NTTO Data Show NYC, Other Gateways, are the Big Attraction: Perhaps there are some factors that might qualify the data, but the recently released 2016 numbers by the U.S. Department of Commerce’s National Travel and Tourism Office (NTTO) on overseas visitation to U.S. states, cities and regions reveal that little headway has been made in the past several years in persuading international travelers to go “beyond the gateways” when they arrive in the United States for their holidays abroad.
In fact, nearly three quarters (73.9 percent) of international travelers chose to visit New York, California and Florida. And though there was a noticeable decline in international visitor volume last year (it was two percent overall), market share did not change significantly. (Table data are for overseas visitation: i.e., Mexico and Canada are excluded from the estimates.)
Overseas¹ Visitors to Select U.S. States and Territories 2015-2016
¹ Excludes Canada and Mexico (2)
² Only states visited having a sample size of at least 400 are displayed
Source: U.S. Department of Commerce, International Trade Administration, Industry & Analysis, National Travel & Tourism Office Release Date: August 2017
NOTE: This table shows only one of the 37 travel characteristics data reported on international arrivals to the U.S. Additional information may be obtained for a fee. To learn more, please visit our website:
The situation is very much the same for U.S. city destinations. Except for the fact the Boston narrowly eclipsed Chicago in 2016 (vs. 2015) in market share, the Top 10 City Destinations remained the same, with New York City Area), although Los Angeles’ market share and volume numbers were healthier than they were for other destinations—likely due to the large increase in visitors from China and elsewhere in Asia, for whom Los Angeles is the major port of entry into the U.S.
Overseas¹ Visitors to Select U.S. Cities 2015-2016
¹ Excludes Canada and Mexico
² Only states visited having a sample size of at least 400 are displayed
n/a = Estimate not available.
Source: U.S. Department of Commerce, International Trade Administration, Industry & Analysis, National Travel & Tourism Office
Regionally, there is an ever-so-slight shift in share away from the U.S. East Coast. Overall, NTTO’s overseas arrivals figures are similar, in their direction, to the nation’s major regions. However, on close inspection, one can see that both the South Atlantic U.S. and Mid Atlantic U.S., experienced declines in market share from 2015 to 2016. Also, the Pacific Islands enjoyed an increase in share—likely due to increased overseas travel from Asian source markets.
International Trade Administration-Tourism Industries
Survey of International Air Travelers For:
2015-2016 Overseas¹ Travelers Visits to U.S. Regions
¹ Excludes Canada and Mexico
Note: Starting in 2014 the 2 digit market share estimates were used to develop the visitation estimates for each year, although we only show one-digit in the table. *
Source: U.S. Department of Commerce, International Trade Administration, Industry & Analysis, National Travel & Tourism Office
