Signs of Optimism as NYC Sees Rise in Tourism
2021-05-16
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1The once-empty steps outside New York City's Metropolitan Museum of Art are filling up with visitors.
2Near the financial area, people again are taking selfies with the Charging Bull of Wall Street.
3As pandemic restrictions ease, visitors who left the city's museums, hotels and other attractions a year ago are now slowly returning.
4But there is still a long way to go before the city's Broadway theater area will be filled with international travelers.
5Lately, however, the number of hotel guests and museum visitors have increased due to American travelers and those on a one-day trip to the city.
6"I've always wanted to come to New York, just because I've watched the movies," said Chazmin Fuhrer.
7A first-time visitor from Concord, California, she came into the city for a few days to celebrate a friend's birthday.
8Sitting at a table in Times Square, Fuhrer said she knew it was not as busy as usual, but she was not concerned.
9"It's kind of nice without a lot of people out," she said, as three street performers started their dance moves nearby.
10City officials are pleased, even though New York City recently experienced a violent gun incident that killed three people.
11Mayor Bill de Blasio said after the shooting that New York City is very safe.
12He added, "In the end, people want to come to this city."
13In 2019, an estimated 67 million people visited the city.
14Last year, that number fell to a little more than 22 million as the virus began spreading in March.
15Restaurants, stores as well as some hotels were forced to close.
16In late spring, social unrest over racial injustice led to two days of property destruction and some stealing.
17And then-president Donald Trump loudly criticized the city.
18After a difficult year, things are starting to look better.
19The Metropolitan Museum of Art, for example, has reached 9,000 visitors on some recent days.
20That is still far less than the 25,000 people who visited the museum during one of its busiest days before the pandemic.
21And visitors are again riding the ferry from the southern edge of Manhattan to the Statue of Liberty.
22Rafael Abreu is vice president for marketing at Statue Cruise, a ferry service that brings visitors to the statue.
23He said it had been "fairly slow" through February, but visitors had risen in March and April to about 25 to 30 percent of pre-pandemic times.
24In the last few weeks, hotel occupancy in the city has gone up to nearly 50 percent of pre-pandemic numbers.
25New hotels are opening and the number of rooms is expected to reach 118,000 by the end of the year, said Fred Dixon.
26He is president of the city's tourism agency.
27"It's just really wonderful," Dixon said, adding "it's given us a lot of hope."
28City and state officials in recent weeks have been making moves to open the city up as much as possible.
29Andrew Cuomo announced the city's subway system would return to 24-hour service in mid-May.
30Restrictions on businesses are being lifted.
31A social distance of 2 meters is still required.
32De Blasio last month announced a $30 million tourism marketing campaign that will launch in June.
33The city and state are also setting up vaccination areas to offer free shots to tourists.
34De Blasio says he has a message for tourists.
35"Come here. It's safe. It's a great place to be and we're going to take care of you," he said.
36I'm Susan Shand.
1The once-empty steps outside New York City's Metropolitan Museum of Art are filling up with visitors. Near the financial area, people again are taking selfies with the Charging Bull of Wall Street. 2As pandemic restrictions ease, visitors who left the city's museums, hotels and other attractions a year ago are now slowly returning. But there is still a long way to go before the city's Broadway theater area will be filled with international travelers. 3Lately, however, the number of hotel guests and museum visitors have increased due to American travelers and those on a one-day trip to the city. 4"I've always wanted to come to New York, just because I've watched the movies," said Chazmin Fuhrer. A first-time visitor from Concord, California, she came into the city for a few days to celebrate a friend's birthday. 5Sitting at a table in Times Square, Fuhrer said she knew it was not as busy as usual, but she was not concerned. 6"It's kind of nice without a lot of people out," she said, as three street performers started their dance moves nearby. 7City officials are pleased, even though New York City recently experienced a violent gun incident that killed three people. 8Mayor Bill de Blasio said after the shooting that New York City is very safe. He added, "In the end, people want to come to this city." 9In 2019, an estimated 67 million people visited the city. Last year, that number fell to a little more than 22 million as the virus began spreading in March. 10Restaurants, stores as well as some hotels were forced to close. In late spring, social unrest over racial injustice led to two days of property destruction and some stealing. And then-president Donald Trump loudly criticized the city. 11After a difficult year, things are starting to look better. 12The Metropolitan Museum of Art, for example, has reached 9,000 visitors on some recent days. That is still far less than the 25,000 people who visited the museum during one of its busiest days before the pandemic. And visitors are again riding the ferry from the southern edge of Manhattan to the Statue of Liberty. 13Rafael Abreu is vice president for marketing at Statue Cruise, a ferry service that brings visitors to the statue. He said it had been "fairly slow" through February, but visitors had risen in March and April to about 25 to 30 percent of pre-pandemic times. 14In the last few weeks, hotel occupancy in the city has gone up to nearly 50 percent of pre-pandemic numbers. New hotels are opening and the number of rooms is expected to reach 118,000 by the end of the year, said Fred Dixon. He is president of the city's tourism agency. 15"It's just really wonderful," Dixon said, adding "it's given us a lot of hope." 16City and state officials in recent weeks have been making moves to open the city up as much as possible. 17New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced the city's subway system would return to 24-hour service in mid-May. Restrictions on businesses are being lifted. A social distance of 2 meters is still required. 18De Blasio last month announced a $30 million tourism marketing campaign that will launch in June. 19The city and state are also setting up vaccination areas to offer free shots to tourists. De Blasio says he has a message for tourists. 20"Come here. It's safe. It's a great place to be and we're going to take care of you," he said. 21I'm Susan Shand. 22The Associated Press reported this story. Susan Shand adapted it for Learning English. Hai Do was the editor. 23_____________________________________________________________ 24Words in This Story 25selfie - n. a self-portrait taken with a phone camera 26tourist - n. one who visits a place for pleasure 27ferry - n. a boat that takes passengers short distances 28We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section, and visit our Facebook page.