New York City’s tourism sector continued to recover in 2025, but recent data show it has not yet fully regained the visitor numbers recorded before the COVID-19 pandemic. The city welcomed approximately 64.7 million visitors last year, a slight increase over 2024 but still short of the 66.6 million tourists who visited in 2019. The city’s earlier projection of 67 million visitors for 2025 was not met, leaving the tourism industry below pre-pandemic benchmarks.
International travel to NYC weakened significantly, with a nearly 5% drop in foreign visitors compared with 2024. This decline was most pronounced among travelers from markets such as Canada, Germany, France and Mexico, all of which traditionally supply a substantial portion of the city’s overseas tourism. Shifts in global travel sentiment, including visa processing issues and policy concerns tied to travel to the United States, have contributed to slower international recovery.
Domestically, tourism showed resilience. Leisure travel within the United States increased by about 1.5% in 2025, with roughly 52.2 million domestic visitors. This segment’s growth helped mitigate the overall shortfall and is expected to surpass 2019 domestic travel levels in 2026, according to updated forecasts.
Business travel also continues to lag. Corporate tourism, once a reliable contributor to midweek hotel stays and convention revenue, stagnated last year. Analysts attribute this ongoing slump to a structural shift toward remote work and virtual meetings, which are reducing the need for in-person business trips. Industry projections suggest business travel will not fully recover until around 2029.
Although NYC did not meet its overall visitor goals, hotel performance did show some positive signs. Revenue per available room rose by more than 4%, indicating stronger spending among guests who did visit. However, overall hotel occupancy rates saw slight drops, reflecting the uneven mix of travel types and the continued absence of a robust international visitor base.
Shifting Patterns and Economic Context
New York’s broader tourism picture also includes ongoing structural and regional trends. Comprehensive assessments from local economic data confirm that domestic travel has largely led the city’s recovery, while international segments lag significantly behind pre-pandemic levels in both numbers and spending per visitor. Historically, overseas tourists accounted for a disproportionate share of tourism dollars because they tended to stay longer and spend more on accommodation, dining, and cultural attractions.
The tourism sector plays an important economic role for the city, generating substantial revenue for museums, restaurants, theaters, hotels, and transportation services. Although recent figures show progress in visitor numbers, the slower pace of international travel underscores the sector’s vulnerability to global mobility trends, visa procedures, and border policy perceptions.
Outlook for 2026 and Beyond
Looking ahead, NYC Tourism + Conventions projects visitor numbers to rise again in 2026, with estimates near 66 million guests. Yet even this forecast would fall slightly below the 2019 record. Major global events such as the 2026 FIFA World Cup and milestone celebrations for the city may bolster tourist interest and attract new visitors, but lingering international hesitation and continued structural changes in business travel will likely shape the pace of full recovery.
Tourism analysts note that while domestic travel recovery is relatively strong, true normalization for the city’s tourism economy hinges on a sustained return of international and business travelers. The persistent gap between current and pre-pandemic levels highlights how global mobility patterns have shifted in the post-COVID world and how New York’s tourism industry continues to adapt.
