Following the lead of Los Angeles which recently rolled out a ‘China ready’ awareness campaign for the city’s hospitality sector, New York City is taking an even more novel approach in luring Chinese tourists to the Big Apple.
Tourism organization NYC & Company is heading straight to the source and setting up a ‘training academy’ based in Shanghai aimed at educating Chinese travel agents on the benefits of a New York vacation.
Crain’s New York reported a 19% increase in Chinese visitors in the New York area in 2013, however that does not tell the whole story.
Over a third of these Chinese tourists opt for hotels in New Jersey for both the lower rates and easier parking to accommodate tour buses.
China is New York’s fourth largest overseas market and destined to become number one, NYC & Company said.
New York tourism chiefs want to market the Big Apple’s eclectic boroughs as a more convenient alternative to New Jersey, such as Long Island City and Queens, said NYC & Company CEO Fred Dixon
