Blog: Los Angeles Celebrates Record Milestone of 50 Million Visitors in 2018 – Business Wire

LOS ANGELES–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Los Angeles reached a historic milestone in 2018, welcoming 50 million¹
visitors for the first time ever and accomplishing the destination’s
ambitious tourism goal two years early. The new record is 1.5 million
visitors higher than 2017’s total – a 3.1 percent increase – marking the
eighth-consecutive year of tourism growth for Los Angeles. City leaders
and Los Angeles Tourism & Convention Board President & CEO Ernest Wooden
Jr. made the celebratory announcement using a hologram created by Los
Angeles-based VNTANA,
the leading provider of premium mixed reality experiences, at a special
gathering of L.A.’s tourism and hospitality community.

B-ROLL VIDEO: 50
Million Hologram

“Los Angeles is a place where everyone is welcome, and tourism
strengthens our diversity, grows our economy, and supports good-paying
jobs for families across our city,” said Mayor Eric Garcetti.
“Surpassing 50 million annual visitors two years ahead of schedule is
the latest milestone in our ongoing work to bring Los Angeles to the
world, and the world to Los Angeles.”

In surpassing 50 million total visitors, Los Angeles set new tourism
records for domestic and international visitation, hosting an estimated
42.5 million domestic visitors (3 percent increase) and 7.5 million
international visitors (3.6 percent increase).

After a slight decrease in 2017, visitation from Mexico in 2018 scored
its highest total ever with 1.8 million visitors, a 4 percent increase.
China recorded an all-time high 1.2 million visitors, making Los Angeles
the number one ranked U.S. city for Chinese travelers (6.9 percent
increase, the largest net gain among all international markets). Other
international markets recording their highest visitation totals ever in
2018 include: Canada with 780,000 (4.5 percent increase); U.K. with
382,000 (3 percent increase); Japan with 349,000 (2.5 percent increase);
Scandinavia with 190,000 (3.9 percent increase); and India with 130,000
(5.1 percent increase).

Global sports icon, career Laker superstar and storyteller Kobe Bryant
delivered a jaw-dropping moment via a life-size interactive hologram,
sharing a congratulatory message and proclaiming L.A. as the sports
capital of the world. L.A. Tourism will collaborate with VNTANA to
produce additional activations throughout the year to bring the L.A.
visitor experience to life using immersive technology.

B-ROLL VIDEO: Kobe
Bryant Hologram

“The 50 million milestone was set in 2013 as a north star goal for the
tourism industry, but our unwavering focus on its significant community
impact and tangible economic benefits seamlessly transformed it into a
civic rallying cry for all of Los Angeles,” said Ernest Wooden Jr.,
president & CEO of the Los Angeles Tourism & Convention Board. “Thank
you to our city leadership and hospitality partners for their endless
support and ongoing investments that have cemented tourism in L.A. as a
powerful driver of economic growth.”

L.A.’s tourism growth can be attributed to several factors including a
3.6 percent increase in international seat capacity at Los Angeles
International Airport (LAX); nearly 2,000 new rooms added to the
destination’s hotel inventory; L.A.’s growing reputation as a hot
culinary and cultural destination; as well as L.A. Tourism’s latest
global campaign, ‘L.A. Loves’ which extended and amplified a message of
welcome and hospitality following the acclaimed ‘Everyone
is Welcome’ initiative.

Last year, tourism supported an average of more than 547,000 jobs in the
Leisure & Hospitality sector, one of the largest in L.A. County. Of the
11 major super sectors in the County, the Leisure & Hospitality sector
in 2018 generated the largest year-over-year increase in new jobs with
22,996 (4.4 percent increase).

A record 30.1 million hotel room nights (room demand) were sold
countywide, a 2.4 percent increase. Estimates show visitors are expected
to generate at least $288 million in transient occupancy tax collections
for the City of Los Angeles in 2018, a record. These dollars are used to
fund local fire, police as well as cultural and recreational services.

ABOUT LOS ANGELES TOURISM & CONVENTION BOARD

As the official destination marketing and sales organization for the
City of Los Angeles, Los Angeles Tourism & Convention Board (L.A.
Tourism) inspires travelers around the world to visit L.A. for leisure
or meetings and conventions, while advancing the city’s tourism economy.
For more information, visit discoverLosAngeles.com/corporate

¹ Tourism Economics, 2019