IN SHANGHAI, NYC & COMPANY PROMOTES NEW NEW YORK CITY TO CHINESE TRAVEL AUDIENCES
IN SHANGHAI, NYC & COMPANY PROMOTES ‘NEW’ NEW YORK CITY TO CHINESE TRAVEL AUDIENCES
—New York City Openings and Developments Discussed at Press Briefing and Travel Trade Reception—
—Governors Island Announced as Latest Neighborhood Featured in NYCGO Insider Guides—
Shanghai, China (July 9, 2015) — NYC & Company, New York City’s official marketing, tourism and partnership organization, is in Shanghai, presenting the ‘new’ New York City to influential Chinese media, travel agents and tour operators. At a press conference today at Andaz Xintiandi, Shanghai, NYC & Company president and CEO Fred Dixon and SVP Global Communications Chris Heywood presented new developments in New York City’s hotel sector, attractions, cultural organizations and more to Chinese media. The press conference was followed by a travel trade event led by SVP Global Tourism Development Makiko Matsuda Healy, designed to educate Chinese travel agents and tour operators on all there is to see and do in the City’s five boroughs.
China is the City’s third-largest source of overseas visitors, with 809,000 people visiting New York City last year. Since 2010, Chinese visitation has increased by more than 250 percent, a larger growth than any other market. With an expected 932,000 visitors this year, New York City is well on its way welcoming to one million annual Chinese visitors.
“We are pleased to continue our global ‘new’ New York City tour with events in the ever-important Chinese market,” said Fred Dixon, president and CEO of NYC & Company. “With unprecedented growth in all facets of New York City’s tourism industry and the recent Chinese visa extension from one to 10 years, this is the ideal time to present NYC to media and travel trade in our third-largest overseas market.”
At this afternoon’s press conference, NYC & Company announced its latest NYCGO Insider Guide, featuring Governors Island. An ideal summer destination, the area offers bike paths, hammocks, cultural offerings, spectacular views and more. The island, which was previously a military base for the US Army and US Coast Guard, is less than half a mile from Manhattan and Brooklyn and is easily accessible by a short ferry ride.
Hotel development in New York City hit a record 102,000 hotel rooms in 2014, and more than 11,000 additional rooms are expected to debut by the end of the year. With inventory expanding to more than 124,000 hotel rooms by the end of 2018, New York City’s hotels are more accessible than ever.
Also discussed was New York City’s Global Welcome Ambassador, pop superstar Taylor Swift. Currently on her ‘1989’ world tour, Taylor will perform in Shanghai on November 10,11 and 12.
Following the travel trade reception, the group experienced the New York Philharmonic’s first ever Young People’s Concert, part of its Shanghai Orchestra Academy and Performance Residency Partnership program at the Shanghai Symphony Hall. The Young People’s concert is a celebration of New York City, featuring a performance of Karen LeFrak’s composition A Bite of the Apple, for which NYC & Company partnered to develop a video.
About NYC & Company:
NYC & Company is the official marketing, tourism and partnership organization for the City of New York, dedicated to maximizing travel and tourism opportunities throughout the five boroughs, building economic prosperity and spreading the positive image of New York City worldwide. For more information, visit nycgo.com.
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Contact: NYC & Company / Chris Heywood 212-484-1270
NYC & Company / Britt Hijkoop 212-484-1270