pre-2020 levels, but some challenges remain.
Ulster County Tourism Director Lisa Berger said now is a great time to visit the Hudson Valley.
“Tourist spending is up 127% since 2019 – pre-pandemic, a record year,” Burger said.
Across New York, domestic travel and tourism spending is exceeding pre-2020 levels, according to the comptroller’s report. Non-business travel to New York increased by more than 30% from 2020 to 2022.
Patrick Koehler, president and CEO of the Buffalo Niagara Convention and Visitors Bureau, said interest is also growing in Western New York state.
“After the pandemic, people were going on bucket list trips, but now people are starting to focus on staying in the U.S. and doing different types of travel. And we’re starting to see really great numbers coming out of Washington D.C., Boston, Philadelphia and Chicago,” Koehler said.
Berger’s region is seeing more visitors from Pennsylvania, Canada and other states than it did in 2019.
Carrell says these visitors are crucial to the tourism industry.
“And the great thing about these markets is they’re serious about coming to Buffalo, so they come here, they spend more time here and, naturally, they spend more money while they’re here,” Koehler said.
There is still one challenge to overcome: a shortage of labor to meet the growing demand for hospitality industry jobs.
Berger said counties need to address this if they don’t want to lose tourism revenue.
“During the pandemic, people left the industry,” she said. “The industry was really shut down for a long time and that was very difficult, and I think they found work somewhere else. So now we have to interact and generate interest from a whole new group of people who want to get into hospitality and tourism jobs.”
The auditor’s report comes to a similar conclusion: Lawmakers need to expand support for all the recreational and cultural resources that draw people to New York.
