WASHINGTON — The District has seen a low number of tourists visiting the city compared to the pre-coronavirus era, Destination D.C. reports.
According to data released by Destination D.C., before the pandemic, the city welcomed about 24.6 million visitors, with visitation up 4.1% than 2019. The tourism supported about 78,266 jobs in the city--bringing $8.2 billion in visitor spending and $896 million in local tax revenue to the District.
With ten consecutive years of significant visitation growth in the city, Elliott L. Ferguson, II, President and CEO of DDC, believes that only about 11 million domestic visitors will travel to the city in 2020. That's about 53% less than the previous year.
Ferguson also projects that if we have a vaccine as early as next year and the economic impact of the pandemic doesn't get worse, then visitation in the city could bounce back and climb up to 20 million by 2022.
“We set the bar high with 10 consecutive years of growth before the pandemic changed things for us, and as we can expect, this year won’t look good,” said Ferguson. “The key for us will be securing funds to market our destination when the time is right, adapting our sales efforts virtually and focusing on the safety measures the city and industry have adopted to keep visitor safety in mind.”
D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser said during the interim, the city will work to support local businesses and the lives of residents the pandemic has impacted.
“We know that Washingtonians are resilient, and so is our culture and our community. Together, we will bring our tourism and hospitality industries back and better than before,” said Mayor Bowser. “As we continue through our pandemic response and recovery, we remain focused on supporting the local businesses that represent the livelihoods and dreams of Washingtonians. And with Destination DC’s help, and when the time is right, we are ready to remind everyone that DC is still a city with something for everyone – whether you’re here to live, work or play.”
Local leaders are working to attract visitors in different ways such as virtual and in-person events.
Bowser and National Tourism leaders also shared details on the city's tourism recovery efforts following the coronavirus pandemic:
Tourism leaders are planning ahead to conduct aggressive marketing as part of an initiative to promote tourism and conventions to domestic and international tourists.